Lecture 1 - Materialism Flashcards
Which changes introduced the High Enlightenment? (6)
- French censorship fails, leading to cooperation with Diderot and leading to the Encyclopédie
- Voltaire starts using philosophical clandestine texts
- Publication of L’Homme Machine (1747)
- French monarchy is increasingly under stress due to poor financial and foreign policy
- Diminishing status of the Kings of France as the embodiment of the nation allows the philosophes to take over the public domain
- Loss of authority of the French Catholic Church due to internal quarrels
Which two distinct philosophical phenomena occur after 1750, and are key traits of the High Enlightenment?
- Philosophical materialism (La Mettrie, D’Holbach)
- A shift of Enlightenment thinking towards politics (Rousseau)
What is the biggest problem with materialism?
The fact that ‘all there is, is matter in motion’ would also imply that there is no soul, and no afterlife
Which work had a massive influence on the recovery of materialism in the 18th century?
The Epicurean poem De Rerum Natura by Lucretius
On which two claims is 18th century materialism made up?
- Metaphysical claim: all there is, is matter
- Epistemological claim: all we need to do to understand reality is to work with the assumption that there is only matter
How does materialism explain nature?
Changes in the state of nature are the result of changes in the configuration of atoms
In De Rerum Natura, Lucretius explains Epicurean moral philosophy. What does it entail?
Man’s road towards hapiness can be achieved by removing the causes of unhappiness
What are the causes of unhappiness among men according to Epicureus/Lucretius, and how can they be countered? (2)
- Fear of the gods
Counter: the gods aren’t occupied with us, so there is no reason to fear them - Fear of death
Counter: it was not bad for us not to exist before we existed. Not existing after we have existed is equal to not existing before existence. So: not existing is not bad for us. It is irrational to fear something which is not bad for us. So: the fear of death is irrational.
Which work would be (partly) inspired by the De Rerum Natura? What is remarkable about this work?
The Theophrastus redivivus
This text denies the existence of God on the basis of philosophical arguments, and is the first post-Roman philosophical atheist text written in Europe
Which Cartesian notion does La Mettrie fight in L’homme machine?
The notion that the worlds consists of two seperate substances: res extensa and res cogita
What was the main philosophical worry many critics had with Descartes’ dualism?
If the world consists of two essentially distinguished substances, how can these substances constantly interact in the way in which they do?
How does La Mettrie oppose Cartesian dualism?
By claiming that he could explain human behaviour in strictly material terms, without a need for a res cogitans
Which philosopher was influental on La Mettrie’s L’homme machine, and why?
How does this influence La Mettrie?
Spinoza, who had already come up with a monist metaphysics –> the world consists of a single substance of which extension and thought are just attributes
Much like Spinoza, La Mettrie sees mental phenomena as properties of matter, rather than a unique substance
What does La Mettrie see as the origin of the material property of thought?
La Mettrie sees thought as a spontaneous property of matter, without the need for God to join the res cogita and res extensa
How does La Mettrie defend his claim that mental phenomena are properties of matter, even though he is unable to come up with an explanation for how this works?
He point to other properties of matter (magnetism, electricity, weight) that were at the time not understood but proven to exist –> why are these so different from thought that one has to infer an entirely new substance to explain thought?
Which influential work was published by D’Holbach, and of how many parts does it consists?
Système de la Nature, consisting of two parts
What was the message of the first part of the Système de la Nature? (5)
- Nature is all that exists
- All that exists is matter in motion, organized by cause and effect
- Man is part of nature
- When our bodies stop working, our mental phenomena also cease
- So: there is no reason to assume the existence of any type of substance beyond matter
What is the main question La Mettrie answers in the second part of the Système de la Nature?
What is his answer?
How can it be that we have believed for 2000 years that we have a soul, that there is an afterlife, and that in this afterlife, we will be judged and punished?
Answer: due to theological spiritualism
On which 3 lies is theological spiritualism based, according to D’Holbach?
- There is a God
- There is free will
- There is an afterlife/immortal soul
In which way are D’Holbach’s opinions about Christianity unique?
He was one of the first to conclude that the main tenants of Christianity were not only false, but also harmful, and we should get rid of them
What is the most important criticism on the Système de la Nature?
How does D’Holbach respond to this?
Its implications on politics and morality: if there is no such thing as a free will, what does morality mean?
Response: in a scientific moral philosophy, we should study the rules governing our behaviour
Which two main rules did D’Holbach see to govern human behaviour?
- Man acts according to self-interest
- Man seeks happpiness
What is an example of how theological spiritualism could stand in the way of happiness, according to D’Holbach?
D’Holbach felt that we should cherish our bodies, which is very much discouraged by Christianity
D’Holbach did not belive in sins. What ground did he formulate to still want to lead a decent life?
There is only one chance on life: we should try to be as decent as we can, while we can –> secular morality
