General questions Flashcards
What is represented by the outside world in the story of the cave?
The real world, the world of the forms, which lies beyond our world.
Why should philosophers ruel accroding to plato?
The philosophers should rule because they have knowledge, whereas the ordianry person does not.
Which of the forms is the ultimate form?
The Form of the Good.
Which of the four causes is the most important as far as Aristotle is concerned? What does this show about his philosophy?
The final cause. It shows that Aristotle belives that all things have a purpose or telos.
What are the differences between Aristotle’s prime mover and religious ideas of God?
Contrary to religious ideas of God, the Prime Mover is not omniscient and does not interact with or love the creation. It is a cause rather than a creator.
How do exitentialists differ from Aristotle on the idea of purpose?
Existentialists believe that humans have to create their own purposes, whereas Aristotle belives that purpose is built into the structure of the universe.
Which of the thinkers believes in a priori knowledge?
Plato belives in a priori knowledge.
Which of the thinkers believes in a posteriori knowledge?
Aristotle belives in a posteriori knowledge.
What is the difference between dualism and materialism?
Dualism belives that there are two parts or aspects to human beings - mind/soul and the body; materialism believes that there is just one aspect, physical matter.
What are the difference between the body and soul according to Plato?
The soul is the real person: it is eternal, unchanging, non-physical and posesses knowledge. The body is not the real person; its physical needs are a nuisance. It is temporal, it changes, it is physical and only posesses opinions.
How does Aristotle’s use of the word ‘Form’ differ to Plato’s ?
Plato understands the Form as something that exists beyond this world and as being more important than this world. For Aristotle, Form is the shape of the individual objects within this world.
What are Descartes’ two arguments for the existence of the soul?
The argument from doubt and the argument from divisibility.
What is the Cogito?
The Cogito is short for cogito ergo sum (‘I think, therefore I am’) - Descartes’ proof of hiw own existence, Whilst thought is occuring there must be a thinker.
Why does Richard Dawkins reject the idea of the soul?
Dawkins believes that the soul was merely an ancient attempt to understand consciousness. It isb now an unnecessary idea as science provides a better explanation.
What is the problem of interaction?
The problem is that the mental and the physical seem to be incompatible substances and it is hard to see how they could interact in one person. It is like asking, ‘How does the ghost ride the bicycle’
What does Ryle mean by the idea of a category mistake?
A category mistake is where we make the mistake of treating one thing a sif it were another type of thing. Ryle suggests that dualists are thinking of the mind in the wrong way. It is not an extra thing. He illustrates this with his example of the visitor in the university.
Give a definition of a posteriori experience
Reasoning based on the use of evidence or experience.
Whose philosophy inspied Aquinas?
Aristotle.
According to Aquinas, humans need God to guide us to our purpose just like an —– needs and —— to quide it to its target.
Arrow,archer.
According to Paley, what object is not likely to be seen as designed if you come across it on a heath?
A rock or stone.
Why does Paley say it doesn’t matter if the watch is broken?
It still shows evidence of being designed, even if it is broken when seen.
In the correct order, what do Aquinas’ three ways argue from?
Motion (or change), causation (or cause and effect), contingency and necessity.
How does each of the three ways end?
This being is what we call God.
What does Hume say we know about shipbuilders that might make Paley’s argument less sucessful?
A shipbuilder does not usually work alone; he is also likely to have learned his trade through a process of trial and error; and just because he creates a great ship, it does not mean that he is a moral person in himself.
What is the underlying principle of Darwin’s Theory of Evolution?
Natural selection.
What is a logical fallacy?
An error in logic- bad thinking.
Give a definition of a priori reasoning
Reasoning based on analysis or logic
What does ‘ontology’ mean ?
The study of being
How does Anselm define God?
That than which nothing greater can be concieved- the greatest possible being
According to Anselm, what is greater than existing in ther mind alone?
Existing in both the mind and reality
What does Anselm say about God that makes him reject Gaunilo’s criticisms?
God is a special case, a necessary being, unlike Gaunilo’s island.
According to Kant, what can you reject in order not to need to discuss the predicate?
The existence of the subject of the sentence.
What was the currency that Kant used in his second objection?
Thaler.
To whom is Prologian adressed?
God.
Who suggested that ten leaky bucket do not hold water, so ten arguments for God’s existence that are flawed do not prove his existence?
Antony Flew.
According to William James, what is the key test for the genuineness of a religious experience?
It should be judged by its effects, the ‘fruit’ it produces.
What are James’ four characteristics of a religious experience?
They are ineffable, noetic, transcient and passive.
What is a conversion experience?
It is an experience where there is a sudden or gradual change in someone’s belief system.
What did Starbuck consider about conversion experiences?
Starbuck shows that conversion experiences are similar to normal non-religious experiences where adolescents go through a process of finding their identity.
What is the principle of testimony and why do some thinkers criticise this principle?
The principle of testimony is Swinburne’s suggestion that we should give people the benefit of the doubt and believe their claims to religious experiences unless there is a good reason not to. This can b criticised as religious experienes are very different to everyday experiences and we may have reason to question the reliability of individuals involved.
How do pyschologists such as Freud criticise religious experience?
Freud, along with Feuerbach, suggests that desire for religious experience is based on wishful thinking and that the experiences themselves are triggered by our subconscious.
What is the God helmet an how might it challenge religious experience?
The God helmet produces a magnetic field which causes something akin to a religious experience that is shared by a group of people. Some scientists have used this to argue that religious experiences are entirely natural and hence are nothing to do with God.
Define corporate religious experience and give an example of such an experience
A corporate religious experience is a religious experience is a religious experience that is shared by a group of people. The events at Fatima, Medjugorje and the Tororonto Blessing are examples of such experiences.
