Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Philosophy and ethics

What Is Art?

Aesthetic taste should be understood as a person's ability to detect beauty, and an aesthetic experience is the emotional state of someone contemplating an aesthetic object in a disinterested way.

• Art: Art is an activity oriented toward the production of objects that cause an aesthetic experience in people who have aesthetic taste. An object is created with the purpose of provoking this kind of experience in those who observe it.
• Beauty: Beauty is an aesthetic value attributed to various objects. It has been associated with objective qualities — harmony, proportion, goodness, and truth — and with subjective feelings such as pleasure or attraction.

Natural Beauty Versus Artistic Beauty

What is the difference between natural and artistic... Continue reading "Understanding Art, Beauty, and Aesthetic Experience" »

Solidarism and the Enforcement of International Rule

The classical English School scholar, Hedley Bull, defined solidarism as the collective enforcement of international rules and the guardianship of human rights. Solidarism is driven by states for the purpose and interests of the people they serve.

In a solidarist order, individuals possess basic rights (e.g., not to be killed or harmed). If harm is being undertaken and the state is unable to prevent it, solidarist theory holds that the members of the international society have a duty to intervene.

The Challenge of Humanitarian Intervention in the UN Order

Within the UN framework, the primary problem regarding humanitarian intervention was not the danger that external powers showed no regard for... Continue reading "Solidarism, Pluralism, and the R2P Doctrine in International Relations" »

Clause Fragments and How to Correct Them

Clause fragments occur when:

• A dependent clause is not attached to an independent clause.
• A sentence is missing a verb or a subject.

How to Correct a Fragment

• Give the subject an adequate verb or give the verb a subject.
• Combine the fragment with the sentence before or after it.
• Change a word or two in the fragment to make it a complete sentence.

Avoiding Double Negative Constructions

Double negation is grammatically incorrect; any negative proposition must only contain one negative. Some pronouns or adverbs, such as no, nothing (not anything), nobody (not anybody), and never (not ever), are called negative terms.

When negation already exists in the sentence, the following are used:

• Any instead of no
• Anything instead

Beowulf: Key Events and Literary Elements

Early Danish History

Hrothgar Builds Heorot

Grendel Attacks

Beowulf Hears the News

The Coast Guard Greets Beowulf

Wulfgar Greets Beowulf

Hrothgar Greets Beowulf

Unferth Challenges Beowulf; Beowulf Replies

Wealhtheow Greets Beowulf

Beowulf and Grendel Fight

Celebrations at Heorot; Beowulf Rewarded

The story of Sigemund and the Finn episode is told.

More Celebrations

Grendel's Mother Attacks

Beowulf Comes to Hrothgar's Aid

Beowulf Fights Grendel's Mother

Beowulf sinks into the mere, fights Grendel's mother, and cuts off Grendel's head.

Celebrations and Thanks

Hrothgar's Prophecy and Warning

Gifts and parting.

Home to Hygelac and Queen Hygd

Contrast between Queen Modthryth and Queen Hygd revealed.

Beowulf Recounts His Adventures

(... Continue reading "Beowulf: Summary of Key Events and Literary Elements" »

The Evolution of Social Rights and Neoliberal Critique

Although during the 20th century fundamental social rights were extended to include social, economic, and cultural requirements—such as education, health, pensions, and unemployment protection—recent decades have seen neoliberal voices challenge this expansion, advocating for a return to a pure liberal model.

Friedrich Hayek and the Road to Servitude

Friedrich Hayek, the 1974 Nobel Prize laureate in Economic Sciences, argued that the social and political evolution of Western societies stems from the free market's capacity to balance individual interests. He maintained that:

• Market outcomes should be accepted without moral judgment regarding justice or injustice.
• Political interventionism

Martin Luther King Jr.'s Philosophy of Non-Violence

In Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail," natural laws are described as being created under the universal moral law, or in this case, the law of God. These truths were originated to be the essentials of what makes us human. However, unjust laws were made to create unequal treatment between two groups of our society: the rich and the poor. Therefore, favoring one side to become superior while the other side is weakened. Civil disobedience is refusing to comply with the government's commands, in which facing the consequences will likely occur. Rather than submitting to unjust laws, King used the acts of civil disobedience to achieve seemingly impossible goals. Furthermore, these... Continue reading "Civil Disobedience and Ethical Humanism: Principles of Justice" »

Superficiality and Social Status in Victorian London

It is no surprise that a society that prizes beauty above all else is a society founded on a love of surfaces. What matters most to Dorian Gray, Lord Henry, and the polite company they keep is not whether a man is good at heart, but rather whether he is handsome. As Dorian evolves into the realization of a type—the perfect blend of scholar and socialite—he experiences the freedom to abandon his morals without censure.

Indeed, even though, as Basil Hallward warns, society’s elite question his name and reputation, Dorian is never ostracized. On the contrary, despite his "mode of life," he remains at the heart of the London social scene because of the "innocence" and "purity of his face.... Continue reading "Themes in The Picture of Dorian Gray: Beauty and Morality" »

Transitions are words or phrases that connect two ideas. Transitions help your reader follow your line of thought. You can use transitions to add information, contrast ideas, or show cause and effect. A transition usually connects two sentences or independent clauses. When it connects two sentences, use a period. When it connects two independent clauses, use a semicolon (;). When it begins a sentence or clause, use a comma after the transition.

Adding Information with Transitions

You can use transitional words such as the conjunctive adverbs also and furthermore to add information to a statement.

More people are being born than are dying. Also, people are living longer. The building will have 180 floors; furthermore, it will have stores and cinemas.... Continue reading "Using Transition Words and Phrases Effectively" »