Study Like a Boss
Aristotle, Carl Jung, Immanuel Kant, John Locke, Plato, Friedrich Nietzsche, Pythagoras, Rene Descartes, Socrates, Thomas Hobbes, Machiavelli, John Stuart Mill, Rousseau, Albert Camus, Hannah Arendt, Jacques Derrida, Jeremy Bentham, John Dewey, Kierkegaard, Martin Heidegge, Michel Foucault, Bertrand Russell, Thomas More, Peter Abelard.
Francis Bacon was born into a prominent wealthy family in London, England, on January 2, 1561. He was the family’s youngest son. Bacon’s father was Sir Nicholas Bacon, who held the powerful government position of Lord Keeper of the Great Seal. His mother was Anne Cooke, a scholar, translator, and holder of strong Puritan beliefs. … Read more
The kind of reasoning utilized by Descartes in order to arrive at his conclusion of the cogito has been questioned since its initial publication in The Discourse on the Method. The conjunction ‘ergo’ suggests the formula of an inference, that Descartes has concluded his existence from a premise. Yet, Descartes himself seems to deny the … Read more
Of the many topics in the philosophy of sex is permissible sexuality. Philosophy however sometimes tends to overintellectualize the discussion. What makes sex permissible may not be so strict. Drawing from Immanuel Kant’s humanity formulation, I argue that permissible sex requires only informed and voluntary consent, but under two conditions, which Thomas Mappes mostly gets … Read more
Descartes, an intelligent man of many talents, believed that knowledge came from the mind and that through self-reflection could more knowledge be gained and built upon. Through Descartes’s own journey to gain more knowledge, Descartes wrote his Six Meditations. Within these Six meditations, He forms a solid foundation, which to lay his reasoning upon since … Read more
The synopsis of The Matrix and the readings from Platos and Descartes all have similarities as well as differences. One thing that all three of these writings have in common is the topic. The synopsis of The Matrix and the readings from Platos and Descartes all discuss the topic of reality. They tackle the concept … Read more
In Ren? Descartes’ Meditations on First Philosophy, he argues that the senses do not accurately help us understand the world. Descartes writes that he has begun to doubt all of his ideas. He decides that all those ideas come from the senses, which are not trustworthy. In the first few meditations, Descartes shows that one … Read more
You will find in Plato’s Phaedrus a story about Thamus, the king of a great city of Upper Egypt. For people such as ourselves, who are inclined (in Thoreau’s phrase) to be tools of our tools, few legends are more instructive than his. The story, as Socrates tells it to his friend Phaedrus, unfolds in … Read more
Philosophy is widely known around the world and famous philosophers originate from all around the world. In the Analects, Confucius believes that an exemplary person (junzi) is one who does believes and acts out every aspect of filial piety, ritual propriety and humanity. He was someone who believed in maintaining and respecting the relationship one … Read more
John Locke’s theory of the social contract seems, at first glance, to envision the growth of freedom and the concomitant recession of authority. Considered this way, John Locke’s Second Treatise of Government presents a clear contrast, manifesting individual freedom as the dominant political value to which authority submits. A more searching glance, however, discloses a … Read more
The Major of Casterbridge Aristotle was one of the greatest philosophers of Ancient Greece. His analysis of the ideal form of tragic plays has become a guideline for later playwrights in Western Civilization. The most important element of Aristotelian tragedy is the experience of catharsis or the arousing of pity and fear in the audience. … Read more
Ren? Descartes and Gottfried Leibniz both espouse belief in a God that is infinitely powerful, infinitely knowledgeable and infinitely benevolent. Nonetheless, Descartes and Leibniz differently structure the hierarchy of those three defining traits as they determine God’s actions. Descartes’ God is a Voluntarist, meaning that God has absolute freedom of indifference. Power is supreme for … Read more
Aristotle’s Unity of Action in Romeo and Juliet Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, a classic tragedy about two star-crossed young lovers in Verona, can be analysed using Aristotle Unity of action. Firstly, it tells one story – there is one main plot around which all incidents and character revolve. The action itself Is the main focus … Read more
Government is an important part of any country. Whether the officials in charge are skilled or not at their jobs can make or break the country. The United States of America will probably be headed more toward “break” due to the upcoming election, but I am going to focus on another country’s government for now. … Read more
Within his Essay Concerning Human Understanding, Locke picks up where his predecessors in epistemological theorizing left off and proceeds to shift the study towards a more empiricist approach. Amongst the complexities of his theory, the notions of ‘substance’, ‘nominal essence’ and ‘real essence’ are fundamental and relate, in Locke’s view, to explain the nature of … Read more
In The Plague itself, Albert Camus uses the concept of a plague to allegorically represent the wartime occupation of France during World War II and symbolize the absurdity of nature. The coastal town of Oran, located in Northern Africa, is burdened by this unstoppable pestilence that threatens the townspeople’s humanity. Camus’ “symbolic plague represents a … Read more
In Plato’s five dialogues specifically in the Euthyphro and the Apology, Plato is using the characters in order to draw out the overarching definition of philosophy and the practice of it. In the Euthyphro, Socrates exemplifies how tough the practice of philosophy can be even to get one definition. To do this involves series of … Read more
The state of nature is a concept used in philosophy to create an image of a hypothetical condition in which there is no political authority or association. This concept is used to portray a society in which we no longer abide by the rule of law. Philosophers have used the idea of a state of … Read more
Courage and justice have been two highly discussed values throughout the semester, and in this essay I will seek to connect the two together as well as relating the ideas in accordance with Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics, The Illiad, and The Epic of Gilgamesh. According to the dictionary, courage is defined as “the quality of mind … Read more
The Prince by Machiavelli is one of the most influential treatises in human history, conceived by Italian political theorist and diplomat, Niccolo Machiavelli. The Prince is often regarded as one of the first true examples of modern philosophy, most notably, political philosophy, and Machiavelli addressed many different attributes of politics, war-time strategies and the implementation … Read more
In his essay “Of Revenge”, Francis Bacon delves into the topic of revenge, approaching it with objectivity. He acknowledges the pervasive tendency that is revenge, likening it to a which is and yet it must be given legal retribution. A firm believer of the law, Bacon mostly criticizes revenge, and argues that it is more … Read more
“The Myth of the Cave” by Plato , depicts a very important message. This book was written over 2500 years ago in the year 400 B.C. The excerpt is a conversation that Socrate speaks with Glaucon. Socrates tells Glaucon the people in an underground cave , these people have been in the cave since childhood, … Read more
Aristotle’s passage Poetics (350 BC) was written the century after the composition of Sophocles Oedipus the King (428 BC). Despite their chronological separation, the two texts relate in incisive ways. In particular, Aristotle used Oedipus as the foundation for his explanation theory. For Aristotle, a tragedy must have certain characteristics that Oedipus the King contains … Read more
Aristotle’s definition of the virtue of high-mindedness in Nichomachean Ethics, and of what constitutes the excess and deficiency of this virtue, poses a problem when applied to Socrates’ in Plato’s Apology. On one hand, Socrates is high-minded when he accepts his death sentence, despite believing that he is serving an important function in Athens, and … Read more
Plato whose original name was Aristocles was born into one of the most known aristocratic families of Athens. His father name was Ariston and his mother’s name was Perictione. His aristocrat family and the historic period created lots of impacts for Plato’s point of view on life. He also born in the illustrious city and … Read more
In Books II and III of Republic, Plato[1] argues for the censorship of stories and tales for the youth of their imaginative, Utopian city, and specifically for the youth of the ‘ruling’ class named the Guardians. He asserts that censoring certain tales, notably ones with violent themes or notions of change and transformation, would prevent … Read more
Being treated like a criminal when you’ve done nothing wrong, is something no innocent person should go through. An injustice like this is not only harmful to the victim (because they know they’re being wrongfully punished), it is also a betrayal to the rule of law, in terms of rightfulness. This display of injustice demonstrates … Read more
Mill’s “On Liberty” is an academic work examining the presence of –and desire for- liberty in human nature and behavior, as well as the limits imposed upon such. Mill writes this text from a bias of utilitarianism and fallibilism, as he simultaneously believes that: (1) the ultimate goal of human life –the purest of actions, … Read more
Carl Jung’s writing on dreams is not interested in thelegendarymagic that many associate with the significance of human dreams. Jung is concerned neither with the spiritual mysteries nor the religious aspects that some have linked to our unconscious minds; the writings are rather an exploration of Carl Jung’s theory of the collective unconscious. When I … Read more
In Platos The Allegory of the Cave, he allows an individual to realize that which they already know. The situation in the cave seems dark and gloomy, like a place no one would ever want to go. However, the reality is that some people are at a point in their lives, in their own cave. … Read more
Pythagorean Brotherhood Pythagoras of Samos is the founder of a religion called Pyhagoreanism where he developed the Pythagorean brotherhood (Pythagoras). It is known that Pythagoras made traveled a lot during his life, but he eventually settled down in Croton, Italy (Pythagoras). Throughout his life Pythagoras made discoveries in many fields, including math and medicine. The … Read more
Introduction Individuality refers tothe existential philosophy and ideology that views and emphasizes the moral worth of the individual by promoting the importance of an individual’s goals and desires. Individuality (also sometimes called ‘Individualism’) valuesone’s independence and self-reliance. It advocates that the interests of an individual should come before those of the state or one’s social … Read more
Lying in engrained into the world’s culture. It has become almost a fundamental in every society and is present nearly everywhere worldwide. But, paradoxically, it is condemned as well. Every major religion, legal statute, and even communal norm advises against telling falsehoods. Philosophers as far back as Immanuel Kant pontificated upon the ideology of lying; … Read more
The four dialogues Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, and Phaedo were all authored by Plato in order to give insight into the trial and death of the famed philosopher Socrates. Each work focuses on a different aspect of Socrates’ personal teachings and ideals, ranging from questions about piety to Socrates’ final musings about an afterlife and death … Read more
With the goal of creating the perfect society, the utopia of Plato’s Republic rather presents a dystopia that enforces the marginalization of the individual. Plato believes a strict regulation that constricts independence and individuality makes it possible for citizens to live simple and peaceful lives. Because Plato views freedom as a threat of gaining unnecessary … Read more
In book two of Aristotle’s Politics, Aristotle defines his ideal state by criticizing the values put forward in Plato’s The Republic. In doing so, Aristotle censures Plato’s idea of state unification through sharing as much as possible, including wives, children, and property. Aristotle counters that Plato’s concept is detrimental to the state’s unity because it … Read more
Since the publication of The Discourse on the Method, Renes Descartes appears to have become the poster boy for the position of mind/body dualism. Throughout the Discourse and his later works, Descartes postulates several arguments for the absolute distinction and, thus, separateness of the mind and the body. The position is not simply that the … Read more
In his essay Panopticism, Michel Foucault discusses power and discipline, the manipulation there of, and their effect on society over time. He also discusses Jeremy Benthams Panopticon and other disciplinary models. However, after reading Panopticism, the question that baffles everyone is: What is panopticism anyway? One exceptional disciplinary model is the measures taken by a … Read more
Most of Albert Camus’ writings focus on the philosophy of the Absurd. His main character in the novel, The Stranger exemplifies what an absurd man is and his essay The Myth of Sisyphus takes readers through his reasoning for his belief and the conclusion that he reaches. Camus’ philosophy of life in his opinion is … Read more
The idea of the Natural Law Argument focuses on the claim that all natural laws that apply to our world must have been created by some sort of law-giver. That is, if there are certain laws that the world must abide by, someone must have created these laws, therefore there must be a law-giver, who … Read more
Plato’s Republic utilizes a political approach to answer what is essentially a moral question. In attempting to identify justice in the individual, Socrates takes an unmistakable turn toward the direction of political philosophy, describing the formation of his ideal city Kallipolis. It can hardly be disputed that the ideal state described by Socrates in Plato’s … Read more
Selfish Disobedience? Civil disobedience can be defined in a number of different ways: in its most raw form, “civil disobedience is the refusal to comply with certain laws or to pay taxes and fines, as a peaceful form of political protest because of moral objections to said laws”. While Henry David Thoreau was the first … Read more
Simon Bolivar is a Creole that grew up in a wealthy family. Bolivar dedicated his time and effort to fighting for the independence of Venezuela from Spain. In order to do this Bolivar was inspired by the enlightenment ideas of John Locke. John Locke explains the State of Nature that people are in. The State … Read more
Modern Political Ideas in Machiavelli’s The Prince Machiavelli’s The Prince presents many political ideas that are still relevant in modern politics. He argues on topics such as whether it’s better to be loved or feared, whether to be generous or stingy, and how virture can be manipulated. Machiavelli references well known figures of literature and … Read more
Analysis of Plato’s The Republic, City-Soul Analogy In an elaborate effort to comprehend individual justice, Socrates engages in a lengthy debate which explores intricate details, structures, and overarching principles of a just city. This analysis will explore the City-Soul analogy through three separate human lenses. Section 1 will delve into the secondhand accounting of Socrates’ … Read more
In Aristotle book, Nicomachean Ethics Book 1, he makes the argument that there is the good and the ‘well’. To explain his claim he gives us an example, “the function of lyre-player is to play the lyre, and that of a good lyre-player is to do well” (Aristotle 19). He believes that human function is … Read more
Kant’s second formulation of the Categorial Imperative can be a helpful method of moral decision making. The second formulation is a principle that tells us what we should do in any kind of situation. It states that you should act in a way that you always treat humanity, whether in your own person or in … Read more
Philosophy dwells on ideas and theories that tend to surpass the thoughts of human perception and the nature of reality. An idea may be perceived idealistic rather than based on knowledge. The following quote, “And now, I said, let me show in a figure how far our nature is enlightened or unenlightened: Behold! Human beings … Read more
Plato’s “Symposium” is an essential piece of philosophical literature that concerns itself with the genesis, purpose and nature of love, or eros. Love is examined in a sequence of speeches by men attending a symposium, or drinking party. A symposia, or drinking party in ancient Greece, was an occasion for passing the cup, reciting poetry, … Read more
The whole point of Plato’s Republic is the pursuit of justice, but in practice, it is wildly unrealistic. I can say with certainty that I would not care to live in Plato’s ideal city-state because, in a sense, I already have. I was a citizen of the closest attempt at this utopia: The Soviet Union. … Read more
How can we know if we are a brain in a vat? Can we be sure that we are not the playthings of evil demons? These questions have been discussed by many philosophers in the past and still we do not have a proof that we are not some demon s plaything. Yet, at least … Read more
