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

Core Accounting Principles and Standards

Principle of Fidelity and Objectivity

This principle requires that the accounts present a true and fair view of the company's financial position. Other accounting principles are subordinate to the requirement of fidelity. Data must be collected impartially and objectively.

The General Accounting Plan (PGC) complements this requirement with the Principle of Materiality. Under this principle, certain accounting standards may not be strictly applied, provided that the resulting change in the financial statements is not significant.

Clarity in Financial Reporting (Article 34)

The formal expression of subsequent records must ensure the data is:

• Ordered (Systematic)
• Meticulous (Thorough)
• Detailed
• Accessible (Easy to

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Philosophy

Philosophy is an activity that involves thinking and reasoning about concepts and ideas. Philosophical activity is initiated, therefore, by asking questions about concepts. To answer, the philosopher defends or criticizes a thesis using arguments or reasoning. The term "philosophy" means love of wisdom.

The issues raised by philosophy fall into two types: questions about how the world is and how we know it, and issues that address the question of living well in the world and about human behavior.

• Theoretical philosophy is based on reality and knowledge of the world.
• Practical philosophy focuses on human action and moral conduct.

Questions About Reality

Natural phenomena, such as lightning, eclipses, earthquakes, etc., have constantly been...

Rousseau's Social Contract Theory

Jean-Jacques Rousseau was deeply interested in transforming the prevailing social order in Europe, which was characterized by the struggle between the monarchy and the bourgeoisie. To develop his theory, he created a fictional state of nature where he posited the existence of a natural man, often referred to as the noble savage.

The natural man lives in harmony between his inner nature (his needs) and external nature (the environment), as his surroundings provide him with everything he requires. The noble savage is not inherently a social being; he lacks extensive knowledge, does not imagine the future, but lives solely in the present, and has no inherent idea of good or evil.

Rousseau believed that two primary...

"All men by nature desire to know." With these words begins the first book of Aristotle's Metaphysics. That desire to know culminates in the acquisition of wisdom, which is, for Aristotle, knowledge of the causes and principles of being. And that knowledge is the object of metaphysics, the science of first causes and principles of being, the knowledge of self "as being," knowledge of the ultimate cause of nature and reality.

Aristotle's Reaction to Plato's Theory of Ideas

Aristotelian metaphysics is developed largely in reaction to the theory of Ideas of Plato. Aristotle does not appear to have any opposition to or criticism of the theory of Ideas while in the Academy. It shows, on the contrary, that the first criticisms of the theory of Ideas...

Understanding Relativism

Cultural and Moral Relativism

Cultural Relativism claims that good and evil are relative to each culture, so the same value can be both good and bad. Moral Relativism is the claim that every moral system acquires meaning internally, and there is no objective value across different systems.

The Relativist Outlook

Relativism, as an outlook, can lead towards moral indifference, the negation of all values, and therefore also to the denial of ethical tolerance.

Universalism: Seeking Moral Truth

Universalism maintains that there is a good and a bad, defending that there is only one valid moral code. It posits that a regulation cannot be right or wrong depending on circumstances or cultures. The difference between relativism and...

Informal Fallacies and False Arguments

Reasoning fallacies are arguments that are logically invalid, yet they may appear sound or persuasive. These errors in logic are generally categorized into two basic types:

1. Formal Fallacies

Formal fallacies involve errors in the structure or form of the argument, regardless of the content. Examples include:

• Denial of the antecedent
• Affirming the consequent

2. Informal Fallacies: Errors in Content and Context

Informal fallacies rely on faulty premises, irrelevant information, or linguistic ambiguity rather than structural errors. The main types are:

Ad Verecundiam Fallacy (Appeal to Authority)

This fallacy attempts to defend a conclusion by appealing to someone or something considered an authority on the subject,...

Understanding Adverbial Clauses

Clauses of Time

They are often introduced by subordinators such as after, before, since, until, when, while, as soon as, and once.

Example: When I first met you, you were still studying.

Clauses of Place

They are introduced by where or wherever.

Example: They always went for their holidays wherever they could afford to go.

Clauses of Condition and Concession

This category includes two related types:

• Conditional Clauses: These express the dependence of one set of circumstances on another.

Example: If you are late, I will have gone away.

Concessive Clauses: These imply a contrast between two circumstances; the main clause is surprising in light of the subordinate one.

Example: Although I was late, she waited for me.

Specific

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According to Marxist theory, the mode of production determines the structure of society. The capitalist mode, based on the private ownership of the means of production, divides society into two antagonistic classes: the proletariat and the bourgeoisie. The nature and structure of any society are defined by the prevailing mode of production. A change in this mode of production also transforms the entire social system, including its ideas and institutions. Such a change in the mode of production constitutes a revolution.

Karl Marx analyzed the evolution of the production process across various historical societies, demonstrating how it has changed throughout history depending on the mode of production in each period. He identified two key levels:...

Irrationalism in the Nineteenth Century

The thought of questioning the suspect competence to express the real extended to the same philosophy. Irrationalist thinkers share a number of common features:

1. Positive emotions: The world includes all non-rational faculties of knowledge, such as feelings, passions, intuition, or will. Practically since its origins, emotions had been rejected when considering them as an obstacle to knowledge.
2. Exaltation of the will and creative imagination as background knowledge: Philosophers such as Schopenhauer and Nietzsche stressed the importance of these skills to access higher levels of reality, beyond the results provided by reason.
3. Accentuation of the distressing and painful character of human existence: For irrationalist

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Thomas Aquinas: A 13th-Century Scholar

Historical and Sociocultural Context

Saint Thomas Aquinas lived during the 13th century, a period marked by Europe's resurgence, with the growth of towns, trade, and the rise of universities. Feudalism remained the dominant social structure, but the emergence of the bourgeoisie signaled a shift in power dynamics.

This era witnessed the pursuit of a universal Christendom, influenced by cultural exchanges between Islam and Christianity, spurred by the Crusades and the Toledo School of Translators. The introduction of Aristotle's works to the West significantly impacted philosophical thought, shaping the development of scholasticism.

Influences and Impact

Aquinas was deeply influenced by Aristotle, incorporating...