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

Introduction to Ethics

Ethics is a philosophical reflection on morality. It studies the origin of moral codes that guide conduct and examines the consequences of our moral actions. Ethics helps us construct informed opinions when faced with moral dilemmas and provides a rationale for understanding moral behavior.

Three Main Ethical Frameworks

Ethical theories can be broadly categorized into three groups:

• Consequentialist Ethics (Ethical Purposes): Focuses on the outcomes or consequences of actions. A moral action is one that maximizes good consequences.
• Deontological Ethics (Ethics of Duty): Emphasizes moral duties and obligations. A moral action is one performed in accordance with duty, regardless of the consequences.
• Virtue Ethics: Centers on

Descartes' Proof of God and the Nature of Reality

The Existence of God and the Refutation of Doubt

Descartes' proof of God's existence is central to his philosophical system. He argues that there exists an infinite and benevolent God, distinct from the thinking self. This divine being guarantees that clear and distinct ideas, products of proper reasoning, correspond to external realities. This counters the 'evil genius' hypothesis, assuring us that our properly formed thoughts are not systematically deceptive.

Three Fundamental Substances: God, Thought, and Extension

Descartes posits three fundamental substances: God, thought (mind), and extension (matter). God is the ultimate cause of all other realities. Thought and extension are distinct in... Continue reading "Descartes' Proof of God and Dualism" »

Kant's Doctrine of Judgments: Universality and Necessity

Kant examines how judgments can possess the characteristics of universality and necessity, similar to those found in physical science and analytical, non-mathematical sciences. He proposes a nuanced division based on:

• The inherent (or non-inherent) relationship between subject and predicate.
• The origin of the judgment.

Based on these criteria, Kant distinguishes between analytic and synthetic judgments:

• Analytic Judgments: The predicate is already contained within the subject.
• Synthetic Judgments: The predicate is *not* contained within the subject.

Examples:

• Analytic Judgment (A Priori): "All bodies are extended." (Extension is inherent to the concept of a body). "The whole is greater than the

Chapter 5. MIDDLE AGES: AN EXPERIENCE IN MULTIPLE LEGAL LAWS

Item 4: The Medieval Legal

Legal experience is a set of fundamental policies that need to be implemented. It's a prism that specifies, concretizes, and translates attitudes and orientations of legal action into effective life schemes.

This instrument of specification and realization is precisely the OJ through which experience is expressed. The system is made of schemes able to order reality, thanks to their specificity.

The law, as the "organization, structure, and situation of the society in which it develops and what constitutes it as a unit," was essentially cut off from political power and historical projection. In the absence of the State, the law could operate under the power of... Continue reading "Medieval Law: A Multifaceted Legal Experience" »

Understanding Rationalism

Insecure, if not a lifelong dream and the world a stage, as Shakespeare says.

Types of Modern Rationalism

There are three types of modern rationalism:

• Psychological Rationalism: Reason is equated with thinking over emotion and will.
• Metaphysical Rationalism: Reality possesses a rational character.
• Epistemological Rationalism: Reason is the only appropriate source and means of knowledge. This idea stems from two key assumptions:
  • Our knowledge can be constructed deductively from clear ideas and principles.
  • These ideas and principles are innate to the understanding, possessed independently of any sensory experience.

Characteristics of Rationalism (16th-18th Centuries)

Rationalism, as a specific school of thought that developed... Continue reading "Modern Philosophical Rationalism Explained" »

ITEM 1

Mythical Explanation Features:

• Personification and deification of natural forces and phenomena (e.g., lightning, water).
• The phenomena of the universe occur arbitrarily.
• Mythical explanations are accepted as true due to tradition and authority.
• The authority of tradition is unquestioned.

Rational Explanation Features:

• No reliance on gods or supernatural agents. The concept of nature (physis) emerges.
• Things happen when they must and as they should. The idea of nature is linked to necessity and law.
• A rational explanation is considered true based on the strength of underlying reasons and arguments.
• It can be discussed and subjected to critique.

Characteristics of Science:

• It is rational, logical knowledge using mathematical language.
• It seeks to understand

Descartes' Impact on Philosophy and the Existence of God

Due to the great importance of Descartes, we can relate his ideas to many authors in the history of philosophy, both past and present. We could relate him to St. Thomas Aquinas and focus primarily on his theory of knowledge and the demonstration of the existence of God.

For Thomas Aquinas and Aristotle, knowledge starts from experience; there is nothing in the understanding that has not gone through the senses. For Descartes, the senses are deceptive, and truth is the evidence that reveals reason. Thomas Aquinas' proof of the existence of God starts from the observation of facts. Descartes made his proof from the innate idea of infinity, which does not come from experience.

Descartes and

Moral Responsibility

Moral responsibility is derived from the commitment that an individual acquires moral obligations. Etymologically, it means the need to respond. The individual is left alone to be responsible and deal with everything that comes in life. There is a human need to respond to people and the environment. This need involves a unity linked to the freedom to do the right thing. The moral subject is more or less responsible. Coercion, if legitimate, is another defense to liability. Moral responsibility indicates moral progress in individuals and groups. Autonomy and Moral Heteronomy are related to everything said here. On the one hand, humans regulate some of their behaviors. Furthermore, they are free, rational, and conscientious

Ancient Philosophical Schools

• The Stoa: Led to Stoicism, initiated by Zeno of Citium.
• The Garden: Created by Epicurus, representing Epicureanism.
• Cynicism: Initiated by Antisthenes.

Stoicism

The founder of this school was Zeno of Citium (c. 334 – 262 BC). Other prominent representatives include Marcus Aurelius, Seneca of Cordoba, and Epictetus. Stoic ethics sets the goal of existence as happiness. Happiness is achieved by living according to nature, that is, living in harmony with the Logos. One must align their individual Logos with the universal Logos to understand everything that occurs in nature. Stoicism posits an active Logos (fire) and a passive Logos (matter), which need each other to exist and generate relationships of sympathy between... Continue reading "Stoicism, Epicureanism, and Cynicism: Ancient Schools" »

Philosophical Foundations of Marxist Socialism in Education

Theory of Human Alienation

Historical Materialism

Philosophical Presuppositions: The theory of human alienation is based on the original work of Marx, but it also refers back to Hegel, where alienation is operated within consciousness or thought. In Marx, it has real substance and purpose in the living conditions of the working man, relying on specific situations and unique historical processes.

• In Religion: Born of the miserable circumstances in which relationships develop. Hence, there is only one way out of this religious alienation: the radical transformation of society.
• Politically: Marx criticizes the state as the source of our political alienation. It is, therefore, an instrument