Study Like a Boss
Aristotle once stated in Metaphysics that, “All men by nature desire Knowledge. ” If one accepts the claim that knowledge is power, then it will be logical to assert that all people want power. The person or persons that have knowledge also acquire the power of that knowledge. In Michel Foucault’s Discipline and Punish he … Read more
The one single truth of reality is not measured or distinguished — it is the ultimate paradox. The journey by which one achieves this truth can be a journey of increasing realizations of paradoxes, and finally, freedom from the bubble of limitation of a mind that would perceive such paradoxes as paradoxes in the first … Read more
According to Hume, what is the “justest and most plausible objection against a considerable part of metaphysics” (1, p. 5)? According to Hume justice and plausible objective to metaphysics is that it’s not a proper science. Hume claims that metaphysics raises from unnecessary human effort and make you think of such abstract ideas that they … Read more
Despised by academics, passionately loved by her followers, Ayn Rand, the novelist-philosopher, has evicted the whole gambit of emotions and responses. Her work has been ridiculed and praised. Her followers devotion has produced outcries of cultism, allowing one author to write a stirring critique[1] and another a book. [2] Despite this, Ayn Rand remains, one … Read more
In the Foundation of the Metaphysics of Morals, the author, Immanuel Kant, tries to form a base by rejecting all ethical theories that are connected to consequences, and then focusing on our ethical motivations and actions. Kant wants to derive good characters out of contingently right actions. He believes that everything is contingent (everything can … Read more
A literary and philosophical movement called transcendentalism developed in the United States in the first half of the nineteenth century. This movement is a reaction to certain eighteenth century rationalist doctrines and involves the rejection of strict Puritan religious attitudes. (Parrington 375). Transcendentalism is strongly influenced by Deism and opposes the strict ritualistic and dogmatic … Read more
Nature vs. nurture has been discussed by philosophers in the past and by scientists most recently. Philosophers such as Plato argued that all knowledge was inherited through your parent and when you were told something you didn’t learn it you were just reminded of it. Aristotle however argued that all humans were born with a … Read more
Many people lose sight of what is important when determining what a good person TRULY is. What most people would consider to be a good person is humility, selflessness, caring, generosity, kindness, etc. Others believe that a good person is measured by how much he does and accomplishes in life rather than by what he … Read more
“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to from only essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived” (Thoreau). American Transcendentalism was a literary and philosophical movement that emerged in … Read more
Existentialism is the title of the set of philosophical ideals that emphasizes the existence of the human being, the lack of meaning and purpose in life, and the solitude of human existence. Existentialism maintains existence precedes essence: This implies that the human being has no essence, no essential self, and is no more that what … Read more
Confucianism, the philosophical system founded on the teaching of Confucius, who lived from 551 BC to 479 BC, dominated Chinese sociopolitical life for most of the Chinese history and largely influenced the cultures of Korea, Japan, and Indochina. The Confucian school functioned as a recruiting ground for government positions, which were filled by those scoring … Read more
Human nature is the egotistical behaviours that drive the human race to be creative and inquisitive. Although some philosophers may disagree with the validity of this statement, others such as Aristotle, John Stuart Mill and Thomas Hobbes would believe it to be true. After examining the beliefs of these philosophers and using real-life examples to … Read more
Philosophy — a:pursuit of wisdom. b:a search for a general understanding of values and reality by chiefly speculative rather than observational means. Through this most specific definition given to us respectively by Sir Webster’s dictionary, I choose in my best interest to refrain to you just what the meaning of philosophy is. I implore you … Read more
Philosophical thought begins with the Milesians, where intellectual curiosity propelled thinkers like Anaximander and Heraclitus to attempt to explain the phenomena of the universe by means of specific physical elements. During the 6th century BC, Eleatics, like Parmenides and Zeno, had rejected physical phenomena and propounded metaphysical paradoxes that cut at the roots of belief … Read more
