Notes, abstracts, papers, exams and problems of Philosophy and ethics

Civil Society vs. Political Society

Locke's Distinction and the Liberal State

Locke was the first philosopher to distinguish between civil society and political society, emphasizing the need for a liberal state to protect individual liberties. Hegel's liberal thought assigns the state the task of applying universal goodwill to particular situations. In present-day democratic societies, civil society is considered the most suitable environment for individuals to exercise their liberties.

Naturalistic Theory

Naturalistic theories posit that society precedes the individual, arguing that society is a necessary condition for human life. Several prominent philosophers have supported this concept:

1. Plato argued that humans are not self-sufficient and

Understanding Morality and Ethics

Morality: The set of behaviors, norms, and values that govern a society at a given time.

Ethics: The theoretical reflection on the behaviors, norms, and values that shape morality.

Conscious acts mean that the subject must clearly know what they are doing. Voluntary acts mean that the subject must want to do what they do, choose between various options, and choose without fear or coercion.

Aristotle

Property: That by which human beings work, not as a means to get something, but as an end in itself.

Happiness: Involves the exercise of reason.

Moral Understanding: The force that leads human beings to act in ways that achieve the nominated property.

Epicurus

Seek pleasure through reason and prudence.

Nature: Overcoming... Continue reading "Understanding Morality, Ethics, and Key Philosophies" »

Superman

According to Nietzsche, there are two different moralities: the master and the slave. The master creates their own moral code, while the slave adheres to a code they lack the courage to challenge. To establish a master morality, the creative Übermensch (superman) is necessary. The Übermensch embodies the will to power, overcomes nihilism, and creates a new set of values. They reject slave morality and herd behavior, possessing the capacity and determination to create values faithful to life. The Übermensch lives finitely, accepts life's meaninglessness, and faces existence's terrors bravely. They embrace risk, suffering, and life's intensity, opposing egalitarianism. In essence, the Übermensch is the energetic affirmation of life,... Continue reading "Nietzsche's Philosophy: Superman, Nihilism, Eternal Return" »

Dialectical and Hermeneutical Methods

Dialectical method: (Thesis, antithesis, synthesis)

Hermeneutical method: Understanding documents

Branches of Philosophy

Ontology: A Study of Being

Onto: be / Logos: study

Fundamental Questions

• What is being? It cannot be reduced to a more general concept because it does not exist.
• Who is being? This involves pointing out what is being and distinguishing it from what is not being authentic. This is explained in...
• Being itself: Cannot be reduced to another.
• Being in another: Can be reduced, therefore, it is not being.

Heraclitus: Everything flows.

Parmenides: Being is not non-being. There cannot be a movement from one being to another because there is nothing in the middle.

Qualities of Being

• Immutable and static
• Infinite
• One

Epistemology:

1. Augustine on Faith and Reason

Augustine believed that reason alone is insufficient to reach the truth due to its inherent limitations. He argued that reason must submit to faith to attain true understanding.

2. Thomas Aquinas and Aristotelian Philosophy

Thomas Aquinas adopted Aristotelian principles but selectively, rejecting elements that contradicted Christian doctrine, such as the eternity of the world or the non-immortality of the soul.

3. The Renaissance

What Constitutes the Renaissance?

The Renaissance, originating in Italy during the 15th and 16th centuries, marked a transition to the modern age through the recovery of Greco-Roman culture.

Features of Renaissance Humanism

Renaissance Humanism emphasized:

• Recovery of classical texts
• The concept

Truth in Saint Augustine

Saint Augustine overcame skepticism. He argued that even if humans are prone to error, this does not imply the absolute negation of truth. His argument analyzes human error. The error reveals a primary truth: if I am mistaken, I exist.

Knowledge of the Truth

Saint Augustine's path to the knowledge of truth involves:

• Rejection of the senses: Sensory experiences cannot reveal truth because they are contingent, not absolute.
• Internalization: Only through the internalization of the soul can one know absolute truth and wisdom.
• Epistemological Significance: The soul contains objects of a higher nature. Therefore, the soul must seek the light and the foundation of truth outside itself. Saint Augustine states, "If you find that your

Unnatural Morality

Unnatural morality, according to Nietzsche, is a morality of the weak and embittered, directed against the vitality of the body and its passions. It posits a superior "world of reality" whose attainment requires sacrifice in this life. Unnatural morality emerges in opposition to natural morality, which is the morality of the strong, based on the will to power and an appreciation of this life. Any morality that requires sacrifice and mortification in this life for the sake of another life beyond is deemed unnatural.

Transmutation of Values

Transmutation of values: Nietzsche does not propose living without values, believing that to be impossible. Instead, he invites us to overturn the existing table of values. This involves overcoming... Continue reading "Nietzsche's Philosophy: Unnatural Morality and Transmutation of Values" »

The Need to Demonstrate the Existence of God

Thomas Aquinas posited the need for a demonstration of the existence of God. According to some opinions, such as those of Saint Anselm, such a demonstration is unnecessary since the existence of God is clear and evident, and only what is not clear and evident needs proof. However, Thomas Aquinas's opinion differs. According to him, a demonstration of the existence of God is necessary precisely because it is not self-evident that God exists.

To explain this statement, Aquinas distinguishes between two types of self-evident propositions:

• a) Propositions self-evident to us (humans): Where we know the subject and predicate and immediately conclude that the predicate is included in the subject. For example,

Family Rights and Social Order

It is against natural law for any human to remove the primary right to marry, or to restrict the main purpose of marriage established by God: "Be fruitful and multiply".

The family, though small, is a true partnership, older than any other, with its own rights and duties, independent of civil power. Ownership rights conferred by nature are transferred to the man as head of the family, and this right is stronger as a person in society encompasses more domestic responsibility.

The rights and duties of the family are prior and more natural than those of civil society. If public authorities harm families instead of helping them, society would be worthy of condemnation.

It is a great error for civil power to arbitrarily... Continue reading "Family Rights and Social Order: A Natural Law Perspective" »

Pythagoras and the Pythagoreans (570-497 BC)

Pythagoras was born on the island of Samos, Ionia. He later moved to Greece, where he founded his philosophical sect. Influenced by Eastern disciplines, such as Zoroastrianism, he became very famous and was considered a legend, even the son of Apollo. His doctrine reflected on the body and soul, believing the soul to be immortal and imprisoned by the body. The Pythagoreans also believed in reincarnation. Central to their philosophy was the liberation of the soul through spiritual work, which included philosophy, mathematics, and music, to create harmony and regularity in man. They posited the existence of fundamental principles underlying the concrete and changing world. Pythagorean thought heavily... Continue reading "Pre-Socratic Philosophy: From Myth to Reason" »