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

Marxist Theory of Alienation

According to Marx, humanity is alienated for several reasons:

• Economic: In capitalist society, individuals earn a salary for their labor, but it is often barely enough to meet their needs. The capitalist exploits the proletariat by accumulating wealth without directly working.
• Professional: Society does not reward individuals for good work; instead, labor serves to enrich the capitalist, even though work is fundamental to personal fulfillment.
• Legal: While the law proclaims equality, in reality, opportunities are not the same for everyone.
• Ideological: The ideology of a society reflects the beliefs of the ruling class. Religion, for instance, promises rewards in the afterlife if one follows a set of rules and does not

Atheism

A doctrine which, in theory or attitude, and in practice, denies the existence of God. It is important to distinguish atheism, which asserts a positive non-existence of God, from indifferentism, agnosticism, and skepticism.

Feign

To have the appearance (of a certain thing, a certain age, etc.). Historically, in religions, there have always been people or doctrines that feigned or appeared to be something else.

Science

A set of knowledge and activities designed to achieve it, characterized formally by intersubjectivity, and practically by the ability to make accurate predictions about a part of reality.

Tarraconense Council

A document that reflects on the needs of the poorest and marginalized, and calls upon Christians to renew their commitment... Continue reading "Essential Definitions: Social, Philosophical, and Religious Concepts" »

Nihilism and the Crisis of Meaning

With nihilism comes the death of God, a profound crisis of meaning and belief. Existence becomes unsustainable, empty, and devoid of purpose. Consider that every value is possible only if God exists, and if God does not exist, it ultimately leads to despair.

Nietzsche's Critique of Metaphysics

Nietzsche accused metaphysics of hating the notion of becoming. He asserted that the only attributes of reality are plurality and mobility. The apparent world of the senses is the only thing that exists, and anything else is unprovable.

Metaphysical Errors Identified by Nietzsche

• Metaphysicians confuse the last with the first. General concepts are the last thing humanity captures through abstraction, beginning with the senses.

Thomas Aquinas and the Existence of God

Thomas Aquinas sought to integrate Christian faith with common sense and empirical observation (confidence in the senses). This approach influenced his quest for a rational demonstration of the existence of God. For Thomas, God's existence lies outside the scope of the obvious and, therefore, necessitates a rational demonstration. He believed that all human knowledge begins with the senses, so the existence of God can only be inferred from sensible objects. God, he argued, must have left significant clues in the world He created that lead us to prove His existence.

Thomas Aquinas' Five Ways

Thomas produced five ways to prove the existence of God. In these five ways, he argues similarly, following the same... Continue reading "Thomas Aquinas: 5 Ways to Prove God's Existence" »

Understanding the Mind-Body Problem

The brain-mind relationship, often referred to as the mind-body problem, is intrinsically linked to the problem of perception. It seeks to understand the nature of perceptions and, more generally, all mental contents. Perceptions, sensory experiences, and thoughts are fundamentally mental.

This fundamental distinction often leads to differentiating between physical bodies and mental states:

• Physical Bodies: These are all objects that can be measured and touched, subject to all defined physical laws. Generally, they can be studied with scientific instruments and are accessible to everyone.
• Mental States: These encompass thoughts and the flow of mental contents that, by definition, are internal to each individual.

Christianity and Philosophy: An Interplay

While some early Christian thinkers showed hostility toward philosophy, considering it an enemy of the faith, others saw philosophy and reason as valuable instruments to defend their religious beliefs.

No less challenging was reconciling the Christian notion of truth with Greek philosophy. For Christians, the divine origin of truth made their truth the truth, pure and simple.

Despite these difficulties, Christian thinkers found significant overlap with Platonism, which encouraged them to draw on this philosophical current to justify, defend, or understand their faith.

Furthermore, regarding humanity, the affirmation of its dualistic composition (soul and body) and the immortality of the soul were considered... Continue reading "Saint Augustine's Philosophy: Bridging Faith and Reason" »

Categories: Unifying Intuitions of Sensibility

Which is a category? All knowledge is to judge, that is, to unify the intuitions of sensibility by means of pure concepts or categories. Categories are the possibilities we have to make claims about what has not affected us. According to Kant, the understanding is capable of making judgments in 12 different ways, and if we are able to do this, it is because, a priori, without obtaining the experience, we have twelve categories or ways to meet phenomenal reality. Kant insists that we know reality itself, that the categories are the way the world is comprehensible to humans. Among the most important categories is that of causality. The categories allow us to make judgments about the physical world... Continue reading "Kant's Philosophy: Understanding, Reason, and Transcendental Ideas" »

Legitimacy of the State and the Definition of Law

The legitimacy of the state's action is to defend peace, values, and characteristics of democracies.

Understanding Law: Three Perspectives

Law can be understood in three ways:

1. Science: The study of law through its history, philosophy, and sociology.
2. Subjective Power: The effective power a member of society has to possess, make, or demand something, according to the laws and the legal system that protects them.
3. Objective: The set of laws and regulations governing the conduct of people and directing their lives in society.

Key Characteristics of Law

Law has the following characteristics:

1. Rationality: Law must have its foundation in reason, far from any arbitrary whim.
2. Freedom or Tolerance: For equal circumstances,

Understanding Empiricism

Empiricism is the philosophical theory according to which the origin and limits of knowledge are sensory experience. The best-known empiricists include Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, David Hume, and George Berkeley.

Understanding Rationalism

Conversely, Rationalism is the philosophical doctrine that recognizes no source of knowledge other than reason, thus rejecting revelation, faith, and the senses. In the history of philosophy, rationalism has a more limited meaning, beginning in the 17th century with the figure of the mathematician René Descartes.

Key Differences Between Empiricism and Rationalism

It is interesting to compare Empiricism and Rationalism through their core tenets:

1. Source of Knowledge

   For Empiricism, the source

Ontological Idealism: Plato's Perspective

Plato argues that ideas exist independently, and he defends this position:

• If ideas were merely the product of thought, then thought could invent anything. However, thought does not invent ideas but discovers what already exists, as Plato discovered.
• For Plato, thinking is not merely any mental activity, but a specific understanding of pre-existing truths; one cannot simply think otherwise.
• Experience shows a succession of particular cases, but the idea is universal, encompassing all possible cases.
• Furthermore, there are ideas that do not represent things found in physical reality.

Christian Dualism

Christian dualism posits a fundamental distinction:

• The Creator: Necessary, omnipotent, and eternal.
• The Created: