Philosophers

Question 1

Libertarianism

Answer 1

Political philosophy that upholds liberty as its principal objective. Seek to maximize autonomy and freedom of choice, emphasizing political freedom, voluntary association and the primacy of individual judgment.

Question 2

Rationalism

Answer 2

Rationalism is any view appealing to intellectual and deductive reason (as opposed to sensory experience or any religious teachings) as the source of knowledge or justification. Thus, it holds that some propositions are knowable by us by intuition alone, while others are knowable by being deduced through valid arguments from intuited propositions. Depending on the strength of the belief, this can result in a range of positions from the moderate view that reason has precedence over other ways of acquiring knowledge, to the radical position that reason is the only path to knowledge.

Question 3

17th Century Rationalists

Answer 3

Descartes, Leibniz, and Spinoza

Question 4

18th Century Rationalists

Answer 4

Voltaire, Jean-Jacques Rosseau, and Charles de Secondat

Question 5

Existentialism

Answer 5

Existentialism is a philosophy that emphasizes individual existence, freedom and choice. It is the view that humans define their own meaning in life, and try to make rational decisions despite existing in an irrational universe. It focuses on the question of human existence, and the feeling that there is no purpose or explanation at the core of existence. It holds that, as there is no God or any other transcendent force, the only way to counter this nothingness (and hence to find meaning in life) is by embracing existence.

Question 6

19th Century Existentialists

Answer 6

Soren Kierkegaard and Friedrich Nietzshe

Question 7

Epicureanism

Answer 7

Epicureanism is a system of philosophy based on the teachings of Epicurus, founded around 307 B.C. It teaches that the greatest good is to seek modest pleasures in order to attain a state of tranquility, freedom from fear (“ataraxia”) and absence from bodily pain (“aponia”). This combination of states is held to constitute happiness in its highest form, and so Epicureanism can be considered a form of Hedonism, although it differs in its conception of happiness as the absence of pain, and in its advocacy of a simple life.

Question 8

Atomism

Answer 8

Atomism is the theory that all of reality and all the objects in the universe are composed of very small, indivisible and indestructible building blocks known as atoms (from the Greek “atomos”, meaning “uncuttable”). This leads logically to the position that only atoms exist, and there are no composite objects (objects with parts), which would mean that human bodies, clouds, planets, etc, all do not exist.

Question 9

Cynicism

Answer 9

Cynicism is an ancient Greek ethical doctrine which holds that the purpose of life is to live a life of Virtue in agreement with Nature (which calls for only the bare necessities required for existence). This means rejecting all conventional desires for health, wealth, power and fame, and living a life free from all possessions and property. However, rather than retreating from society, Cynics should live in the full glare of the public’s gaze and would be quite indifferent in the face of any insults which might result from their unconventional behaviour. Their way of life requires continuous training (of both the mind and the body), not just an abdication of responsibility and a nihistic lifestyle

Question 10

Metaphysics

Answer 10

Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy concerned with the nature of existence, being and the world. Arguably, metaphysics is the foundation of philosophy: Aristotle calls it “first philosophy” (or sometimes just “wisdom”), and says it is the subject that deals with “first causes and the principles of things”.

Question 11

Epistemology

Answer 11

Epistemology is the study of the nature and scope of knowledge and justified belief. It analyzes the nature of knowledge and how it relates to similar notions such as truth, belief and justification. It also deals with the means of production of knowledge, as well as skepticism about different knowledge claims. It is essentially about issues having to do with the creation and dissemination of knowledge in particular areas of inquiry.

Question 12

Ethics

Answer 12

Ethics (or Moral Philosophy) is concerned with questions of how people ought to act, and the search for a definition of right conduct (identified as the one causing the greatest good) and the good life (in the sense of a life worth living or a life that is satisfying or happy).

Question 13

Aesthetics

Answer 13

Aesthetics is the branch of philosophy concerned with the nature and appreciation of art, beauty and good taste. It has also been defined as “critical reflection on art, culture and nature”. The word “aesthetics” derives from the Greek “aisthetikos”, meaning “of sense perception”. Along with Ethics, aesthetics is part of axiology (the study of values and value judgments).

Question 14

Stoicism

Answer 14

Stoicism is an ancient Greek philosophy (developed by Zeno of Citium around 300 B.C. as a refinement of Cynicism) which teaches the development of self-control and fortitude as a means of overcoming destructive emotions. It does not seek to extinguish emotions completely, but rather seeks to transform them by a resolute Asceticism (a voluntary abstinence from worldly pleasures), which enables a person to develop clear judgment, inner calm and freedom from suffering (which it considers the ultimate goal).

Question 15

Hedonism

Answer 15

Hedonism is a school of philosophy from the Socratic and Hellenistic periods of ancient Greece, which holds that pleasure is the most important pursuit of mankind, and that we should always act so as to maximize our own pleasure.

Question 16

Skepticism

Answer 16

Skepticism (or Scepticism in the UK spelling), also known as Pyrrhonism or Pyrrhonic Skepticism after the early proponent Pyrrho of Elis, is the philosophical position that one should refrain from making truth claims, and avoid the postulation of final truths. This is not necessarily quite the same as claiming that truth is impossible (which would itself be a truth claim), but is often also used to cover the position that there is no such thing as certainty in human knowledge (sometimes referred to as Academic Skepticism).

Question 17

Pluralism

Answer 17

Pluralism, appropriate to its name, is a concept used many different ways in Philosophy (see below). But, in general terms, it is the theory that there is more than one basic substance or principle.

