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

Thales of Miletus

Little remains of Thales's original writings, but his views are widely referenced. He theorized that water is the fundamental principle of all things. He also believed the Earth was motionless, floating on water.

Anaximander of Miletus

Anaximander followed a similar philosophical path, interpreting the relationship between humanity and the cosmos. He introduced the concept of Apeiron (the boundless or indefinite) as the fundamental principle of existence, containing the cause of birth and destruction throughout the world.

Anaximenes of Miletus

Also from Miletus, Anaximenes proposed air as the foundational element of all things. He theorized that the varying densities of air, through condensation and rarefaction, give rise to the... Continue reading "Foundational Ideas of Early Greek Philosophy" »

Critique of Anselm's Ontological Argument

St. Thomas' Rejection of the Argument

St. Thomas, consistent with his realism, cannot accept an argument like the ontological argument, which derives God's existence from His essence alone.

Formulation of the Ontological Argument (AO)

Indeed, the AO can be formulated as a syllogism whose premises are:

• Major premise: God is perfect.
• Minor premise: Existence is a perfection.
• Conclusion: God exists.

Knowledge of God's Essence

St. John of Damascus would have raised the difficulty about rationally proving God's existence from His essence, because regarding God, we only have negative knowledge ("In God, one only knows what is not"). One cannot prove the existence of a substance that is unknown.

Aquinas' Counter-Argument

Knowledge and Truth: Foundations of Belief

A belief is something one holds as true and can justify.

Attitudes Towards Reaching Truth

Given the possibility of reaching the truth, there are two opposing attitudes:

• Dogmatism: The belief that we can arrive at the truth with absolute certainty.
• Skepticism: The belief that it is impossible to know; practically all our knowledge and beliefs can be questioned.

Critical and Rational Inquiry

Critical and rational inquiry investigates the possibilities and limits of knowledge, analyzing and justifying our beliefs.

Defining Beliefs

Guess:

I think it is true, but I cannot justify it.

Justified Belief:

A belief that one holds as true and thinks they can justify (critical and rational). Information demonstrated in databases

Parmenides' Concept of Being

Parmenides of Elea proposed a radical concept of "Being" with several fundamental characteristics:

• It is eternal. It is neither generated nor can it perish. It is not generated, because if it were, it would come from non-being, which is unthinkable, or from being, in which case it would already exist. It cannot be destroyed, because to do so would be to cease to be, which is equally unthinkable.
• It is one. If there were two, they would have to differentiate into something. That 'something' would either be being, in which case they would be identical to the one, or non-being, in which case it would imply that non-being is being.
• It is indivisible. For it to be split, it would consist of 'parts,' and these parts would

Kant's Distinctions: Phenomenon and Noumenon

Kant presented in detail the distinction between phenomenon and noumenon, and on the other hand, the distinction between knowing and thinking.

1. Only phenomena we know, what appears to us in sensible intuition:
   1. Our knowledge of phenomena is the result of a double synthesis: the first level of sensitivity between the data of experience (sensory impressions) and the a priori forms of sensibility: Space and Time; the second between the spatially and temporally organized data and understanding, the concepts or categories.
2. Our theoretical knowledge is limited to objects of experience, to what is shown to us, so that any application of the categories to that of which I have no experience does not produce knowledge.

Textual Cohesion Mechanisms

Anaphora

Anaphora is a relationship where an element (the anaphor), typically a pronoun, determinant, or adverb, refers back to a previously mentioned element (the antecedent).

Cataphora

Cataphora is a relationship where an element refers forward to another element that appears later in the text. It often introduces what follows, for example, after a colon or comma: This is what he said: "I'm leaving."

Ellipsis

Ellipsis is the suppression of a known element that can be retrieved from the context. It can be:

• Nominal Ellipsis: Omitting a noun. Example: The second-year (students) are ready.
• Verbal Ellipsis: Omitting a verb. Example: I haven't read the novel. Me neither (have I read it).

Impersonal Constructions

The speaker intentionally... Continue reading "A Deep Dive into Textual Cohesion and Discourse Markers" »

The Hegelian Dialectic

Kant argues that there is only technological progress, not moral. Hegel takes up these ideas, stating that there is moral progress as a result of history. History is dialectical; it works reasonably well with the triad thesis-antithesis-synthesis. Any statement in itself implies a negation, so the whole thesis generates an antithesis. These confront each other. The confrontation can only be overcome by another phase: synthesis. The synthesis is a time where we integrate the best, most rational aspects of the thesis and the antithesis. The synthesis generates a new thesis, and therefore another antithesis. It forms a chain, but Hegel says that there will be a final synthesis. This process is history. Each new synthesis... Continue reading "Hegel's Dialectic and Marx's Class Struggle" »

Historical Framework of Thomas Aquinas's Philosophy

The philosophy of St. Thomas Aquinas developed in the 13th century, a period representing the greatest flowering of medieval Europe. France served as the cultural and political center, enjoying a stable economy driven by flourishing trade, a stable currency, increasing circulation of precious metals, and the consolidation of papal power. The artisan guild system reached its zenith during this era. Denying the existence of God was dangerous, and the prevailing Augustinian philosophy assumed God's existence.

Sociocultural Context: The Rise of Universities

The 13th century is notable for the appearance and rise of universities, including prominent institutions like Bologna, Oxford, and Salamanca.... Continue reading "Thomas Aquinas's Philosophy: Thirteenth-Century Foundations and Core Ideas" »

Locke's Empiricism: Common Sense and Ideas

John Locke, in a Cartesian manner, defends the need to reflect on one's own knowledge. Following Cartesian principles, he defines knowledge as the agreement or disagreement between ideas, and not as an agreement between ideas and things, as classical thought did. This shift from classical thought means modern philosophy focuses not on what the world is in itself, but on what happens within our consciousness – that is, all of our ideas.

Idea Source and Type

Descartes claimed that the mind has innate ideas generated by our own reason. Locke rejects this possibility, arguing that reason is not creative, but rather receives content, merely perceiving the agreement or disagreement between these contents.... Continue reading "Locke and Berkeley: Empiricism, Ideas, and the Nature of Reality" »

Reason and the Control of Human Concupiscence

The rule of reason produces prudence, which enables control over the irascible (fortitude) and the concupiscence (temperance). Kant also sets up an opposition between impulses and reason. He views any action resulting in pleasure as suspect; for Kant, the high cost of our behavior is a sign of its moral worth.

Key Differences Between Plato and Kant

• 1. Ethics and Politics: In Plato, ethics is subordinate to politics. For the Greek philosopher, correct behavior is not what is good in the abstract, but what is good for the polis. Virtues are divided by class: wisdom for rulers, fortitude and temperance for guards and workers. Each person fits a role within the state. Plato adopted the "political lie"