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

Key Elements of Textual Composition

Textual Structure

Deductive/Inductive Synthesizing

This involves organizing information by moving from general principles to specific conclusions (deductive synthesizing) or from specific observations to broader generalizations (inductive synthesizing).

Thesis Formulation

Explicit/Implicit Thesis

A thesis is the main argument or central point of a text. It can be explicit (clearly stated) or implicit (suggested or understood without being directly stated).

Cohesion in Writing

Cohesion is the property a text must possess, ensuring all statements are interconnected and flow logically, creating a unified whole.

Lexical Cohesion Techniques

• Synonymy: Replacement of a word with another of similar meaning.
• Hyponymy: Replacement

What is a Natural Abortion?

A natural abortion, also known as a miscarriage or spontaneous abortion, is the spontaneous death of an embryo or fetus before it is developed enough to survive. This can occur even before a woman knows she is pregnant.

Most miscarriages occur during the first three months of pregnancy, before the twelfth week of gestation. A small number of natural abortions – less than 1% – are stillbirths, occurring after the twentieth week of pregnancy.

Symptoms of Abortion

Many women never even know they have had a miscarriage and interpret it as a particularly heavy menstruation.

Some women experience abdominal cramps, blood spotting, heavy bleeding, abdominal pain and/or pelvic pain, weakness, or back pain. A small amount of... Continue reading "Natural Abortion: Causes, Symptoms, and Types" »

Nietzsche's Critique of Western Thought

Friedrich Nietzsche proposed a philosophy that critically examined the values inherent in Western tradition, particularly those stemming from Christianity and the Enlightenment.

Challenging Platonic Dualism and Reality

Regarding the nature of reality, Nietzsche criticized Plato's ontological dualism, which posited a sensible world and an intelligible world. Nietzsche argued that there is not one world or another, but rather a constant evolution of being. He contended that Plato's division had unduly prioritized the world of ideas over the existing, tangible world.

Vitalism, Will to Power, and Nihilism

Nietzsche proposed an atheist *vitalism*, asserting that the sensible world is the only reality. This reality,... Continue reading "Nietzsche's Philosophy: Critiques of Western Thought" »

World View of the Big Bang

The World View of the Big Bang breaks with the static idea of the universe and embraces the idea that it is continually evolving. It provides a starting point for the universe (the Big Bang) and a potential end point (Grand Pasgón). The expansion caused by the Big Bang generated new material, resulting in chemical elements and their clusters.

The Term "Sense"

Sense, purpose, or direction: From this point of view, human actions make sense when pursuing a purpose and are appropriate for it. The question of environmental concerns arises if they are appropriate means to the desired end. The term "meaning" is intended to assert that the universe has an ultimate goal, that the universe has a "why."

Sense makes sense as meaning... Continue reading "Big Bang and the Evolving Universe: Meaning and Value" »

Foundational Concepts in Moral Action Theory

Defining Human Acts and Liability

Human Actions: Actions performed by a person's free will, transcending mere deliberate intention.

Acts of Man: Actions performed without conscious deliberation, driven by necessity or instinct.

Liability: The state where an act can be attributed to a person who is responsible for the effects of that action.

Ethical Acts and Moral Quality

Good Ethical Acts: Actions that align with human nature.

Bad Ethical Acts (Ethically Ill Acts): Actions that violate human nature and contravene legal and social norms.

Moral Good: Concerns conduct, often in a broader sense than limited specific acts.

Voluntary Acts and Consent

Intention: The objective sought by the person performing the action.... Continue reading "Essential Definitions in Ethics, Action Theory, and Philosophy" »

Plato's Core Ideas

Ideas and teachings from Heraclitus (movement and change) and Socrates (no one can define anything that changes) influenced Plato. Socrates and Parmenides presented a key dichotomy:

• Idea (Static): Each object known doubles (dynamic).
• Idea (Static): The essence of things.

The dialogos of maturity are difficult. The idea is extensive and is the essence of things. The world of things (sensible world) is separate from the world of ideas (intelligible world). The relationship between things and ideas involves participation and imitation. The idea of the good is the intermediary between idea and thing, the soul, aiding the sensible world. Ideas are also wise objects.

Cosmology

The universe has three characteristics:

1. Teleological Conception:

What can be said of Nietzsche's philosophy is that it is based on freedom from the burden of God, to become a Superman who can do what he wants without being accountable to anyone. He considers how weak those who are subject to the laws of God are, which is demonstrated in many ways, as follows:

When in his The Birth of Tragedy he speaks of the Apollonian and the Dionysian, the Apollonian represents something harmonic and orderly, which is not too good for man, and the Dionysian is the essence of life. He also states that morality is anti-life, and that moral life should be condemned. Nietzsche criticized Socrates for having "invented" morality.

Nietzsche's Moral Distinction

Nietzsche makes a distinction between two types of morality:

• Slave Morality:

Kant and the Enlightenment: A Philosophical Perspective

The Enlightenment was a broad movement of ideas and culture that permeated all literary, artistic, historical, and religious spheres from 1650 to 1800. In Germany, the Enlightenment was characterized by the analysis of reason, with the idea of finding and establishing its principles as the governing system for the knowledge of nature, moral action, and human policy.

Immanuel Kant, an Enlightenment theorist and critic, defined it as humanity's entry into adulthood, or the ability to use one's own understanding (autonomous reason without civil or religious constraints). However, emerging from that minority requires a critical examination of reason itself (to think for oneself). For Kant, the... Continue reading "Kant's Philosophy: Reason, Ethics, and Enlightenment" »

Theories of Law and the Legitimacy of Laws

Iusnaturalismo (Natural Law)

According to Natural Law theory, there is a fixed and universal legal code applicable across all times and places. This natural law allows us to establish whether positive laws are legal and legitimate. It is a universal law, in force at all times, in all places, and under all social and religious circumstances. Its universality requires fair compliance.

Scholastic Philosophy (Middle Ages) closely connected natural law with the divine. While natural law provides the latest illustration, theorists do not agree on the precise source of this natural right, especially when considering non-irrational sources.

Neocontractualism (John Rawls)

John Rawls is one of the best-known authors... Continue reading "Political Legitimacy: Theories, Weber's Forms, and Democratic Principles" »

Tensions Between Individual and Society

5.1 Rejection

Rejection occurs when the majority social group does not accept or recognize certain individuals as full members. This depends on various factors, and social responsiveness can vary.

5.2 Self-Exclusion

Self-exclusion is the opposite of rejection. In this case, the individual does not identify with the group and therefore excludes themselves. The factors causing this lack of recognition are diverse and may be due to sudden changes in society or community.

5.2.1 Consequences

5.2.1.1 Marginalization

Marginalization results from both self-exclusion and rejection, fundamentally leading to a state of isolation.

5.2.1.2 Violence

Violence is both a cause and consequence of social rejection. The aggressiveness... Continue reading "Individual vs Society: Tensions, Exclusion, and Philosophical Views" »