Mini exam 2 Flashcards
what are the four motifs that provide the general structure of all theories of human nature?
- background metaphysical understanding of the universe and humanities’ place in it
- distinctive claims about human being, human society, and the human condition
- diagnosis that zeros in on the imperfections in members of our species
- prescription that attempts to fix what goes wrong and solve for what ought to be the case
what are the two characteristics of a closed theory?
- refuses to acknowledge any counterevidence contrary to your current beliefs
- deflect criticism from the theory/belief to the critics
what types of theories are liable to be treated as closed thoeries?
ideological theories that give way to who we are and our way of life; they are the justification/ foundation for a way of life
why might someone be motivated to hold a closed theory?
closed theories protect a person’s belief system from being destroyed or criticized
what is an ideology?
a set of ideas or beliefs that provide a foundation for a way of life
when does a given theory (of human nature) become an ideology? What role or function must a theory of human nature perform to qualify as ideological?
it must be foundational meaning it explains or justifies a community’s way of life
what is a statement
a declarative sentence that represents the world as being one way or the other
what is an assertion?
the speech-act of making a claim that something is or is not the case
what is the difference between an empirical (factual) and non-empirical statement?
-empirical statements are concerned about what is the case and can be confirmed or disconfirmed by sensory observational experience
-non-empirical statements are not concerned with facts and cannot be proven true or false through observational means
what is a normative (prescriptive/value) statement?
a statement based off of what ought to be
what does it mean to say that a statement is knowable only by a posteriori?
the statement is determined to be true by empirical or sensory means
what does it mean to say of a statement that it is knowable a priori
the statement is not determined true through sensory or observational information
what kinds of statements are knowable a priori?
non-empirical statements
what fields or subject matters are connected with a priori statements
logic, philosophy, mathematics, and other formal disciplines
how is the truth of an a posteriori statement generally determined?
The statement is determined true through the obtaining of relevant sensory information or experience
what subject areas or fields of knowledge and inquiry are essentially concerned with a posteriori statements (truths)?
all of the sciences, anything that uses the scientific method
what is a worldview composed of
interconnected beliefs
DeWitt holds that there is a right way and a wrong way to conceive of a worldview. What are these two ways of thinking about the nature of a worldview?
-think of it as a shopping list
-think of it as a jigsaw puzzle
Why does DeWitt favor one way of conceiving what a worldview is over the other? What does this preferred conception capture about the nature of a worldview that the other conception does not?
The items on a shopping list are not interconnected; you can add and subtract things without affecting the list as a whole, but this fact is not the same as a worldview or puzzle; taking or adding something to a puzzle would change it as a whole because the pieces, or beliefs, are interconnected
what is the difference between a core and a peripheral belief?
-core beliefs are foundational beliefs that affect all other beliefs, and when they are changed, there are dramatic impacts to worldvie-peripheral beliefs can change without any effect on other or core, and they are built off of core beliefs
imagine you’re an educated person living in the medieval (pre-Copernican) period. What core belief would you hold about the relation between the sun and earth
you would believe that the earth is located at the center of the universe and that all other things like the sun and moon orbit around it
why would it be far more difficult to revise a core belief than a peripheral belief?
Core beliefs are foundational beliefs and are very important to how a person lives their life. Changing these beliefs would be extremely difficult because how important they are to the holder. Peripheral beliefs can change easily and do not have effects on other beliefs in a system.
what is a theory of truth? What question is a theory of truth not concerned with?
-answers what truth is
-not concerned with the method or manner by which something is true
what question about truth is a theory of truth concerned with?
what is the nature of truth?
there are two types of question in metaphysics- existence questions and constitutive questions. Explain the difference and cite examples of each
-existence questions are about whether or not something exists and can be things such as, “does god exist?”
-identity questions are questions about what something is and can be things like, “what is truth?” and “what is human nature?”
what are the two very influential theories of truth that were discussed in lecture?
-correspondence theory of truth
-coherence theory of truth
how does the correspondence theory of truth answer the fundamental question that a theory of truth is supposed to answer?
it defines truth by the conditions by which a true statement is true
according to the correspondence theory, what is the essential function of a mind? what can we do as mind-possessing organisms that rock cannot do?
the mind can act as a representational system that is made up of images of reality. There is a relationship between minds and the world; the mind must create mental pictures that match reality. Using the mental picture of reality, we can determine the truth of statements. Inanimate objects do not have minds so they cannot create mental representations
what is one important objection raised against the correspondence theory?
according to this theory, the only thing you have direct contact with from the inside is your mental representation but no direct contact with reality itself and the world outside of your mind
what is the coherence theory of truth? what answer does this theory give to the question that a theory of truth is supposed to answer?
a belief is true to the extent of how well it meshes with your existing system of beliefs
DeWitt distinguishes between two distinct versions f the coherence theory. what are the two versions?
-individualistic
-group
what objections can be raised about either version of the coherence theory?
- in individualistic, truth is relative to each person, it can be different for different people making it incoherence
in group, something that is true to one group may be false to another, so it would not be coherent
do both the coherence and correspondence theory of coherence rely equally on the idea of an objective, mind-independent reality?
No, this is more centered around the coherence theory because it does not deal with accuracy but instead with what one believes
do both correspondence and coherence theory of coherence rely equally on the notion of a mental representation?
No, coherence is not based off of how well the object represent the physical world, so it does not deal heavily with mental representation. The correspondence theory attempts to accurately mentally represent the real world.
what is the difference between a physical representation and a mental representation
a physical representation is a physical object in reality while mental representation requires a mind to produce it
would it make sense to evaluate both correspondence and coherence theories according to the criteria of accuracy?
no, only the correspondence theory is concerned with reality
what is falsifiability?
whether or not a theory or statement is subject to confirmation or disconfirmation by means of observational evidence
DeWitt says that there is a right and wrong way of applying the term falsifiable or unfalsifiable. when applied incorrectly, what does the term apply to? When applied correctly, what does the term apply to
-incorrect use applies to theories being falsifiable
-the correct use only applies to people and psychological attitudes
How might one view the theories of metaphysical dualism and materialism as counterexamples to DeWitt’s claim regarding the correct use of the terms falsifiable and unfalsifiable?
metaphysical dualism is unfalsifiable because their truth cannot cannot be determined by sensory information because of the nature of the claims they are making
