Philosophy mid-term

Question 1

What is Philosophy?

Answer 1

Philosophy is the study of fundamental questions about existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language.

Question 2

Why Study Philosophy?

Answer 2

It enhances critical thinking, problem-solving, and understanding of abstract concepts and ethics.
Provides tools for analyzing complex issues in diverse fields like science, law, politics, and religion.

Question 3

Validity:

Answer 3

An argument is valid if its structure guarantees that the conclusion follows logically from the premises.

Question 4

Soundness:

Answer 4

A valid argument with all true premises.

Question 5

Propositions:

Answer 5

Statements that can be either true or false.

Question 6

Truth:

Answer 6

Correspondence of a proposition to reality.

Question 7

Conceptual Analysis:

Answer 7

Examining concepts by breaking them into their constituent parts.

Question 8

Necessary:

Answer 8

A condition that must be true for something to occur.

Question 9

Sufficient:

Answer 9

A condition that, if true, guarantees the occurrence of something.

Question 10

Family Resemblances:

Answer 10

The idea that things may be connected by overlapping similarities, without a single defining feature.

Question 11

The Three Laws of Classical Logic:
Law of Identity:

Answer 11

A = A.

Question 12

The Three Laws of Classical Logic:
Law of Non-Contradiction:

Answer 12

A cannot be both A and not A.

Question 13

The Three Laws of Classical Logic:
Law of Excluded Middle:

Answer 13

Either A is true, or not A is true.

Question 14

Principle of Explosion:

Answer 14

From a contradiction, anything can be derived (inconsistent logic can lead to false conclusions).

Question 15

Arguments:
Deductive:

Answer 15

Guaranteed true conclusions if the premises are true.

Question 16

Arguments:
Inductive:

Answer 16

Conclusions are likely but not guaranteed.

Question 17

Arguments:
Strong vs. Weak:

Answer 17

Measures of how well premises support conclusions.

Question 18

Instrumental:

Answer 18

Reasons valued for the sake of something else.

Question 19

Intrinsic

Answer 19

Reasons valued for their own sake.

Question 20

Anekāntavāda (Jainism):

Answer 20

The doctrine of many-sidedness, tolerance of multiple perspectives as partial truths.

Question 21

Classical Hedonism:

Answer 21

The pursuit of pleasure and avoidance of pain as the primary or only intrinsic goods.

Question 22

Contemporary Hedonism:

Answer 22

Similar to classical, but includes broader views on what constitutes pleasure (emotional, attitudinal states).

Question 23

Cārvākian Sensualist School:

Answer 23

Indian materialist philosophy advocating for sensual pleasure as the highest good.

Question 24

Value Hedonism:

Answer 24

The belief that only pleasure has intrinsic value.

Question 25

Psychological Hedonism:

Answer 25

Humans are motivated by the desire for pleasure and avoidance of pain.

Question 26

Prudential Hedonism:

Answer 26

Pleasure is the best guide to what makes life good.

Question 27

Bentham’s Hedonic Calculus

Answer 27

A method to quantify pleasure and pain to make moral decisions, considering:
Intensity, duration, certainty, propinquity (nearness), fecundity (likelihood of leading to other pleasures), purity, and extent.

Question 28

Upaniṣads & Duḥka:

Answer 28

Eastern philosophies (like Buddhism) focus on suffering (duḥka) rather than pleasure as the central concern.

Question 29

Treadmill Effect:

Answer 29

The idea that increased pleasures or desires do not lead to lasting happiness (hedonic adaptation).

Question 30

Measurement Objections:

Answer 30

Challenges in measuring subjective experiences like pleasure and pain.

Question 31

Mill’s Objections to Bentham:

Answer 31

John Stuart Mill’s Qualitative Hedonism argues that some pleasures (intellectual, moral) are higher than others (physical).

Question 32

Eudaimonia:

Answer 32

Flourishing or living well; Aristotle’s notion that true happiness comes from fulfilling one’s potential, not just experiencing pleasure.

Question 33

Objections Founded on Eudaimonia:

Answer 33

Pleasure alone cannot account for a good life—virtue and purpose are essential.

Question 34

Feldman’s Attitudinal Hedonism:

Answer 34

Focuses on pleasure as an attitude of enjoyment, not just sensory experience.
Considers paradoxes like “happy pains” and “unhappy pleasures.”

Question 35

Nozick’s Experience Machine:

Answer 35

Challenges hedonism by asking if people would plug into a machine that guarantees pleasurable experiences, suggesting humans want more than just pleasure (authenticity, reality).

Question 36

Haybron’s Emotional State Theory:

Answer 36

Happiness is found in overall emotional states (like contentment) rather than momentary pleasure.

Question 37

Central vs. Peripheral Affects:

Answer 37

Central affects are core emotional states, peripheral affects are minor emotions that don’t influence overall well-being.

Question 38

Measurement Problems:

Answer 38

Difficulty in measuring complex emotional states.

Question 39

Nussbaum’s Objections:

Answer 39

Martha Nussbaum critiques emotional state theories, arguing they neglect human dignity and broader aspects of well-being.

Question 40

Local vs. Whole Life Satisfaction:
Local:

Answer 40

Satisfaction with specific moments or aspects of life.

Question 40

Local vs. Whole Life Satisfaction:
Whole Life:

Answer 40

Overall assessment of life satisfaction.

Question 41

Changing Desires:

Answer 41

Desires change, which complicates evaluating happiness.

Question 42

Treadmill Effect:

Answer 42

Adaptation to circumstances limits lasting satisfaction.

Question 43

Kekes:

Answer 43

Divides desires into first-order (basic) and second-order (more reflective, complex desires).

Question 44

Ed Diener:

Answer 44

Psychologist known for life-satisfaction surveys, which assess subjective well-being.

Question 45

Fatal Objections:

Answer 45

Surveys can be too subjective, ambiguous, and culturally biased (ethnocentrism).

Question 46

Truman Show & Nozick’s Experience Machine:

Answer 46

Both raise questions about whether reality and authenticity are more valuable than pleasurable illusions.

Question 47

Schadenfreude:

Answer 47

Pleasure derived from another’s misfortune, raising ethical questions in hedonistic frameworks.