Philosophy Exam Flashcards
1
Q
Francis Bacon (1561-1626) was
A
A jurist, courtier, parliamentarian, philosopher and writer
Interested in science, observation and induction
2
Q
The Idols of the Mind
A
There are many ways that our minds can be distorted – even though we strive for objectivity and truth.
Bacon warns of four specific types of distortions – that he calls IDOLS (revered false appearances)
3
Q
Idols of the Tribe
A
Biases inherent to our species – the flaws of our senses.
E.g. On the right is how bees see a flower. They have receptor cells within their eyes that see UV rays bouncing off of the pollen and nectar in flowers - like a food ‘bullseye’.
Most insects can see UV light, and it is estimated that there are 1.5 billion insects to every 1 person on the planet.
So what does a flower REALLY look like?
4
Q
Idols of the Cave
A
Everyone has their own ‘cave’ in which they surround themselves with things and thoughts and concepts etc…
This is your individual habits of thought – the education you have, the people you admire, the knowledge you have been exposed to.
5
Q
Idols of the Marketplace
A
Our everyday conversations with each other tend to be sloppy and thoughtless
Using words poorly obstructs knowledge and understanding
6
Q
Idols of the Theatre
A
These are the blindly accepted systems within which we live
Political, scientific, or theological
7
Q
Sources of Knowledge
A
Where do we get our information, our knowledge from? Are there some sources that are better than others? What are the weaknesses of these sources?
8
Q
Dominant Ideas in Our Society
A
“Dominant ideas” would describe the attitudes, beliefs, values, and morals shared by the majority of the people in a given society. Often we do not notice them, because we were raised in the society that holds these beliefs, and we have come to see them as “normal”. They also don’t have to be bad. Although many may look for problems, there CAN be beneficial dominant ideas.
9
Q
Metaphysics is the study of the basic structure of reality:
A
Being and Nothingness
Time
Freedom and Determinism
Mind and Body
Personhood
Nature and Supreme Beings
What is reality?
What are the building blocks of reality?
Are they mental, or physical?
What is a mind? What is matter?
Why is there something and not nothing?
What is a person?
Do I have free choices?
What is the meaning of life?
Does a supreme being exist? Do I have meaning if a supreme being DOESN’T exist?
10
Q
Science Versus Philosophy
A
Metaphysicians try to find general answers
Using logic and rational thought - not scientific evidence.
Durable general answers
11
Q
The Common Sense Realist
A
People find metaphysics “silly” - We know reality because we perceive it every day.
“Reality”, they say, is only what we know with our senses.
Philosophers say this idea is driven by ignorance/laziness
12
Q
Why does metaphysics matter?
A
People ask themselves metaphysical questions all the time.
13
Q
Does a Supreme Being Exist?
A
This question matters to literally billions of people.
Gives them a sense of purpose, a set of values, and an answer to questions about death.
No “God” = some people would say that everything is morally permissible. Others would find it liberating.
14
Q
What is a Person?
A
Silly question?
250 years ago, half of that population were not considered persons (women) and another large group had no rights (non-whites).
Today it enters into the legal debates regarding both abortion and euthanasia. When does something become person? When does it stop being a person?
Should/Can animals be considered persons?
15
Q
Do You Have Free Will?
A
Do You Have Free Will?
Free will is the ability to make choices independently.
We all like to think we have free will, but do we?
The entire court system is built around this idea.
Are your choices, really your own?
16
Q
Today….. - Metaphysics
A
Metaphysics is working on issues in the scientific realm as well as the traditional questions.
The origins of the universe, the nature of time, superstrings, chaos theory etc…
17
Q
Socrates - Philosophical Mission
A
Chaerephon - went to the Delphic oracle asking if there was anyone who was wiser than Socrates, “there was not.”
Not feeling wise, Socrates cross-examined the ‘wise’ men of society. (statesmen, poets, artisans, and others.) He did NOT find them wise.
The pursuit of wisdom became Socrates’ full-time job
18
Q
Socratic Method
A
His method consisted of asking questions to his fellow Athenians, particularly in regard to moral questions.
Argued that knowledge was virtue and believed that people were largely ignorant (not meant in a rude way)
Question and answer system is still called “The Socratic Method”
19
Q
Socratic Method II
A
The goal of Socratic Method is to expose the weakness of someone else’s argument, by asking further questions, that eventually cannot be answered without exposing a contradiction.
Socrates felt the mass schooling was impossible, and small group Socratic seminars were the only method that actually taught students anything of value in philosophy.
20
Q
The Peloponnesian War
A
Athens Vs Sparta (Athens doesn’t do well…at all)
Socrates fought in this war and it defined him intellectually.
He was critical of Athenian Democracy and Spartan Oligarchy.
Three of his former students were leaders associated with the downfall of Athens.
21
Q
The Trial of Socrates
A
An Athenian Democrat, Anytus, who suffered under Spartan control of Athens (when a puppet government of ‘30 tyrants’ led by a former student of Socrates was in charge) brought charges against Socrates….
“Socrates is guilty of not believing in the gods in which the state believes, but brings in other new divinities; he also wrongs by corrupting the youth .”
22
Q
Death of Socrates
A
In his defense Socrates gave a spontaneous speech relying on reason, refuting all the charges one by one .
There were 501 men on the jury, and he was condemned by 60 votes.
The prosecutors proposed the death penalty, and Socrates had the opportunity to offer an alternative but antagonized the jury.
With his death from hemlock poison Socrates became the most famous of all philosophers
23
Q
Who is Plato?
A
One of the earliest ancient Greek philosophers
Born in Athens, Greece in 427 BC
He was a student of Socrates
He served in the Peloponnesian War
Formed what is the first known university, called “The Academy”
Died in 347 BC
24
Q
Symbolism Within the Story
A
Inside the cave – the world in which we live
Objects casting shadows = Real things
Shadows on the wall = Images mistakenly thought of as real
Outside the cave = the ‘intelligible’ world – found through the use of reason
Objects out of the cave = the forms (‘real’ things)
The sun = The form of good (knowledge)
25
What do the symbols mean? (Plato)
Inside the cave, the prisoners mistake appearance for reality. They believe that the images they are seeing on the wall are actually real, they do not know that there are objects making these images.
The prisoner thinks he is talking about a “book,” when really he is talking of a shadow.
26
Descartes’ Evil Genius
Rene Descartes also had the same issues surrounding our world.
In the seventeenth century, he wondered if it would be possible to know if his life was actually a dream-state created by an Evil Genius.
Seeing as ALL of our perceptions are simply electrical impulses inside of our brains, “reality” may not exist at all.
He could simply be a brain in a vat, with no physical body at all.
27
Plato’s assertion is that perspective and reality are not aligned.
Thus the things we perceive, in some way, are not truly reflective of reality.
This affects the way we view the world, and our decisions.
How might the following affect your perception of reality?: music industry, ads, tv news, tv shows, movies, school, gender, social networking
28
Freed Vs Shackled
Freed prisoners will never be understood by the shackled. Plato suggests that freed prisoners would be hated by those in the cave.
Freeing oneself would be a difficult and painful process of unlearning = questioning everything that you thought was true and meaningful.
29
PERSON VERSUS HUMAN
Human is a biological term.
It means a member of the genus Homo, and specifically Homo sapiens sapiens.
PERSON?
Person is a philosophical term.
It is not a question of biology.
30
Some things needed to be considered a person
Rationality
Thought
Consciousness
Self-Consciousness
Self Identity
Verbal communication
Consciousness of objects
Ability to feel pain
Self-motivated activity
31
IMPLICATIONS OF THIS DEBATE (person vs human)
Many humans have not always been considered persons under the law – ie. People of different races, ethnicities, women, the poor, slaves, children etc…
The implications involve human rights, who we see as equals in society, and who/what we allow self-determination.
32
ANIMAL RIGHTS
Animal rights groups have proposed that many if not all animals would fall under some of our definitions of persons.
Should animals have an inherent right to not be killed, tortured or eaten?
33
ELEPHANTS
- empathy
- recognized in mirror
34
DOLPHINS
These mammals have shown that they recognize themselves in a mirror.
This is a behaviour that even human infants do not possess.
35
CHIMPS
empathy
altruism and self-awareness
chimps performed better than humans on a number memory test.
36
CROWS
the ability to use tools
37
OCTOPUS
curiosity
a disdain for boredom,
an ability to learn
the capacity to use tools.
38
ARTIFICIAL ORGANS
Cutting edge medical technology will make artificial organs commonplace in the next generation.
How much of you can be replaced before you are no longer you?
39
CORPORATIONS
Under all international laws, a corporation is a legal entity with the same rights as human being.
Do any problems exist with that?
40
The Turing Test/The Imitation Game/Prediction
“Could a machine fool the interrogator into thinking it was a person?”
In 1950, Turing predicted that by 2000, a computer would have a 70% chance of fooling a human.
He was right.
41
John Searle’s Response
The Chinese Room Analogy – an American in a room is given a series of Chinese symbols and chart that shows how to match them to appropriate responses.
He doesn’t understand the Chinese, but if he follows the chart, his responses will make sense, even if he doesn’t understand it at all.
42
The Analogy - Chinese room
Computers are like the man in the Chinese room.
They may perform tasks, but they will never UNDERSTAND what they are doing.
They lack consciousness, and intentionality.
They do not have a MIND, like we do.
43
St Thomas Aquinas - Animals
Animals are not ‘rational’ and have been given to humans, by God.
They are instruments, and do not exist for their own sake, unlike humans
44
Immanuel Kant - Animals
Only human beings can stand back and WILL to do something, and not something else.
This means animals were not given free will, and they are not deserving of rights.
They are not autonomous.
45
Rene Descartes - Animals
Rene Descartes argued that animals do not have a mind, and that they are biological machines, without thoughts or feelings.
To him, a cry of pain was a mechanical response, like a steam whistle.
46
Animals are like Machines
According to Descartes, neither will ever be close to a person.
They are not able to solve complex problems, think or speak like humans do.
They simply respond to their environment.
They have no MIND.
47
So, according to many philosophers from past days, animals are not like us, because:
1. They do not possess a soul given to them by God – which many don’t believe in anymore.
2. They do not have free will – which many believe CAN’T exist in a world that follows natural laws.
3. They do not have a ‘mind’ - which has yet to be fully described or understood by scientists, or philosophers. Additionally, even those philosophers that say there IS a mind, cannot logically prove that anyone ELSE has one
4. They exhibit all the same reactions to pain, suffering etc. , as people do, but they are somehow just robotic actions in them, and genuine expressions in us – but we don’t know why.
48
The Mind/Brain (aka Mind/Body) Problem
The Problem
You have a 1.4 kg hunk of ‘meat’ inside your skull. We call it your brain. It is pretty big, containing millions or billions of neurons and glial cells. These neurons exist as either ‘on’ or ‘off’ - firing electrical signals, or not.
Unlike your other pieces, your brain is aware of itself. It is sentient - that is, it is aware that it exists.
Inside this piece of skull meat, lies every thought you’ve ever had, every emotion you’ve ever experienced and every memory of your past.
How does your brain create non-physical events like emotions and feelings?
49
#1 Monism
There are no divisions in reality. All reality is one thing.
Both your mind and your brain are just expressions of that one thing.
Physical monism - all things are physical. Thoughts can be explained through what is happening in your head.
Idealism - all things are mental and ONLY exist inside your head.
Solipsism - only my thoughts exist. You don’t even exist outside of my head.
50
#2 - Materialism - a kind of monism
Nothing exists but matter and things that are made of matter.
Thomas Hobbes - Your thoughts are just matter moving around inside your brain. Perception comes from matter in the world causing activity and motion inside your head.
If your physical brain is destroyed, your mind is also destroyed and you cease to exist in any way that we would understand as ‘existence’.
51
#3 - Identity Theory
Developed in the 1950s. When we experience something, it has a corresponding neurological state in your brain. Emotions and feeling have simply been poetically mislabelled throughout human history.
What we call love is simply brain activity at a certain point in the brain. Example - the feeling of ‘love’ would be better described as increased activity in the C-fibre neurons.
Some have said that this does not explain HOW feelings actually feel to us. Others say that feelings are impossible to describe.
52
#4 - Eliminative Materialism
Daniel Dennett, John Searle, Paul and Patricia Churchland
Once we fully understand how our brains work, we will stop using all this imprecise language.
In fact, terms like ‘love’, ‘belief’, ‘faith’, etc...are completely meaningless. Eventually we will learn enough to stop using these terms, just like we stopped believing in faith healing and demons.
Others say that if you're going to say nothing exists but matter, you need a much more clear definition of what matter is.
53
#5 Functionalism
This is currently the most popular theory of the mind.
Your brain is like a computer and the mind is like software inside that computer. All animals have the hardware, but the software may be different. Humans for example, would have the app “Consciousness 2.0” - but not all animals would.
Programs cannot function without the computer, but the program is NOT the computer.
Sensations are like the computer’s input.
Thinking does not have to be conscious,
54
#6 - Dualism
Consciousness cannot be reduced to simple physical actions.
Rene Descartes is the most well-known dualist. He didn’t know what the mind and brain were - but he said that they were distinctly different. He did think that they were connected somehow at the pineal gland.
Nagel argued that consciousness is too subjective a thing to talk about they any real meaning.
55
#7 - The New Mysterians
Colin McGinn - the human mind was not built to solve all problems that exist. There will always be things that we cannot understand. Your brain is big and smart and complicated, but it cannot understand everything.
We know that sugar is sweet - but that doesn’t tell me how it tastes to you.
Human being evolve traits that help us survive. If understand consciousness doesn’t help us survive, we wouldn’t need it.
56
Lost in the Finite/Lost in the Infinite
At any given time 90% of people are lost.
They are either lost in the finite - creating themselves by using what other people say is valuable. I need to look cool to random strangers, so I post junk on social media.
Or they are lost in the infinite - stuck in a state of paralysis and never choosing anything at all. I cannot know what to do, so I do nothing.
