chapter 2 - the ancient world

Question 1

who were the first philosophers? how did humans think before philosophy? why do textbooks typically begin philosophy with the ancient greeks?

Answer 1

• thales (625-545 BC), heraclitus (540-480 BC), pythagoras (580-500 BC)
• before philosophy, people believed in animism, anthropomorphism, and magic
• textbooks begin with the ancient greeks because they were the first to debunk the beliefs previously held (magic and such)
• they replaced supernatural beliefs with naturalistic ones, encouraged criticism and evaluation of ideas
• made a monumental step in human thought

Question 2

what are some factors that led to the greek zeitgeist?

Answer 2

• information is power, spread of knowledge
• greece was the hotspot where everyone was traveling to, exposure to different cultures (trade networks)
• having more money led to the investment in things that were not needed for survival (economic prosperity)

Question 3

what do pythagoras and plato say about the origin of knowledge? what is their reasoning behind this? how does this influence our thoughts about the mind, soul, and body?

Answer 3

pythagoras
- reason is the highest form of thought (rationalism)
- reason is the chief source and test of knowledge
plato
- reminiscence theory of knowledge: all knowledge is innate and can be attained through introspection
- sensory experience, empiricism
influence
- it is important to use both rationalism and empiricism
- cognitive psychology is rooted in both ideas
- both set of ideas created dualism, where the body is physical and imperfect, and the mind (soul) contains pure knowledge

Question 4

what did psychology gain from the greek paradigm?

Answer 4

• a naturalistic view of life (science)
• critical debate (getting truth)
• a search for truth (real truth to be discovered)
• an emphasis on reason (important tools in discovering tools)
• mind-body dualism
• teleology (looking at the world and doing science in terms of purpose and function)

Question 5

how did aristotle view causality

Answer 5

• there are four useful ways to study the world
• material cause: what a thing is made of
• formal cause: the form of something
• efficient cause: the force that transforms a thing
• final cause: the purpose of something