Chapter 3 (Rome & Middle Ages) Flashcards
Pyrrho of Elis (ca. 360-270 BC)
founder of skepticism
Skepticism
the belief that all beliefs can be proved false; thus to avoid the frustration of being wrong, it is best to believe nothing
Dogmatist
according to the Skeptics, any person claiming to have arrived at an indisputable truth
Antisthenes (ca. 445-365 BC)
Founder of Cynicism
Questioned the value of intellectual pursuits
Preached a back to nature philosophy, free from wants, passions, and many conventions of society
Thought true happiness depended on self-sufficiency
It was the quest for the simple, independent, natural life that characterized Cynicism
Cynicism
the belief that the best life is one lived close to nature and away from the rules and regulations of society
Diogenes (ca. 412-323 BC)
like his mentor Antisthenes, advocated natural impulses as the proper guide for action instead of social convention
Epicureanism
the belief that the best life is one of long-term pleasure resulting from moderation
Epicurus of Samos (ca. 341-270 BC):
Founder of Epicureanism
Based his philosophy on Democritus’s atomism but rejected his determinism.
According to Epicurus, the atoms making up humans ever lose their ability to move freely; hence, he postulated free will
Zeno of Citium (ca 335-263 BC)
Founder of stoicism
Believed that the world was ruled by a divine plan and everything in nature was there for a reason
Stoicism
the belief that one should live according to nature’s plan an accept ones fate with indifference or, in case of extreme hardships, with courage
Epicureanism
the belief that the best life is one of long0term pleasure resulting from moderation
Marcus Aurelius (AD 121-180)
Roman emperor and author of Meditations, a seminal work of Stoic philosophy
Neoplatonism
Philosophy that emphasized the most mystical aspects of Plato’s philosophy/. Transcendental experiences were considered the most significant type of human experience
Philo (ca. 25 BC – AD 50)
A Neoplatonist who combined Jewish theology with Plato’s philosophy. Philo differentiated between the lower self (the body) and a spiritual self, which is made in God’s image. The body is the source of all evil, therefore, for the spiritual self to fully develop, one should avoid or minimize sensory experience
Plotinus (ca 205-270)
A Neoplatonism who emphasized the importance of embracing the soul through introspection. These subjective experiences were more important and informative than physical experiences
Vedantism
The Indian religion that emphasized the importance of semiecstatic trances
Zoroastrianism
the Persian religion that equated truth and wisdom with the brilliance of the sun and ignorance and evil with darkness
Mystery Religions
Ancient religions (cults) that were characterized by secret rites of initiation; ceremonies designed to bring initiates close to a deity or deities, to symbolize death and rebirth, to offer purification and forgiveness of sins, and to cause the exaltation of a new life; the confession of sin; and a strong feeling of community among members.
Jesus (ca. 6 BC – AD 30)
a simple, sensitive man who St. Paul and others claimed was the Messiah. Those who believed Jesus to be the son of God are called Christians
St. Paul (ca AD – 10-64)
Founded the Christian church by claiming that Jesus was the son of God. Paul placed the soul or spirit in the highest position among the human faculties, the body in the lowest, and the mind in a position somewhere in between.
Constantine (ca. 272-337)
Roman Emperor whose Edict of Milan in 313 made Christianity a tolerated religion within the Roman Empire. Under Constantine’s leadership, widely diverse Christian writings and beliefs were formalized, thus facilitating the widespread acceptance of Christianity.
St. Augustine (ca. 354-349)
After having demonstrated the validity of inner, subjective experience, said that one can know God through introspection as well as through the revealed truth of the scriptures. Augustine also wrote extensively on human free will
Internal sense
the internal knowledge of moral right that individuals use in evaluating their behaviour and thoughts. Postulated by St. Augustine.