57
Dizziness
“Dizziness” comes from the state of realizing that you have an infinite number of possible choices….but knowing that you must choose one eventually and live with it.
What if I choose wrong? What if I make a mistake? How can live with this choice and its possible consequences?
58
Despair
This dizziness of freedom causes DESPAIR. It is an attempt to rid yourself OF yourself. This is knowing that all choices are your own, but not wanting to make them.
You may decide - “I’m going to be a firefighter. I will save lives and make my life meaningful by helping others!” Your despair subsides.
Great. But then in a horrible accident you are injured. You can no longer work or save people. The despair is back.
59
Most modern versions of metaphysics…
...are actually much closer to theoretical physics - which makes it very difficult to understand. But we’ll try.
60
The study of reality is called:
a. Metaphysics
b. Epistemology
c. Logic
d. Ethics
Answer: Metaphysics
61
He felt that all animals were given to humans by God:
a. St Stephen of Paris
b. St. Thomas Aquinas
c. St Andrew of Warsaw
d. St. Francis
Answer: St. Thomas Aquinas
62
Dominant Ideas in a society:
a. Are not influential
b. Are very hard to perceive
c. Are consistent over centuries
Answer: Are very hard to perceive
63
This poison killed Socrates:
a. Rat poison
b. Arsenic
c. Hemlock
d. Cyanide
Answer: Hemlock
64
Socrates lived in:
a. Rome
b. Athens
c. Sparta
d. Alexandria
Answer: Athens
65
Person is a ______ concept, while human is a _______ concept.
a. Mind/Brain
b. Philosophical/biological
c. Philosophical/Astronomical
d. Physiological/psychological
Answer: Philosophical/biological
66
Descartes is a:
a. functionalist
b. dualist
c. monist
d. materialist
Answer: dualist
67
The study of the principles of correct reasoning, is a definition for:
a. Epistemology
b. Metaphysics
c. Ethics
d. Logic
Answer: Logic
68
He said that animals are just like biological machines.
a. Descartes
b. Kant
c. Plato
d. Nietzsche
Answer: Descartes
69
This animal performed the number test better than humans
a. Dolphins
b. Chimps
c. Orangutans
d. Gorillas
Answer: Chimps
70
The Chinese Room, was devised by:
a. Turing
b. Searle
c. Descartes
d. Hume
Answer: Searle
71
This is the name of the robot built by Honda.
a. Asimo
b. Amigo
c. Amiens
d. Ami
Answer: Asimo
72
Socrates would go to the ________everyday and talk to people.
a. The Arena
b. The Apannian Way
c. The Agora
d. The Astrolabe
Answer: The Agora
73
Seeing human qualities in an animal is called:
a. personification
b. anthropomorphism
c. anthropology
d. specification
Answer: anthropomorphism
74
A functionalist believes that your mind is like:
a. An animals
b. A computer
c. A filing system
d. Completely subjective
Answer: A computer
75
This group believes that consciousness can never be understood.
a. Dualists
b. Monists
c. Functionalists
d. New Mysterians
Answer: New Mysterians
76
Epistemology is the study of:
a. Knowledge
b. Reason
c. Reality
d. Right and Wrong
Answer: Knowledge
77
The correct order is:
a. Socrates - Plato - Aristotle - Alex the Great
b. Socrates - Alex - Plato - Aristotle
c. Turpin - Alex the Great - Socrates - Plato
d. Plato - Socrates - Alex - Aristotle
Answer: Socrates - Plato - Aristotle - Alex the Great
78
Ontology is the study of:
a. Reason
b. Being
c. Truth
d. Knowledge
Answer: Being
79
Idols of the Marketplace specifically refers to:
a. our species
b. our communication
c. our beliefs
d. our knowledge
Answer: our communication
80
The Idols were devised by:
a. Descartes
b. Bacon
c. Searle
d. Ham
Answer: Bacon
81
The ability to do one thing and not another is called:
a. Choices
b. Determinism
c. Free will
d. Impossible
Answer: Free will
82
A monist could also be a:
a. materialist
b. dualist
c. new mysterian
d. tiger
Answer: materialist
83
Metaphysics got its name from:
a. Descartes
b. A Latin word
c. A mistake
d. A king
Answer: A mistake
84
Sophie means:
a. learning
b. knowledge
c. facts
d. wisdom
Answer: wisdom
85
The Imitation Game, is a modern movie based on:
a. Searle
b. Turing
c. Descartes
d. Hume
Answer: Turing
86
Dolphins demonstrate ______________ before children do.
a. Consciousness
b. Self-awareness
c. Communication
d. Responsiblity
Answer: Self-awareness
87
When we understand neurology, we will understand emotions, said the _________________
a. Eliminative Materialist
b. Dualist
c. Monist
d. Idealist
Answer: Eliminative Materialist
88
The Chinese Room is meant to demonstrate that AI would always lack______________.
a. Friends
b. Consciousness
c. Intentionality
d. Compassion
Answer: Intentionality
89
1. The famous Allegory of the Cave was written by
a) Pascal
b) Plato
c) Aquinas
d) Aristotle
Answer: B
90
2. Francis Bacon developed the idea of the:_______
a) Turing Test
b) Idols
c) Chinese Room
d) World of Forms
Answer: B
91
3. “Everything is physical”, sounds like an argument from a ______________.
a) monist
b) materialist
c) idealist
d) determinist
Answer: A
92
4. _________________________ is a philosophical concept, while____________________ is a biological one.
a) person, human
b) human, adult
c) brain, mind
d) matter, mind
Answer: A
93
5. The Chinese Room, was a counter argument developed by:
a) Searle
b) Turing
c) Dennet
d) Turpin
Answer: A
94
6. A dualist:
a) believes that brain states don’t exist
b) believes your mind is like a computer
c) believes that only your thoughts exist
d) believes that there are two substances - matter and mind.
Answer: D
95
7. The ability to choose to do what you want is called:
a) freedom
b) determinism
c) fatalism
d) free will
Answer: D
96
8. Metaphysical issues at this point, are mostly dealt in the field of:
a) chemistry
b) psychology
c) physics
d) theology
Answer: C
97
9. Which of the following DOESN’T cause a problem for the concept of free will
a) God
b) Physics
c) Socrates
d) the Idols
Answer: C
98
10. The test developed to discover whether a computer can fool a human is called the:
a) Turner test
b) Turpin test
c) Turing test
d) the Chinese Room
Answer: C
99
Rationalism:
Rationalists claim sensory knowledge is not a reliable source.
They claim that your senses may be wrong.
Reason, or rational thought, is a more reliable source.
100
Plato: (Epistemology)
Believed in the two worlds: the World of Forms and the World of Materials
The visible material world changes constantly, poor source of information.
The world of forms or ideas is the truest reality, it never changes.
101
Every human mind has the ability (with degrees) to access the world of forms.
a perfect, invisible universe known only to the mind.
102
The Evil Genius
Descartes was troubled by the Evil Genius scenario.
How do I know that right now, I am not simply under the control of an evil genius, that is making me THINK that this life is real?
103
Cogito Ergo Sum
In doubting everything, Descartes realized that there were two things that he knew.
1 – he could not doubt that he was doubting
2 – he was doubting, therefore he must exist
From this deductive reasoning, he famously concluded, “Cogito ergo sum”. I think, therefore, I am.
104
Noam Chomsky
Modern USA
Studies linguistics at MIT, is a social critic and philosopher.
The structure of human language is hard-wired into the human brain.
105
Why Chomsky is a Rationalist
Only the surface structure changes and forms all the languages of the world that exist today.
Chomsky believes (after thousands of experiments) that language is innate in our brains.
Innate knowledge used with reason = rationalist.
106
Rationalism:
A Theory that says that knowledge is a priori - BEFORE YOU USE YOUR SENSES (BECAUSE THEY ARE GARBAGE).
Knowledge comes from exercising the human ability to reason
107
Empiricism
Empiricists challenged the claim that knowledge comes from your reason (rationalist)
All knowledge you have is acquired through the senses.
You use inductive reasoning to draw conclusions about the world
108
Aristotle (empiricism)
believed that the world is made up of matter, perceived through the senses.
109
Inductive Reasoning:
Aristotle believed that human beings use the process of inductive reasoning to gain knowledge.
Make observations about an object and use them to draw conclusions about what that object may be
110
Aristotle believed...
each day we are confronted with objects in the real world that we perceive with our senses.
We then use inductive reasoning to identify them and understand them.
111
Thomas Aquinas (empiricism)
God surrounds us in the world, and the only way we can understand the world and therefore, God, is through the use of our senses
112
John Locke(empiricism)
Locke believed that the mind is a “tabula rasa” or a blank slate, at birth
113
Our Learning Looks Like This:
1. Sense Experience
2. Sensation
3. Impression
4. Reflection
5. Idea
114
Simple versus Complex
Simple ideas come from one sense, such as bitter, sour, cold, and hot
Complex ideas are produced by the mind when it compounds and combines simple ideas.
115
Locke and the Sceptics
Primary qualities are objective – like height and weight.
Secondary qualities are subjective and rely on the viewer
116
David Hume
Hume believed in Locke’s main ideas but took it all even further.
117
Matter of Fact/Relation of Ideas
Hume put all knowledge into one of two categories:
Matter of Fact
Relation of Ideas.
118
Relations of Ideas
Knowledge that arises out of pure conceptual thought.
8 X 10 = 80
They are true by necessity because being false would be a logical contradiction.
119
Matters of Fact
Arises out of our interaction with the world and our experiences in it.
The sun will rise tomorrow.
They are not 100% true.
120
Extreme Scepticism
Matter of Fact – useful but not 100% true
Relation of Ideas – not useful but 100% true
121
Any knowledge we can gain is either ? or ?, according to Hume.
Useless
Flawed
122
Kant’s Analysis of Perception
Every perception is a two-fold reality:
a) raw sense data
b) the organizing and structuring of that data by the mind.
Sense data, in and of itself, is a meaningless jumble.
Sense data makes sense only after it has been organized and structured by the mind’s categories.
He called this a “Copernican Revolution” in epistemology.
123
A consequence of Kant’s analysis of perception is that there are really two worlds:
The Noumenal World
The Phenomenal World.
124
Noumenal World
The world of “things in themselves.” (das ding an sich = Kant’s phrase)
This is the world from which raw sense data originates.
Human beings do not live in this world and have no knowledge of it - BECAUSE WE CAN’T (Kant)
125
The Phenomenal World
The world of perception.
The world of sense data after it has been organized and structured by the mind’s categories.
This is the world in which humans live and of which they have knowledge.
126
Kant’s “Copernican Revolution”
Humans can have no knowledge of “things in themselves.” - das Ding an sich
Order and structure, at least those of humans, exist “in here,” i.e. in the phenomenal world of the human mind.
127
What This Means
The physical world exists, but we all interpret it differently due to our minds structure.
By the late 1800s, doctor’s begin studying how the mind imposes itself on the universe and the understanding of it.
128
Wittgenstein
Definitions are all flawed in this way – but we use these words all the time.
In fact there are no philosophical problems, just language problems.
Wittgenstein also argues that the uses or meaning of words may change, according to changes in the circumstances and scene of a language-game.
Wittgenstein says that the failure to understand words, or the failure to use words clearly, may often be caused by misunderstanding of how words are used in a language-game.
Understanding of the meaning of words may also depend on what is meant by the term "understanding."
129
There are 4 theories of truth:
Correspondence
Coherence
Constructivist
Consensus
130
Correspondence Theory
Correspondence theories emphasize that true beliefs and true statements correspond to the actual state of affairs.
131
Correspondence problem
The Problem - Us
1. If our language cannot accurately express what is ‘real’ than truth cannot be conveyed. You may be able to translate something, but that isn’t the full meaning. Plus meaning changes over time - common meanings transform or disappear.
2. Do our senses accurately show us ‘reality’? Many would say no. How do we know what reality corresponds to, if our senses don’t work correctly?
132
Coherence theory
For coherence theories in general, truth requires a proper fit of elements within a whole system.
STATEMENT - Education is good. Coherence Proof - More education leads to greater happiness, greater job satisfaction, less poverty and longer lifespans.
133
Coherence problem
The Problem - New Ideas
- On the whole, coherence theories have been rejected for lacking justification in their application to other areas of truth, especially with respect to assertions about the natural world, empirical data in general, assertions about practical matters of psychology and society, especially when used without support from the other major theories of truth.
- This is all just saying, we can’t use coherence theory when it comes to NEW ideas, because they have nothing to cohere to.
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Constructivist theory
Constructivism holds that truth is constructed by social processes, is historically and culturally specific, and that it is in part shaped through the power struggles within a community.
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Constructivist problem
The Problem - Subjectivity
In this theory knowledge is socially constructed and not reflective of any sort of objectively ‘real’ things. Reality and truth do not exist - except as defined by society.
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Consensus
theory
ConsensuTruth is whatever reaches consensus within a specific group - that is, truth is whatever we all agree to believe is true.
s
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Consensus problem
The Problem - Competing Truths
EXAMPLE - “Donald Trump was the greatest President” could be a true statement in Wyoming, and completely false in California.
If truth is whatever our group agrees is true, than multiple ‘truths’ are possible - each being equally true (to those involved).
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Gettier Problem:
A philosophical question about whether a piece of information that happens to be true but that someone believes for invalid reasons, does it count as knowledge.
Something is true but it is believed for an invalid reason
For example, a person thought that what they see is true but it is not correct, though it happens to be true anyway
Hinged on instances of epistemic luck: cases where a person appears to have sound evidence for a proposition, and that proposition is in fact true, but the apparent evidence is not causally related to the proposition's truth.
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JTB
Justified True Belief –
A subject S knows that a proposition P is true if and only if:
1.P is true, and
2.S believes that P is true, and
3.S is justified in believing that P is true
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Infinite Regression
There is no proof that your justification is accurate, so you need to justify your justification with more proof, and then that proof needs to be justified with more proof, and on and on and on
Thus, we don’t actually know anything because nothing is properly justified
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Molyneux
If a man born blind, and able to distinguish by touch between a cube and a globe, were made to see, could he now tell by sight which was the cube and which the globe, before he touched them?