Education is inevitable. It is all around us because we can learn from virtually anything. When you are cooking, dancing, talking or any other activity you have actually had to learn several things to be able to do them. In the educational perspective, I am a pragmatist and I tend to follow after Dewey’s footsteps. … Read more
In The Stranger, as in all Camus works, Camus views on freedom and death one dependent on the other are major themes. For Camus, freedom arises in awareness of ones life, the every-moment life, an intense glorious life that needs no redeeming, no regrets, no tears. Death is unjustifiable, absurd; it is but a reintegration … Read more
Are computers and the Internet redefining human identity as people explore the boundaries of their personalities, adopt multiple selves, and form online relationships that can be more intense than real ones? Is the World Wide Web redefining our sense of community and where we find our peers? The answer is simple. An individual should not … Read more
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife. What we read is just the opposite; a single woman must be in want of a man with a good fortune. In this first line of Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice we … Read more
Taoism is one of the two great philosophical and religious traditions that originated in China. The other philosophy native to China is Confucianism. Both Taoism and Confucianism began at about the same time, around the sixth century B. C. China’s third great religion, Buddhism, came to China from India around the second century of the … Read more
From the origin of Western philosophical thought, there has been an interest in moral laws. As Hume points out in the Treatise, “morality is a subject that interests us above all others” (David Hume “A Treatise of Human Nature’). Originally, thoughts of how to live were centered on the issue of having the most satisfying … Read more
To compare the difference between King Henry and Prince Hal’s style of statecraft, first we have to understand the basic philosophy of each. The King belives that to effectively lead the country one needs to lead by example. According to the King’s philosophy the best man is the one who lives a pure life and … Read more
The Puritan people first came to the New World to escape the religious persecution that hounded Non-Anglicans in England. They established the Plymouth Colony in 1620, in what is now Massachusetts. The colony was a reflection of the Puritans’ beliefs. These beliefs, along with the experience of establishing a colony in “the middle of nowhere”, … Read more
Classical Chinese theory of mind is similar to Western “folk psychology” in that both mirror their respective background view of language. They differ in ways that fit those folk theories of language. The core Chinese concept is xin (the heart-mind). As the translation suggests, Chinese folk psychology lacked a contrast between cognitive and affective states … Read more
Morality, Kant says, cannot be regarded as a set of rules which prescribe the means necessary to the achievement of a given end; its rules must be obeyed without consideration of the consequences that will follow from doing so or not. A principle that presupposes a desired object as the determinant of the will cannot … Read more
They had discussed it, but not deeply, whether they wanted the baby she was now carrying. I dont know if I want it, she said, eyes filling with tears. She cried at anything now, and was often nauseous. That pregnant women cried easily and were nauseous seemed banal to her, and she resented banality (p. … Read more
Most often, philosophers attempt to prove their many theories by making use of several examples or analogies. Yet, it is through these clever, everyday platforms that we, the average knowledge-seeking citizen, gain a true understanding of his or her intent. It allows us to incorporate our personal lives into the theory and as a result, … Read more
The philosophy behind all Pynchon novels lies in the synthesis of philosophers and modern physicists. Ludwig Wittgenstein viewed the world as a “totality of facts, not of things. “1 This idea can be combined with a physicist’s view of the world as a closed system that tends towards chaos. Pynchon asserts that the measure of … Read more
As philosopher and poet Nietzsche’s work is not easily conformable to the traditional schools of thought within philosophy. However, an unmistakable concern with the role of religion and values penetrates much of his work. Contrary to the tradition before him, Nietzsche launches vicious diatribes against Christianity and the dualistic philosophies he finds essentially life denying. … Read more
The question of Gods existence has been debated through the history of man, with every philosopher from Socrates to Immanuel Kant weighing in on the debate. So great has this topic become that numerous proofs have been invented and utilized to prove or disprove Gods existence. Yet no answer still has been reached, leaving me … Read more
