Philosophy - key words Flashcards
Metaphysics
A major branch of philosophy. It concerns existence and the nature of things that exist
A priori
Prior to evidence. Knowledge that is innate or inbuilt
Logical reasoning
The process of using a rational, systematic series of steps to arrive at a conclusion
Theory of the forms
Plato’s theory that everything on earth is an inferior copy of Ideal forms in a permanent spiritual reality. There are forms not only of objects such as tables and chairs but also of concepts such as number or beauty. The highest form is the form of good.
Form of the good
The form of the good is the ultimate object of knowledge, it is only once one grasps the form of the good that one reaches the highest grade of understanding
The analogy of the cave
An analogy put forward by Plato to help people understand the theory of the forms
Empiricism
The theory that all knowledge is based on experience derived from the senses
Four causes
Aristotle’s theory that all things within the universe centred on the four causes of being. They are the material, formal, efficient and final cause.
Unmoved Mover
The unmoved mover, or prime mover, is a concept advanced by Aristotle as a primary ‘mover’ of all the motion in the universe
Teleology
From the Greek Telos, meaning end or purpose, it is the philosophical study of nature by attempting to describe things by their apparent purpose or goal
Eternal
Lasting or existing forever
Actuality
The state of existing in reality
Potentiality
The ability to develop or come into existence
Soul
The spiritual or immaterial part of a human being or animal regarded as immortal
Mind
The element of a person that enables them to be aware of the world and their experiences, to think, and to feel; the faculty of conscience and thought
Body
The physical structure, including the bones, flesh, and organs of a person or animal
Dualism
The philosophical belief that there are two distinct parts to a human: a body and mind (soul)
Reason
The power of the mind to think, understand, and form judgments logically
Monism
The idea that the mind/soul and body are united
Hierarchy of the Soul
Aristotle’s idea that the soul has a variety of functions some which are more important than others
Nutritive soul
Found in plants: it makes the plant alive and governs the process of growth, assimilation of foodstuffs, sunlight, and water, and, in the flourishing stage, the reproduction of the plant
Sensitive Soul
The capacity for perception, including pleasure and pain; closely associated with it is sense-related desire; the desire for pleasant things and the aversion to painful ones
Rational soul
The soul that in the scholastic tradition has an independent existence apart from the body and that is the characteristic animating principle of human life as distinguished from animal or vegetable life
Substance dualism/cartesian dualism
Substance dualism is a variety of dualism in the philosophy of the mind which states that two sorts of substances exist: the mental and physical. Substance dualism is a fundamentally ontological position: it states that the mental and physical are separate substances with independent existence