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Munchhausen Trilemma
It is impossible to prove any certain truth even in fields such as logic and mathematics
Three main modes of thought:
1. circular reasoning -
2. infinite regress -
3. unproven axioms. -
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Theseus’ Ship
"The ship wherein Theseus and the youth of Athens returned from Crete had thirty oars, and was preserved by the Athenians down even to the time of Demetrius Phalereus, for they took away the old planks as they decayed, putting in new and stronger timber in their places, in so much that this ship became a standing example among the philosophers, for the logical question of things that grow; one side holding that the ship remained the same, and the other contending that it was not the same."
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FST - Feminist Standpoint Theory
FST
1. Knowledge is socially situated. There is no objective or universal truth.
2. Marginalized groups are socially situated in ways that make it more possible for them to be aware of things and ask questions than it is for the non-marginalized.
3. Research, particularly that focused on power relations and knowledge of them, should begin with the marginalized.
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Points of epistemic privilege allow people (women, minority groups, the disabled) to..
see and know more “clearly”, as they would be the outside looking in.
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Like philosophic Marxism, it proposes that some groups (due to their lack of social position) are given...
a better ability to perceive outside of the cultural ‘norms’ of a society.
Ex - People living in poverty have a different understanding, than those living in privilege
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Our Crisis
#1 - There’s too much to know and too little certainty. Philosophy helped create this one.
#2 - Increased emphasis on feelings over facts. Child psychology helped create this one.
#3 - The Media has carved out its audience and feeds them amusements. Capitalism helped create this one.
#4 - The Internet has created information bubbles tied with social standing, not knowledge. Humans as social animals helped create this one.
#5 - Dunning-Kruger Effect - The least informed are the most confident, and the least correct. Our psychology helped create this one.
#6 - The Education system is consistently being starved for funds. Our politics helped create this one.
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Epistemology means the study of.....
a. reality
b. knowledge
c. morality
d. beauty
Answer: knowledge
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Skepticism was a philosophy that began in Ancient ___________________.
a. Greece
b. Persia
c. China
d. Rome
Answer: Greece
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The World of Forms was developed by:
a. Plato
b. Socrates
c. Aristotle
d. Meno
Answer: Plato
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Descartes famous phrase is:
a. Tabula Rasa
b. Zeitgeist
c. Cogito Ergo Sum
d. Noumena
Answer: Cogito Ergo Sum
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Tabula rasa is a phrase put forth by:
a. Noam Chomsky
b. John Locke
c. Plato
d. David Hume
Answer: John Locke
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To a solipsist, nothing exists but:
a. God
b. The World of Forms
c. The Truth
d. Themself
Answer: Themself
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Noam Chomsky believes that the structure of language is:
a. Learned
b. Innate
c. Difficult
d. False
Answer: Innate
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Plato believes that all ideas come from:
a. Observation
b. Recording Facts
c. The Material World
d. The World of Forms
Answer: The World of Forms
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John Locke gave us two types of knowledge. They are:
a. Primary and Secondary
b. True and False
c. Real and Unreal
d. Myth and reality
Answer: Primary and Secondary
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St. Thomas Aquinas felt that our senses can be used to reveal ________________to us all.
a. Truth
b. God
c. Jesus
d. Reality
Answer: God
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Kant combined the ideas of Rationalism with:
a. Empiricism
b. Skepticism
c. Atheism
d. Socialism
Answer: Empiricism
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Kant is from:
a. Germany
b. Russia
c. Prussia
d. Italy
Answer: Prussia
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Wittgenstein believed that there were no _____________________________ problems.
a. Sceptical
b. Language
c. Learning
d. Philosophical
Answer: Philosophical
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Socrates taught ________________.
a. Aristotle
b. Plato
c. Alexander
d. Anaximander
Answer: Plato
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"A prior" means:
a. After the thought
b. Before you were born
c. After the senses
d. Before the senses
Answer: Before the senses
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Aristotle felt that learning occurs through:
a. Deductive reasoning
b. Inductive reasoning
c. Guess work
d. Enlightenment
Answer: Inductive reasoning
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Noam Chomsky is
a. An Empiricist
b. A Rationalist
c. A Skeptic
d. A Solipsist
Answer: A Rationalist
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Wittgenstein lived:
a. in a hut
b. underground
c. in a treehouse
d. in a trailerpark
Answer: in a hut
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A classic philosophy thought experiment is called "Brains in ____________".
a. Skulls
b. Vats
c. Jars
d. Love
Answer: Vats
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Feminist Standpoint theory would say that:
a. Women are smarter than men
b. Female perspectives have been ignored.
c. White men don't know much.
d. Famous philosophers should be igored.
Answer: Female perspectives have been ignored.
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The lack of clarity around "truth" and "knowledge" has led to:
a. Politicians manipulating us
b. Increased tribalism
c. Feelings over facts
d. All of the above
Answer: All of the above
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Which ISN'T a theory of Truth?
a. Coherence
b. Cohabitation
c. Correspondence
d. Constructionist
Answer: Cohabitation
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This famous ship is a philosophical problem.
a. The Titanic
b. Jack Sparrow's Ship
c. The Minnow
d. Theseus' Ship
Answer: Theseus' Ship
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JTB stands for:
a. Justified True Belief
b. Justification Transit Benefit
c. Justin Timberlake, Baby!
d. Justified Transitional Beliefs
Answer: Justified True Belief
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There are no philosophy problems, only language problems, said _____________
a. Wittgenstein
b. Plato
c. Chomsky
d. Descartes
Answer: Wittgenstein
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Constructivist views of truth would say that truth is:
a. whatever a group decides
b. whatever I want it to be
c. not a objective thing
d. universal
Answer: whatever a group decides & not a objective thing
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"Subjective" means:
a. it is the same for all
b. it is the same for most people
c. it is dependent on the viewer
d. the viewer is not relevant
Answer: it is dependent on the viewer
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If I think I see a sheep in a field, but its actually a rock, with a sheep behind it that I can't see is that knowledge?
a. Yes
b. No
c. Definitely
d. Huh?
Answer: all true
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1. A skeptic is someone who:
a) Expresses doubt
b) Does not believe everything automatically
c) Uses rationalism
d) all of the above
Answer: D
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2. Plato believed there were two worlds. The worlds of:
a) Forms and materials
b) Right and wrong
c) Sense and sensation
d) Higher and lower
Answer: A
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3. What does Cogito Ergo Sum mean?
a) Seize the day
b) Be true to yourself
c) I think, therefore I am
d) I’m Lovin’ It
Answer: C
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4. Which word means "born with”?
a) Sensory
b) Innate
c) Ate
d) Empirical
Answer: B
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6. This person bridged the gap between Rationalism and Empiricism.
a) Aristotle
b) Kant
c) Descartes
d) Wittgenstein
Answer: B
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7. According to Locke, what would be a "secondary quality?"
a) Height
b) Weight
c) Colour
d) Specific gravity
Answer: C
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8. David Hume put all knowledge into two categories. They are Matters of Fact and...?
a) Matters of doubt
b) Relations of ideas
c) Right relations
d) Matters of Opinion
Answer: B
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9. According to St. Thomas Aquinas, our senses can help us understand___________.
a) Life
b) Philosophy
c) Reality
d) God
Answer: D
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10. Wittgenstein and Chomsky were both initially most concerned with:________
a) Understanding
b) Language
c) Logic
d) Metaphysics
Answer: B
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Making Ethical Judgments in Utilitarianism
Utilitarianism says that the Result or the Consequence of an Act is the real measure of whether it is good or bad.