Humes ultimate goal in his philosophic endeavors was to undermine abstruse Philosophy. By focusing on the aspect of reason, Hume shows there are limitations to philosophy. Since he did not know the limits, he proposed to use reason to the best of his ability, but when he came to a boundary, that was the limit. … Read more
Humanism, in philosophy, attitude that emphasizes the dignity and worth of the individual. A basic premise of humanism is that people are rational beings who possess within themselves the capacity for truth and goodness. The term humanism is most often used to describe a literary and cultural movement that spread through western Europe in the … Read more
Oedipus is a play written by Sophocles that many have heard. Few, however, would not be surprised to discover what Oedipus has discovered at the end of the play, that our tragic hero has killed his own father only to marry his mother. Many ask how this play could be a tragedy? What is the … Read more
Nietzsche, Friedrich (Wilhelm) (1844-1900), German philosopher, poet, and classical philologist, who was one of the most provocative and influential thinkers of the 19th century. “In addition to the influence of Greek culture, particularly the philosophies of Plato and Aristotle, Nietzsche was influenced by German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer, by the theory of evolution, and by his … Read more
Along with other noted philosophers, John Stuart Mill developed the nineteenth century philosophy known as Utilitarianism – the contention that man should judge everything in life based upon its ability to promote the greatest individual happiness. While Bentham, in particular, is acknowledged as the philosophy’s founder, it was Mill who justified the axiom through reason. … Read more
Prosperos epilogue at the conclusion of The Tempest provides interesting parallels to its authors life. Written near the end of his career, numerous scholars suggest that it is Shakespeares written farewell. Just as Shakespeare sculpts a world from nothing, Prospero authors the events on the island. Prosperos monologue flows naturally with they story and provides … Read more
David Hume, a Scottish philosopher and historian who lived from 1711-76, carried the empiricism of John Locke and George Berkeley to the logical extreme of radical skepticism. Although his family wanted him to become a lawyer, he felt an “insurmountable resistance to everything but philosophy and learning”. Mr. Hume attended Edinburgh University where he studied … Read more
Sophocles Oedipus the King is a tragic play which discusses the tragic discovery of Oedipus that he has killed his father and married his mother. The story of Oedipus was well known to the athenians. Oedipus is the embodiement of the perfect Athenian. He is self-confident, intelligent, and strong willed. Ironically these are the very … Read more
Identify characters who embody features of the antithesis of the Renaissance concept of the masculine ideal. What purposes do these characters serve in the plays? The Two Gentlemen of Verona deals with the debate over the relative merits of love and friendship between two young courtiers Valentine and Proteus. One of the great debates of … Read more
One of the most devastating problems for the Classical Greeks was the women’s issue. Women in Classical Greece were not citizens, held no property, and indeed were not even allowed out of the house except under guard. Their status differed from that of the slaves of Greece only in name. This alone, however was not … Read more
The dialogue Phaedo is a narration of the death of Socrates by Phaedo to Echecrates. One of the themes in the dialogue Phaedo is Socrates perception of death. He and those who come to visit him on the day of his execution discuss this idea of his. Socrates believes that every philosopher awaits death because … Read more
We live in a society, which relies on fairy tales and mythology to entertain and take us off to a far away place where we can identify with our imagination. The Star Wars trilogy is a classic example of the hero cycle. A young man is brought up believing the light side of the force … Read more
Plato was born to an aristocratic family in Athens, Greece. When he was a child his father, Ariston, who was believed to be descended from the early kings of Athens died, and his mother, Perictione married Pyrilampes. As a young man Plato was always interested in political leadership and eventually became a disciple of Socrates. … Read more
Euclid was born about 365 BC in Alexandria, Egypt and died about 300 BC. Euclid was best known for his treatise on geometry (The Elements). The long lasting nature of The Elements must make Euclid the leading mathematician of all time. But little is known of Euclid’s life except that he taught at Alexandria in … Read more
Subjects: Plato, Truth, Philosophy, Epistemology. Keywords: task of Socrates, Greek philosophy, kind of good, knowledge of the mechanisms, main art, essence of the teachings of Socrates, criterion of truth. Man and consciousness – this is a topic that enters into Greek philosophy instead of with sophists (sophists – teachers of wisdom). The most famous among them were … Read more
