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

Scientific Texts

According to the issuer: research, informational, instructional, and teaching.

According to the receiver: specialized academic and informative.

• Objectivity: denotative lexicon, indicative mood, specified adjective propositions, declarative sentences, and plural of modesty.
• Universality: generalizing value, gnomic or timeless tense, and abstract nouns.
• Accuracy and clarity: structures and links with explanatory value, clauses with commas, enumerations, restatements of certain words, specified adjectives, use of definition, jargon, and extra-sentential links (1st, 2nd) and italics.

Humanistic Texts

According to the issuer: research, educational, informational, instructional, and descriptive.

According to the receiver: specialized academic... Continue reading "Scientific, Humanistic, and Newspaper Texts: Key Features" »

5. Therefore, although these things - the old opinions that things exist and are as I perceive them - are very likely a form that is more reasonable to believe in than to deny, I will temporarily pretend to be doubtful that they are entirely false and misleading. 6. Assume, therefore, not that God - which is all goodness and the supreme source of truth - deceives me, but that a genius or evil spirit, an astute and powerful trickster, has put all its deceiving industry into thinking of the sky, air, earth, colors, shapes, sounds, and all other external things as illusions and deceptions to get my credulity. I impose resisting the wiles of the great deceiver.

Critique of Cartesian Skepticism

The critical question is why?

1. Establishing a universal

Volition

Knowledge can be an asset to a person, and if so, they tend to possess it intentionally. However, knowing is insufficient; the will is decisive in personal life. The will's existence is the power to will and act. Intellectual knowledge seeks the good, as the object level involves volitional good for humans to be the proper object of goodwill.

Will depends on intellectual activity because to desire something, we must grasp it as good, hence the intellect's superiority. However, once this principle is established, the will takes precedence over understanding because personal fulfillment depends on it. The best person acts rightly, and it is the will that moves the mind to think of an object.

In short, the will decides specifically human... Continue reading "Understanding Volition and Morality: Human Actions and Ethics" »

Rationalism vs. Empiricism: Core Tenets

Shared Ground and Key Differences

Rationalism and empiricism share common ground:

• The subject is central, deciding the truth or falsity of statements.
• Both begin with an analysis of knowledge to determine its scope.

However, they diverge significantly. Rationalism places the criterion of truth in the autonomy of reason, constructing knowledge deductively from innate principles, independent of sense experience. Conversely, Empiricism starts with experience and uses induction to reach explanatory hypotheses about phenomena.

Descartes: A Rationalist Landmark

Influence and Platonic Parallels

René Descartes profoundly influenced his era and subsequent philosophy. His work fits within a philosophical lineage, connecting... Continue reading "Rationalism vs. Empiricism: Descartes' Quest for Certainty" »

Human Dignity: A Foundation for Law and Ethics

Kant posited that human dignity is what distinguishes a moral being. Using a human as a means or tool undermines their inherent worth. A person has value, but is priceless and cannot be bought.

The 1948 Declaration of Human Rights states that "freedom, justice, and peace are universally desirable values, which depend on the recognition of the dignity of all."

Human dignity is not a scientific fact but a concept within the vocabulary of ethics. Many philosophers derive human freedom or rights from it, but they are describing reality, not establishing rules. The most justifiable approach is to assert, as a constitutional fact, the dignity of every human being and act accordingly.

The Crisis of Morality

When... Continue reading "Human Dignity: Foundations, Crisis, and Moral Philosophy" »

Aristotle's Major Philosophical Works

Aristotle's philosophical output is traditionally categorized into several major areas:

• Logic (The Organon): A collection of writings dedicated to the principles of reasoning and argumentation.
• Physics and Natural Philosophy: A wide range of writings devoted to the study of nature and biology, including works on the physical world, meteors, generation and corruption, and the soul (De Anima).
• First Philosophy (Metaphysics): A set of books devoted to the theoretical study of reality, later known as Metaphysics.
• Practical Philosophy: Works such as the Nicomachean Ethics, which address all that possesses an internal principle of movement.

The Dynamics of Change and Movement

In his study of nature, Aristotle analyzed... Continue reading "Aristotle's Core Philosophy: Works, Causes, and Metaphysics" »

Metaphysics and Scientific Knowledge: Kant's Perspective

Understanding Metaphysics

To address the proposed topic, we will first explain the concept of metaphysics and all that it encompasses. Then, we will discuss scientific knowledge and its development. Finally, a complete analysis will be made, linking the two concepts and outlining the response Kant gives to metaphysics.

Metaphysics is defined as the attempt to establish, rationally and conceptually, the essences of what exists, but beyond the experience captured by the senses. That is, the human mind begins reasoning and ideally reaches a "response." A response related to reality, but whose production has fallen off of it. In this way, it is close to the spirit of the rationalists, and its... Continue reading "Metaphysics vs. Scientific Knowledge: Kant's Perspective" »

Characteristics of Human Rights

Human rights are the most basic moral requirements that must be met to show due respect for the dignity of persons. If not met, a just society cannot be built.

• Universal: Recognizing all human beings without excluding anyone. Every human being must be treated as an equal.
• Preferred: Human rights take precedence and should be protected as a priority, such as the right to life and health.
• Inalienable: You cannot lose them; they do not expire or prescribe. They are valid for everyone at all times. For example, freedom of expression must be matched with the right to privacy and reputation.
• Non-transferable: They cannot be assigned or transferred to others, such as the right to vote.
• Indivisible, interdependent, non-negotiable:

Fundamental Concepts in Logic and Language

Language

The human capacity to communicate and express thoughts through a system of signs.

Reason

The ability to combine intellectual concepts and propositions, using intelligence to compare ideas and reality.

Symbol

A sign that bears a similarity to what it represents.

Concept

The idea or understanding we have about something. Every concept can be considered a symbol.

Perception

A feeling or understanding that results from a material impression received by our senses.

Category

The most general concept through which we order, understand, and express reality.

Propositions or Statements

A sentence or phrase—a sequence of words subject to syntactic rules—that asserts something about something.

Reasoning / Argument

Ptolemaic, Newtonian, and Quantum Models

The Ptolemaic Model

Considering the nature of mathematics, where experience will be the starting point for establishing general laws, the Ptolemaic Cosmovision model was imposed by Ptolemy. Both defended the Aristotelian geocentric consideration, but the Ptolemaic era was considered more precise and complex, and therefore synonymous with perfection and divine power in the Middle Ages.

The Newtonian Model (19th Century)

The Newtonian Model is characterized by:

• It sees nature as an autonomous reality that must be considered with operational intent, not contemplative.
• It encourages reflection on the scientific method (observation, applying mathematics, experimentation).
• A new way of seeing the world to try to