This theory emphasizes Ends over Means.
Theories, like this one, that emphasize the results or consequences are called teleological or consequentialist.
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Jeremy Bentham’s Formulation of Utilitarianism
Those actions whose results increase happiness or diminish pain are good. They have “utility.”
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Two Formulations of Utilitarian Theory:
Principle of Utility: The best action is that which produces the greatest happiness and/or reduces pain.
Greatest Happiness: We ought to do that which produces the greatest happiness and least pain for the greatest number of people
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Two Types of Utilitarianism
Act: An Action is right if and only if it produces the greatest balance of pleasure over pain for the greatest number. (Jeremy Bentham)
Rule: An action is right if and only if it conforms to a set of rules the general acceptance of which would produce the greatest balance of pleasure over pain for the greatest number. (John Stuart Mill)
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Virtue Ethics
Began with the Ancient Greeks
The idea is not what individual act is correct.
It’s about what virtues you possess.
(One bad act =/= YOU are bad)
Aristotle believed that morality was not judging individual actions – it was the ultimate value of the entire life that was lived.
The general disposition to do the right thing was called “virtue”
Unlike utilitarianism, in that choices are reflective of your character – THAT is what is important.
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The Golden Mean
All people should work towards moderation – the golden mean.
Virtues, if taken to either extreme, become vices.
The main question in Virtues Ethics, is not whether an act is right or wrong – it is, “What type of person does this make me?”
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EUDAIMONIA
IF, after examining this, you are happy with yourself, than you possess eudaimonia – a sense of happiness with who you are and the choices you have made.
If you had to live your life over again, would you make the same choices?
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Kant’s Categorical Imperative
Lying bad
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Deontology
Immanuel Kant is the main proponent of this theory.
You have a ‘duty’ to behave correctly.
“Act only in accordance with that maxim through which you can at the same time will that it become a universal law.”
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Kant’s Reasoning
1. Find a basic principle. – “You can tell lies.”
2. Imagine all people using your principle. – a world in which people always tell lies.
3. Will this maxim lead to a contradiction? Ie. Since everyone is lying, no one will ever believe anything. Statements will become meaningless as a way to give information.
4. Since there is a contradiction, the maxim is immoral.
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Kierkegaard in response to Kant (virtue ethics)
Kierkegaard believed that Kant’s rule would lead to no morality, b/c people would see exceptional circumstances in their own cases and not apply them as a general maxim
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Buddhism
Buddhism is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on a series of original teachings attributed to Gautama Buddha. It originated in ancient India as a Sramana tradition sometime between the 6th and 4th centuries BCE.
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FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS - The basic idea of Buddhism
Life & samsara contains suffering.
Attachment is the source of suffering.
You can make the suffering stop.
You stop suffering by following the eight-fold path
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The Eight Fold Path
The Right Intention - Act with compassion, kindness, & without cruelty
The Right Speech - Your words become your character, so no lying, no rudeness, no gossip. Here’s a guideline: Is is true? Is it kind? Is it useful?
The Right Action - No killing, no stealing, no cheating.
The Right Livelihood - Take no job that injures others, physically or mentally - no selling weapons, drugs, alcohol either.
The Right Effort - You have to try your best to be the best you can.
The Right Mindfulness - Always be aware of your actions and their consequences.
The Right Practice - Think deeply on these issues and how to apply them.
The Right View - You are not perfect. Our actions have consequences. Death is not the end.
Following the eightfold path and being a moral person will help you achieve nirvana - a state of perfection removed from the cycle of life and death.
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Existentialism
Concerned with the existential (living, concrete): Who am I? What does my life mean? What is the right thing to do?
the meaning of the individual, freedom, living an authentic life, alienation, morality and mortality.
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Essence VS Existence
Most people few existence from an ESSENTIALIST perspective. You have an ‘essence before you are born’
If you believe in the concept of HUMAN NATURE, then you have an example of essentialism.
Other ‘essential’ concepts could be what it means to be good or bad people, what it means to be male or female, what it means to be a person…etc..
An existentialist does NOT believe that. They would say that there IS NO HUMAN NATURE. There is no “good” that we don’t define ourselves.
You are born first, and then you define what it means to be human through your actions.
Existence comes first - then the essence.
OR as Sartre will say “EXISTENCE PRECEDES ESSENCE”
Most fashionable philosophy in Europe immediately following WWII.
Flourished in universities, journalism, among intellectuals, in poems, novels, plays, films. A response to the bleak conditions of the first half of the 1900s.
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Kierkegaard - Existentialism
The most important human activity is decision-making because, through our choices, we create our lives and become ourselves. It is up to us through our decisions
Strive for - Authenticity which results when an individual lives honestly and courageously in the moment without refuge in excuses, and without reliance on groups or institutions for meaning or purpose.
Do not strive for - In-authenticity which results when the nature and needs of the individual are ignored, denied or made less important than institutions, abstractions, or groups.
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Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) -
Athetiest
How do we live a full life in a meaningless world? If there is no God we are attributing human-created morals and actions to something that does not exist. Thus, these are human values and we can choose whatever values we want.
Accepting the values you choose will lead to great human achievement and allow for self-fulfillment and personal happiness.
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Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980) -
Existence precedes essence: We have no “given nature” or “human nature” - we become who we are through freedom of choice and moral responsibility.
“Bad faith”: when people are too terrified to face the freedom and responsibility of choice and revert to old existing norms and rules rather than following their own personal choices based on their own values.
Any attempt to rationalize or deny evil fails: an ordered universe governed by a loving, powerful God is not possible; the universe is indifferent to us.
Science is not a moral value, and it doesn’t guide our ethics.
Belief in these ideas are attempt to avoid how many choices we really have
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Simone de Beauvoir (1980-1986) -
Human beings have absolute freedom of choice in the world.
That freedom MUST come with the acceptance of the consequences of your choices and actions.
Correlates to her view on feminism because if we have absolute freedom, then we have CHOSEN to have sexist or racist systems in our society. These systems must be corrected as they limit people’s freedom to choose.
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Albert Camus (1913-1960)
ABSURD - the situation in which human beings demand that their lives should have significance in an indifferent universe which is itself totally without meaning or purpose.
But you must see the value in your existence and in your morality, and live authentically.
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Existentialist Ethics are not very prescriptive
(they don’t give you a specific act to do). They are saying that whatever you do, you are defining who you are and what kind of things you believe, with every action and every choice. You have to choose freely, and accept that your choices will have consequences. Ignoring that is living in bad faith. Relying on orders from others is bad faith. Expecting no consequences is living in bad faith.
