Core Theme (Human Nature) Flashcards
Nietzsche beliefs on human rationality?
Rejects the rationalist theory of human nature
All philosophy is derived from the hidden desires and prejudices of the men who wrote it
“Philosophical Truth” is a myth. This is because objectivity is nonsense – there can be no belief that is separated from the particulars of the one who writes it
He argues that we do not look for truth because the truth is the truth, but because we are looking for evidence to further our own opinions or to even construct our own opinions. He also says that we are irrational to the point where we need to lie to ourselves to face life.
Moving from this, Nietzsche argues that we should therefore strive for more hedonistic pleasures
Perspectivism Key argument?
“Revaluation of all values”
There are no Intrinsic values- there is always a valuer who puts value onto a specific thing
Therefore, value is not universal or timeless as these valuer’s change- there is no fixed value as opposed to no value in itself
Nietzsche challenges our reprojection of values throughout history as societies and institutions change which then changes the valuation of events
How does Perspectivism influence rationality?
The notion that we can view knowledge objectively would be false, as we are always viewing knowledge from a perspective,
Meaning that our knowledge of the world will always be incomplete.
Therefore, rationalist ideas are rendered false as they are oversimplifications and rejections of the knowledge which is not favourable to us.
Plato beliefs in rationality
It is the ability to master our impulses and think objectively that Plato
emphasizes in his account of man as a rational animal.
Plato three parts to the soul: the appetitive part,
which consists of our basic desires; the spirited or passionate part, which consists of our anger, will for self-expression and recognition; and us the reason, which consists of our ability to make correct judgments about the world and to choose a course of action based on good reasons.
Example of a Child sitting hungry on the dinner table
This seems like a sensible reason for supposing that we have a higher nature. We are controlling our desires with something else that therefore must be fundamentally different in nature. If our self-control can withstand our desires, then it must be different from desire – it must be an objective and rational self.
Criticisms of Plato?
However, we need to think about what really happens in the poisoned water example.
The rational part prevents us from drinking the water,
but for what reason? In fact, our rational self is acting on
a desire itself – the desire not to die painfully from drinking poisoned water.
This might suggest that in fact, our rationality is not an objective and autonomous soul, but just a more powerful and refined set of impulses.
Our rationality may just be a tool to get the things we want in the smartest way.
C.C. of Plato?
In his Socratic dialogue Phaedrus Plato continues to describe the soul and in doing so expands his concept of human nature. Plato’s analogy of the
chariot is one of his most famous.
In this metaphor, expounded here by Socrates, the soul is like a chariot with three components. The two horses
provide the drive that pulls the chariot and therefore represent the energetic parts of our soul. The white horse, thumos (often translated as passion or
spirit), represents our drive for recognition and self-expression – our desire to succeed and compete, and our aggression are part of this impulse. The
black horse, epithumetikon (often translated as appetite), represents our base
worldly impulses, such as hunger, lust, and short-term gain.
These two drives battle for dominance in the pull of life. The third
component is the charioteer, the natural master of the other two parts.
Our reason is without drive, but it is the king of the soul. It is this that is
our core nature and which must master and control our drives in order
to achieve goodness.
Hume on Rationality?
While Hume does not deny the existence of rationalism, he argues against it being the centre of humanity through two veins.
First, Hume contends that reason is not the ascendant form of human thought in establishing proof about the world. Instead, Hume prioritises empiricism as a form of establishing our understanding of the world. Primarily this belief stems from his view that everything humanity does is influenced by experience and thus rationalism as an a priori concept doesn’t truly exist, as it still requires knowledge of a posteriori factors to begin with.
This starts to bring our view of man as rational into disrepute, with the idea that Leibniz’s principles which are meant to underpin all human thought, are ultimately underpinned by experience themselves. Hume’s second critique of rationalism is the inherent ‘good’ we ascribe to it. Far from man being a rational animal, Hume believes man is an animal who has the faculty of reason to be able to support his other endeavours, namely that ‘reason is and ought to be slave to the passions’. This understanding bases that while reason may be instrumental in the achievement of man’s desires, it is by no means either the most important part of the human thought process nor the path to a successful or good life
Hume on Rationality?
While Hume does not deny the existence of rationalism, he argues against it being the centre of humanity through two veins. First, Hume contends that reason is not the ascendant form of human thought in establishing proof about the world. Instead, Hume prioritises empiricism as a form of establishing our understanding of the world. Primarily this belief stems from his view that everything humanity does is influenced by experience and thus rationalism as an a priori concept doesn’t truly exist, as it still requires knowledge of a posteriori factors, to begin with.
This starts to bring our view of man as rational into disrepute, with the idea that Leibniz’s principles which are meant to underpin all human thought, are underpinned by experiencing themselves. Hume’s second critique of rationalism is the inherent ‘good’ we ascribe to it. Far from man being a rational animal, Hume believes a man is an animal who has the faculty of reason to be able to support his other endeavours, namely that ‘reason is and ought to be a slave to the passions. This understanding bases that while reason may be instrumental in the achievement of man’s desires, it is by no means either the most important part of the human thought process nor the path to a successful or good life
Chain of flow for Plato?
Critics might attacks this premise by arguing that humans aren’t fundamentally rational because reason is based on paradigms
Kuhn’s argument for paradigms is complicated by the remaining of some ‘common truths’ that move through paradigms, such as the one that murder is fundamentally immoral.
But Plato’s argument still seems unconvincing as we are met by another assumption, which is that some kind of objective truth exists, which is problematic because if objective truths exists and can be attained, there should be no questions left in philosophy
Argued by Locke, according to Locke, knowledge of the external world is knowledge of ‘real existence.’ Knowledge of real existence is knowledge that something really exists and is not a mere figment of your imagination. Locke argues that we can know three distinct kinds of things really exist.
Chains of Flow for Nietszche?
it assumes that just because there is no absolute value, which entails that there is no reasoned process at all
To this, there is a more convincing counterargument which is that two different answers to a philosophical question doesn’t entail the complete lack of a reasoned process, because mechanisms of reason are diverse, and, even with the same mechanisms of reason, might give different or even socially determined truth if the original truths on which argumentation is built are varied.
Yet, to dismiss truth from being a crucial part of human rationality might be considered problematic, because the purpose and value of reason is to achieve valid and true conclusions, which we cannot do if truths have no fixed value.
Aristotle Eudaimonia?
Eudaimonia, the Greek basis of pure happiness, finds itself at the centre of the question of rationalities role.
As described by Aristotle as part of Nicomachean ethics, we find the path to consistent happiness and fulfilment to be the continual doing of rational actions in both the intellectual and physical sphere.
This understanding comes from the idea that rationality is something that is unique to humanity, through it allowing humanity to ascend above the level of other animals and complete profoundly good behaviour.
