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

Social Contract Theories

The justification of the state: contractualism: Social Contract: "According to the agreement among the community to enforce laws and make the state appear." They are the citizens who decide to cede power to an authority and legitimacy. These theories are contractualism. Hobbes, Locke and Rousseau. Two forms of state:

• a) State of nature: Describes Life as it would not exist without the state
• b) Welfare state: People are forced to organize on the basis of an agreement or covenant.

Thomas Hobbes

First to use the term social contract. He understood the state of nature and justification of the rule as follows:

1. a) State of Nature. "Homo homini lupus" Man is a wolf to man, without a state is governed by the law of the jungle. The

Hume and Descartes: Shared Ideas

Similarities between Hume and Descartes:

1. Hume, a learned individual, shares with Descartes the ideal and pursuit of autonomous reason—a reason liberated from all authority, serving as the sole guide in understanding reality, morality, and societal theories.
2. Both Descartes' rationalism and Hume's empiricism share a concern for the problem of knowledge: reason, nature, scope, and limits. They place the theme of knowledge at the center of their philosophies.
3. The emergence of both philosophies is closely connected with modern science. Hume applied Newton's physics method to the study of human nature. His greatest aspiration was, as he stated, to become the Newton of moral sciences.

Key Differences: Rationalism vs.

Plato's Dialectics: A Path to the World of Ideas

Dialectics, the superior form of knowledge, refers to the World of Ideas, to the immutable, universal, and eternal. It is identified with philosophy itself. Plato conceived dialectics in two ways: firstly, as a rational method that uses no sensible signs, employing only reason. It rests on "assumptions" but attempts to dispense with any recourse to the senses. Philosophy, which is synonymous with dialectics, is a more reflective knowledge, one that leaves no question without examination or assessment. The goal of dialectics is to discover the relationships between ideas and to seek the ultimate foundation of all: the Idea of the Good. True philosophy is "an ascent to being": the philosopher must... Continue reading "Plato's Dialectics and the Theory of Ideas: Understanding Reality" »

Lesson 3: 19th-Century Scientific Paradigm

Analytical Jurisprudence in England

The motion encoder also develops its own characteristics in England, where we speak rather of analytical jurisprudence. We might say that the notion is more properly analytic, beginning in the 19th century, and that is mainly due to Austin. In England, the most complete theory of coding was carried out. Coding, in this case, will not be as in France. England did not establish codes as strict as in France, but Bentham developed the possibility of a codification of general validity.

Bentham's Legal, Political, and Economic Reflections

Bentham reflected on the legal, political, and economic, and to some extent, adopted a perspective that deals with an analytical stance.... Continue reading "19th-Century Legal Theories: Bentham's Utilitarianism and Jurisprudence" »

Plato's Anthropological Dualism: Body and Soul

For Plato, the human being is composed of two distinct realities: body and soul.

The Soul: Spiritual Nature

The soul possesses a spiritual nature and originates from the intelligible world. Plato described the body as the temporary prison of the soul.

The Body: Material Nature

The body is material in nature and belongs to the world of sense. While attached to the body, the soul desires to be free from the ties binding it to the sensible world. The soul moves the body, which is inanimate by itself.

The union of body and soul is considered accidental.

Arguments for the Soul's Immortality

Plato provides several arguments for the immortality of the soul:

• Argument from the Succession of Opposites: Plato argued

The Crisis of the 17th Century

René Descartes lived in a period marked by uncertainty and confusion arising from the crisis suffered by the man of the seventeenth century. The old skills were no longer valid and were discussed and questioned by the intellectuals of the time. Two main causes contributed to this malaise and confusion: the scientific revolution and the loss of religious unity.

• The scientific revolution dismantled theories that had been maintained for centuries, like the geocentric, Aristotelian theories, or the scholastic method.
• The loss of religious unity led Christian Europe to be divided into three groups: Catholic, Protestant, and Anglican. This division was the cause of many conflicts for centuries, such as the Thirty Years'

Block I (Kant): Summary - Overcoming Rationalism and Empiricism

"Sapere Aude!" (Dare to think!) The Enlightenment ideal champions Reason's independence from external authority, emphasizing progress through science. Kant merges rationalism and empiricism, inspired by Newton's synthesis of reason and experience. Rationalism, focusing on innate concepts, risked detachment from reality, while empiricism, grounded in experience, struggled with universality. Kant critiques rationalism's dogmatism and empiricism's skepticism, proposing that knowledge arises from perceptions shaped by inherent mental structures.

Classification of Judgments

Scientific judgments must expand knowledge and hold universal validity. Analytic judgments are inherent in the subject,... Continue reading "Kant's Philosophy: Unifying Rationalism and Empiricism" »

Key Definitions of Justice

• Ulpiano's Justice: The Roman philosopher Ulpiano defined justice as the constant and perpetual will to give each his own, to act appropriately, not to harm anyone, and to give everyone his due.
• St. Thomas Aquinas on Justice: Following in the footsteps of Aristotle, St. Thomas Aquinas added the concept of general, social, or legal justice, according to which community members must adapt their behavior to the common good.

Classes and Parts of Justice

Justice is shown in three dimensions:

1. The state requires the citizen to adjust its behavior to the common good.
2. The matter requires the state to reverse the cumulative delivery of efficient public services or to distribute equitably the charges and public burdens.
3. Individuals

The Unique Method of Reason

The ideal of universal science rests on a unique method valid for all sciences. This method, based on the structure of reason, applies to all individuals and fields of knowledge. To understand this method, we must analyze reason itself. Descartes identifies two fundamental operations of reason: intuition and deduction.

Intuition and the Simple Natures

Intuition is the immediate and effortless grasp of a clear and distinct idea. These intuited objects are "simple natures" or "clear and distinct ideas," the foundation of all knowledge. Key examples are extension and thought, considered innate ideas—potentially present in the mind and revealed through experience.

Deduction and the Composite Natures

Deduction involves... Continue reading "Descartes' Method and the Ideal of Universal Science" »

Metaphysics

Metaphysics is a branch of philosophy that deals with the study of the fundamental nature of reality, including the first principles of things, such as being, knowing, identity, time, and space. It also examines the causes of our knowledge, universal principles, and spiritual beings.

According to Professor Lash, this definition sparks some philosophical discussion because it raises the question: "Is metaphysics truly a science?" Science typically deals with what can be measured and observed, while metaphysics often delves into the intangible and spiritual. Every individual engages in metaphysics through their actions and thoughts, with the clarity of their reasoning reflecting their level of progress.

The Role of Belief

The sensitive... Continue reading "Metaphysics, Belief, and Religion: Understanding the Interplay" »