And you can’t just opt out - you’re already in it.
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The problem for some: How does someone judge “Right” and “Wrong” if all values are subjective?
How do we ‘verify’ our morality?
The answer is we don’t have way to verify our morality outside of ourselves. And we should be okay with that.
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Universal Ethics:
Ethical principles that apply to everyone, regardless of their culture or personal beliefs. There are specific moral standards that are universally accepted. Basically, there are ethical rules that apply to everyone.
Importance: Universal Ethics are vital for fairness, justice, and respect across all cultures, promoting human rights, and encouraging sustainability.
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Absolute Ethics:
Fixed moral principles are always right or wrong, regardless of the situation or consequences. These principles are universally valid and do not change based on cultural or individual perspectives. Basically, some actions are always right or wrong.
Importance: Absolute ethics provide objective moral standards for clear and consistent ethical decision-making.
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Relativist Ethics:
A more subjective viewpoint. Ethical judgements and moral principles can vary depending on the culture or individual. What is considered right or wrong can vary in different societies or for different people. Basically, what’s right or wrong changes depending on the culture or person.
Importance: Relativist ethics are important for recognizing diverse perspectives, promoting tolerance, and allowing for flexibility in ethical decision-making.
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Utilitarianism
THE GREATEST AMOUNT OF GOOD FOR THE GREATEST NUMBER OF PEOPLE
the Result or the Consequence of an Act is the real measure of whether it is good or bad
Ends over Means
Importance: its ethical framework prioritizes the overall well-being and happiness of the greatest number of individuals in society.
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Jeremy Bentham
Formed utilitarianism - Those actions whose results increase happiness or diminish pain are good. They have “utility.”
Came up with the “act” from utilitarianism
Importance: helped form utilitarianism
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Consequentialist
Theories like utilitarianism that emphasize results or consequences are called teleological or consequentialist.
Importance: The importance of consequentialism lies in its focus on the outcomes and consequences of actions, guiding ethical decision-making based on the overall net positive or negative effects they have on individuals and society.
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Act vs Rule Utilitarianism
Act: An Action is right if and only if it produces the greatest balance of pleasure over pain for the greatest number. (Jeremy Bentham)
Importance: allows for flexible decision-making based on specific circumstances to maximize well-being.
Rule: An action is right if and only if it conforms to a set of rules the general acceptance of which would produce the greatest balance of pleasure over pain for the greatest number. (John Stuart Mill)
Importance: provides a consistent guide for making fair decisions based on overall consequences
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Metaethics
Metaethics is the study of moral thought and moral language. Rather than addressing questions about what practices are right and wrong, and what our obligations to other people or future generations are – questions of so-called 'normative' ethics – metaethics asks what morality actually is.
Importance: Questions what morality is so we can enhance our ethical reasoning and decision-making
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Naturalistic fallacy
The Naturalistic Fallacy refers to the logical error of assuming that something is inherently good or morally right simply because it is natural or part of the way things are, without providing additional moral justification. It confuses descriptive claims about what is with prescriptive claims about what ought to be.
Importance: The Naturalistic Fallacy is important because it reminds us not to assume that something is morally right or wrong simply based on its naturalness, emphasizing the need for sound ethical reasoning and justification rather than relying on simplistic appeals to what exists in nature.
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Virtue Ethics
The idea is not what individual act is correct.
It’s about what virtues you possess.
Aristotle believed that morality was not judging individual actions – it was the ultimate value of the entire life that was lived.
The general disposition to do the right thing was called “virtue”
Importance: The importance of virtue ethics lies in its focus on cultivating virtuous character traits, such as honesty, compassion, and integrity, which not only guide individual actions but also contribute to the overall well-being and flourishing of individuals and society.
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The Golden Mean
All people should work towards moderation – the golden mean.
Virtues, if taken to either extreme, become vices.
Importance: The importance of the golden mean in virtue ethics is that it encourages individuals to find a balanced middle ground between extremes, promoting virtuous behaviour by avoiding both excess and deficiency in moral virtues.
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Categorical Imperative
Kant's Categorical Imperative is a moral principle that requires individuals to act according to rules that could be universally followed, treating others with respect and considering moral duty as the basis for ethical actions.
For example, Kant's Categorical Imperative is a moral principle that requires individuals to act according to rules that could be universally followed, treating others with respect and considering moral duty as the basis for ethical actions.
Importance: Kant's Categorical Imperative is important because it gives a clear and universal guideline for making ethical choices, focusing on treating others with respect and consistency, and considering moral duty as the basis for our actions.
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Phenomena:
the phenomenon is the “non-true” world. It’s not the “actual” world it’s simply the world in which our human brains can understand it, bounded by our senses.
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Noumena:
The Noumea world is the “true,” “actual” world, this is the world as it is before our senses distort it into the only way we can understand it.
Importance: helps to explain huge philosophical issues such as:
Why we don’t know ourselves - we can never be passive observers, how can you know yourself from such an internal perspective? You need to be a passive observer to not have your mind’s senses distort the “Noumea” you.
God - we can’t say anything truthful about God because our perceptions shift our knowledge and we don’t know the Noumea version of things. We can’t disprove the idea of God, the soul, or religion as a whole but we also can’t prove it. Why bother proving or disproving God when it has the exact same chances of existing or not existing?
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Deontological
You have a ‘duty’ to behave correctly.
“Act only in accordance with that maxim through which you can at the same time will that it become a universal law.”
“Moral duty does not rest on feelings, impulses and inclinations but merely on the relation of rational beings to one another.”
Importance: prioritizes moral duties and principles, providing a clear and consistent framework for ethical decision-making based on rules and obligations, regardless of the outcomes.
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Existential Ethics
Concerned with the existential (living, concrete): Who am I? What does my life mean? What is the right thing to do?
the meaning of the individual, freedom, living an authentic life, alienation, morality and mortality.
There IS NO HUMAN NATURE. There is no “good” that we don’t define ourselves.
You are born first, and then you define what it means to be human through your actions.
Existence comes first - then the essence.
Importance:
Existential ethics is important because it highlights individual freedom, responsibility, and authenticity, empowering individuals to navigate the complexities of existence and shape their own ethical values, fostering personal growth and meaningful life.
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Kiekegaard’s Authenticity
The most important human activity is decision-making: through our choices, we create our lives and become ourselves.
Authenticity results when an individual lives honestly and courageously in the moment without refuge in excuses, and without reliance on groups or institutions for meaning or purpose.
In-authenticity results when the nature and needs of the individual are ignored, denied or made less important than institutions, abstractions, or groups.
Importance: Kierkegaard's authenticity is important because it emphasizes personal responsibility and self-reflection, encouraging individuals to live a meaningful life by making sincere choices that align with their true selves
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Nietzsche’s Religious Views & ethics
How do we live a full life in a godless, meaningless world?
Because there is no God (he’s an atheist), the morals and values that we attribute to God are actually just human creations; therefore, we are free to choose whatever values it is in our interests to have.