Predestination
the belief that God has preordained, even before birth, which people will be granted salvation (the elect) and which are condemned to eternal damnation
Introspection
the examination of one’s inner experiences
(Augustine)
We see here the influence of Plato, who also believed that truth must be attained through such introspective analysis
Avicenna (Persian name, Ibn Sina; 980-1037)
A Muslim physician and philosopher whose translations of, and commentaries on, the works of Aristotle strongly influenced subsequent Western philosophers
Averroes (Persian name, Ibn Rushd; 1126-1198)
A Muslim physician and philosopher who, among other things, wrote commentaries on Aristotle’s work on the senses, memory, sleep and waking, and dreams
Disagreed with Avicenna about arrangement of human intelligences, believing that all human experiences reflect Gods influence
Avicenna’s senses hierarchy
Then postulated 7 interior senses, which were arranged in a hierarchy
1) The common sense, which synthesizes the information provided by the external senses
2) Retentive imagination, ability to remember the synthesized information from the common sense
3) Compositive animal imagination – for animals, strictly associative process, objects or events associated with pain are avoided, pleasure is approached
4) Compo human imagination – allows humans and animals to learn what to approach or avoid in the environment, humans have creative combination of information from common sense and from retentive imagination (can imagine a unicorn without experiencing one, non-humans cannot)
5) Estimative power, the innate ability to make judgements about environmental objects
6) Ability to remember the outcomes of all the information processing that occurs lower in the hierarchy
7) Ability to rationally use that information
Maimonides (or Moses ben Maimon; 1135-1204):
Jewish physician and philosopher who attempted to reconcile Aristotelian philosophy and Judaism
Attempted to show that many passages from the Old Testament and the Talmud could be understood rationally, therefore, need not be taken on faith alone.
Other passages were to be understood only as allegory and not taken as literally true
Went so far as to say that is something is demonstrably false, it should be rejected, even if it is stated in the bible or Talmud
St. Anselm (ca. 1033-1109)
Argued that sense perception and rational powers should supplement faith (see ontological argument for the existence of God)
Ontological Argument for the Existence of God
Anselm’s contention that if we can think of something, it must be real. Because we can think of a perfect being (God) that perfect being must exist
Peter Lombard (ca. 1095-1160)
Insisted that God could be known through faith, reason, or the study of his work in nature
Another Augustinian
Argued even more forcefully for the place of reason within Christianity
Scholasticism
the synthesis of Aristotelian philosophy with Christian teachings
Peter Abelard (1079-1142)
One of the first Western philosopher-theologians to emphasize the works of Aristotle
Dialectic method
the technique used by Abelard in seeking truth. Questions are raised, and several possible answers to those questions are explored.
Realism
the belief that abstract universals (essences) exist and that empirical events are only manifestations of those universals
Nominalism
the belief that so-called universals are nothing more than verbal labels or mental habits that are used to denote classes of experience
Conceptualism
Abelard’s proposed solution to the realism-nominalism debate. Abelard argued that concepts do not have independent existence (realism) but that, being abstractions, they are more than mere names (nominalism)
St. Thomas Aquinas (ca. 1225-1274)
Epitomized Scholasticism. He sought to Christianize the works of Aristotle and to show that both faith and reason lead to the truth of God’s existence
St. Albertus Magnus (ca. 1200-1280)
made a comprehensive review of Aristotle’s work. Following Aristotle’s suggestion, he also made careful, direct observations of nature.
St. Bonaventure (ca. 1217-1274)
A contemporary of St. Thomas Aquinas who argued that Christianity should remain Augustinian and should reject any effort to assimilate Aristotelian philosophy into church dogma
William of Occam (sometimes spelled Ockham; ca/ 1285-1349)
denied the contention of the realist that what we experience are but manifestations of abstract principles. Instead, he sided with the nominalists who said that so-called abstract principles, or universals, were nothing more than verbal labels that we use to describe classes of experiences. For Occam, reality is what we experience directly, there is no need to assume a higher reality beyond our senses.
Occam’s Razor
The belief that of several, equally effective alternative explanations, the one that makes the fewest assumptions should be accepted