Question 18

Monism

Answer 18

Monism is the metaphysical and theological view that all is one, that there are no fundamental divisions, and that a unified set of laws underlie all of nature. The universe, at the deepest level of analysis, is then one thing or composed of one fundamental kind of stuff. It sets itself in contrast to Dualism, which holds that ultimately there are two kinds of substance, and from Pluralism, which holds that ultimately there are many kinds of substance.

Question 19

Dualism

Answer 19

Dualism in Metaphysics is the belief that there are two kinds of reality: material (physical) and immaterial (spiritual). In Philosophy of Mind, Dualism is the position that mind and body are in some categorical way separate from each other, and that mental phenomena are, in some respects, non-physical in nature.

Question 20

Platonic Realism

Answer 20

Platonic Realism is the view, articulated by the ancient Greek philosopher Plato, that universals exist. A universal is a property of an object, which can exist in more than one place at the same time (e.g. the quality of “redness”). As universals were considered by Plato to be ideal forms, this stance is confusingly also called Platonic Idealism.

Question 21

Neo-Platonism

Answer 21

Neo-Platonism is generally a religious philosophy, combining a form of idealistic Monism with elements of Polytheism. It teaches the existence of an ineffable and transcendent One, from which emanates the rest of the universe as a sequence of lesser beings (although later Neo-Platonic philosophers added hundreds of intermediate beings such as gods, angels and demons).

Question 22

Logicisim

Answer 22

Logicism is the theory in Logic and Philosophy of Mathematics that mathematics is an extension of logic, and therefore that some or all mathematics is reducible to logic. It effectively holds that mathematical theorems and truths are logically necessary or analytic. It does not make any claims about whether or not logical system are formalizable, nor about how mathematical truths are discovered or applied.

Question 23

Logical Positivism

Answer 23

Logical Positivism (later also known as Logical Empiricism) is a theory in Epistemology and Logic that developed out of Positivism and the early Analytic Philosophy movement, and which campaigned for a systematic reduction of all human knowledge to logical and scientific foundations. Thus, a statement is meaningful only if it is either purely formal (essentially, mathematics and logic) or capable of empirical verification.

Question 24

Utilitarianism

Answer 24

Utilitarianism is the idea that the moral worth of an action is solely determined by its contribution to overall utility in maximizing happiness or pleasure as summed among all people. It is, then, the total utility of individuals which is important here, the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people. Utility, after which the doctrine is named, is a measure in economics of the relative satisfaction from, or desirability of, the consumption of goods. Utilitarianism can thus be described as a quantitative and reductionistic approach to Ethics.

Question 25

Positivism

Answer 25

Positivism is the view that the only authentic knowledge is scientific knowledge, and that such knowledge can only come from positive affirmation of theories through strict scientific method (techniques for investigating phenomena based on gathering observable, empirical and measurable evidence, subject to specific principles of reasoning). The doctrine was developed in the mid-19th Century by the French sociologist and philosopher Auguste Comte (1798 - 1857).

Question 26

Modernism

Answer 26

Modernism refers to a reforming movement in art, architecture, music, literature and the applied arts during the late 19th Century and early 20th Century. There is no specifically Modernist movement in Philosophy, but rather Modernism refers to a movement within the arts which had some influence over later philosophical thought. The later reaction against Modernism gave rise to the Post-Modernist movement both in the arts and in philosophy.

Question 27

The Ephesian School

Answer 27

The Ephesian School is a Greek Pre-Socratic school of philosophy of the 5th Century B.C., although essentially it refers to the ideas of just one man, Heraclitus (who did not have any direct disciples or successors that we are aware of), a native of Ephesus in the Greek colony of Ionia

Question 28

Analytic Philosophy

Answer 28

Analytic Philosophy (or sometimes Analytical Philosophy) is a 20th Century movement in philosophy which holds that philosophy should apply logical techniques in order to attain conceptual clarity, and that philosophy should be consistent with the success of modern science. For many Analytic Philosophers, language is the principal (perhaps the only) tool, and philosophy consists in clarifying how language can be used.

Question 29

Empiricism

Answer 29

Empiricism is the theory that the origin of all knowledge is sense experience. It emphasizes the role of experience and evidence, especially sensory perception, in the formation of ideas, and argues that the only knowledge humans can have is a posteriori (i.e. based on experience). Most empiricists also discount the notion of innate ideas or innatism (the idea that the mind is born with ideas or knowledge and is not a “blank slate” at birth).

Question 30

Continental Philosophy*

Answer 30

Continental Philosophy refers to a set of traditions of 19th and 20th Century philosophy in mainland Europe. It is a general term for those philosophical schools and movements not included under the label Analytic Philosophy, which was the other, largely Anglophone, main philosophical tradition of the period.

• It generally rejects Scientism (the view that the natural sciences are the best or most accurate way of understanding all phenomena).
• It tends towards Historicism in its view of possible experience as variable, and determined at least partly by factors such as context, space and time, language, culture and history.

Question 31

Historicism

Answer 31

Historicism (also known as Historism) holds that there is an organic succession of developments, and that local conditions and peculiarities influence the results in a decisive way.

Question 32

Deconstructionism

Answer 32

It is a theory of literary criticism that questions traditional assumptions about certainty, identity, and truth; asserts that words can only refer to other words; and attempts to demonstrate how statements about any text subvert their own meanings.