Accepting this value will lead to great human achievement and allow for self-fulfillment and personal happiness.
Importance: Nietzsche's religious views and ethics are important as they encourage individuals to critically question traditional beliefs, embrace personal freedom, and create their own values based on authenticity and self-expression, fostering personal growth and fulfilling life.
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Sartre’s “Existence Precedes Essence”
Existence precedes essence: We have no “given nature” or “human nature” - we become who we are through freedom of choice and moral responsibility.
Importance: Sartre's "Existence Precedes Essence" is important because it emphasizes human freedom and responsibility, asserting that individuals have the power to define themselves through their choices and actions, empowering them to shape their own identities and find meaning in life.
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“Bad faith”
when people are too terrified to face the freedom and responsibility of choice and revert to old existing norms and rules.
Importance: Sartre's concept of "Bad Faith" is important as it warns against self-deception and avoidance of personal responsibility, urging individuals to confront the truth of their existence, live authentically, and take ownership of their actions to find fulfillment and authenticity in life.
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Camus’ “Absurd”
ABSURD - the situation in which human beings demand that their lives should have significance in an indifferent universe which is itself totally without meaning or purpose.
But you must see the value in your existence and in your morality, and live authentically.
Importance: Camus' concept of the "Absurd" is important as it confronts the existential conflict between our desire for meaning and the irrationality of the universe, encouraging individuals to embrace personal freedom and create their own purpose, finding meaning in a seemingly meaningless world and fostering resilience in the face of life's uncertainties
229
Jeremy Bentham is associated with this philosophy.
a. Hedonism
b. Utilitarianism
c. Buddhism
d. Virtue Ethics
Answer: Utilitarianism
230
The Categorical Imperative was created by:
a. Plato
b. Mills
c. Nietzsche
d. Kant
Answer: Kant
231
"You create your own meaning, and your own ethics." This sounds like:
a. Socrates
b. Hedonism
c. Existentialism
d. Virtue Ethics
Answer: Existentialism
232
Two extremes in Virtue Ethics would be called:
a. Vice & Virtue
b. Good & Bad
c. Deficiency & Excess
d. Chocolate and Peanut Butter
Answer: Deficiency & Excess
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JS Mill thought Bentham's idea was too hard, so he created ______ Utilitarianism.
a. Rule
b. Virtue
c. Hedonistic
d. Buddhist
Answer: Rule
234
Existentialism believes that human nature is:
a. Good
b. Bad
c. Nothing
d. Fun
Answer: Nothing
235
To Kant, lying is always:
a. Wrong
b. Possible
c. Right
d. Subjective
Answer: Wrong
236
The Golden Mean comes from:
a. Existentialism
b. Virtue Ethics
c. Buddhism
d. Divine Command
Answer: Virtue Ethics
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Subjective means:
a. Its the same for everyone.
b. Its NOT the same for everyone.
c. It depends on the subjects you study.
d. It is generally unclear.
Answer: Its NOT the same for everyone.
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While going to the exams in university, you decide to go drinking instead. This is:
a. called Nihilism.
b. called Virtue Ethics.
c. called Hedonism
d. called Divine Command.
Answer: Hedonism
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If we leave out Australia, what is the world's largest island?
a. Shutter Island
b. Hawaii
c. Cuba
d. Greenland
Answer: Greenland
240
Simone de Beauvoir typically belongs to the __________________________school of philosophy.
a. Existentialist
b. Utilitarian
c. Virtues Ethics
d. Divine Comman
Answer: Existentialist.
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"Why do I have to go to school. I hate school." For an existentialist this is _______________
a. Authentic
b. Living in bad faith
c. Accepting responsibility
d. Inauthentic
Answer: Living in bad faith & Inauthentic
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Are things good because God says, or does God say to do them because they are good.
a. The Empiricist Dilemma
b. The Euthyphro Dilemma
c. The Epistemology Dilemma
d. The Yeezy Dilemma
Answer: The Euthyphro Dilemma
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Who is the ‘father of capitalism’?
Adam Smith.
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What is the most basic belief in capitalist ideology?
Economic soc/pol system
“Capital” is money
Believes in individual ownership and competition.
The theory is that when everyone is selfish, it benefits everyone.
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What is the most important good thing about capitalism?
Freedom & choice - also innovation
You can work wherever, buy whatever, and pretty much do whatever (need the $).
If you’re successful, you can be very successful. Think Jeff Bezos or Bill Gates
Less drudgery - mechanized farming and factories = more food and more goods.
Monetary reward = reward for progress, new items, better items.
246
What is the most important bad thing? about capitalism?
No “safety net.” = If you’re unsuccessful, you can be very unsuccessful. Think about the poor. Income disparity = instability.
Big gap between rich and poor = often no way to leave your ‘class’ = entrenched wealthy class. Wealth = power
Periodic cycles of prosperity and depression = seem inevitable.
Smith’s work predates industrialism -> capitalism wasn’t made for the modern world
Encourages immorality? Links to sociopathy?
247
Who is the ‘father of communism’?
Karl Marx.
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What is the most basic belief in communist ideology?
Economic soc/pol system.
Believes in collective (group) ownership and a planned economy.
The theory is that everybody pools their resources and labour to evenly distribute everything.
249
What is the most important good thing about communism?
Security, basic needs met. Basic equality.
Everyone would have a job, house, health care, etc.
No wealth disparity. No cycles of job loss.
Less crime, less war, less violence.
Universal education, universal healthcare, no exploitation.
250
What is the most important bad thing about communism?
Lack of choice and possibly freedom.
No reward for being a better worker or punishment for being a slacker.
No rewards = no innovation..
Everyone expected to be the same.
Some have said it has never worked, therefore will never work.
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Deconstructionism
Deconstruction in philosophy questions fixed meanings and explores multiple interpretations. It helps us see that language and ideas can be complex and have different perspectives. It encourages us to challenge the usual way of understanding things and be open to new possibilities.
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Determinism
Determinism is the idea that everything that happens is determined by what happened before, and there is no such thing as random chance. It raises questions about free will and whether our choices are truly our own.
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Confucianism ethics
Confucianism ethics focus on virtues like benevolence, respect, and loyalty. It emphasizes the importance of maintaining harmonious relationships, fulfilling roles and responsibilities, and cultivating moral character for the betterment of individuals and society.
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Free Will Definition:
The supposed power or capacity of humans to make decisions or perform actions independently of any prior event or state in the universe.
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Why might we have free will argument:
Existentialism
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Why we don’t have free will argument:
Our subconscious makes decisions before “we” do - rubber ball tests
Having the ability to create thought breaks the laws of physics
No evolutionary reason to develop free will
The vast majority of decisions we make on a daily basis are subconscious
If “God” knows everything that will ever happen how would we be able to dictate our futures.
Decisions we make are based off of exterior factors.
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The Self
For this exercise, we are going to ignore the questions of “What is the self?” and “Is there even the possibility of the Self?” and go with more direct, useful forms of questioning. If we struggle to define what a self actually is, maybe we can at least be helpful in discovering or clarifying who YOU think you are.
