Test #1

Question 1

Metaphysics 1

Answer 1

What is a person?

Question 2

Metaphysics 2

Answer 2

What is a meaningful life?

Question 3

Aesthetics

Answer 3

What is beautiful?

Question 4

Social & political

Answer 4

What is a just society?

Question 5

Epistemology

Answer 5

What can be known?

Question 6

What is critical thinking?

Answer 6

Critical thinking is the process of observing, analyzing, inferring and conceptualizing concepts and information to solve problems and personal dilemmas. It is typically used as a guide to belief and action.

Question 7

What are the 2 components to critical thinking

Answer 7

1.A set of information and belief generating and processing skills
2.Commited to intelectual thinking and making it a habit in your life. Using your conclusions from your thinking to guide behavior.

Question 8

Who were the presocratics and what did they focus on?

Answer 8

Presocratics are those who predated Socrates. They focussed on the structure and development of the universe. They studied the night sky and discovered planets and stars.

Question 9

Who were the milesians and what did they focus on?

Answer 9

They were the first thinkers to abandon supernatural or religious explanations for what they observed.

Question 10

Who was Thales ?

Answer 10

One of 3 great milesians
Predicted a solar eclipse and proved that certain events are regular and predictable

Question 11

Socratic dialogue

Answer 11

Socratic dialogue is a method of questioning used during discussions to elicit knowledge from someone, determine how much they truly know about what they are arguing and determine why they believe what they do. It is a way to break down belief and determine if its correct.

Question 12

According to scruton what are the 2 things that distinguish philosophical thought?

Answer 12

Abstraction: The problems in philosophy are designed to be solved with the realms of possibility and necessity instead of actuality

Concern for truth: Giving answers that have evidence.

Question 13

What does a critical thinker do?

Answer 13

-Raises questions clearly
-Gathers and accedes relevant using abstract ideas to interpret it
-tests their conclusions and answers
-thinks open-mindedly
-communicates well with others to come to a conclusion

Question 14

What are the origins of critical thinking

Answer 14

Traces back to Socrates. Was necessary in his ways of teaching (socratic dialogue)
Socrates argued that we can’t rely on those in authority to always be correct and that we should question everyone’s thinking

Question 15

What was Hobbes arguement/conclusion?

Answer 15

That we ought to submit to a sovereign power or our nature will take over.

Question 16

What is the state of nature according to Hobbes?

Answer 16

A world with no government. Each person decides for themselves what is right and wrong. There is no way to get in trouble for your wrongs because there is no authority

Question 17

What we’re the contradictions in Hobbes arguements

Answer 17

His limits of political obligation seem like they would be incompatible with absolute authority. If absolute government is the product of choice how can it also be the sole constitution?

Question 18

What are the limits of political obligation? (Hobbes)

Answer 18

Subjects retain the right to self defence against the absolute sovereign power or when their families or honour are at steak.

Question 19

What does the conscience do?

Answer 19

Acts as a moral barometer
Gauges each action you may commit
Determines if an action gives a good or bad feeling
Depending on how well you listen to your conscience it can influence how much it controls your decisions.

Question 20

What did Bertrand Russel do?

Answer 20

He pointed out a problem with the conscience-it can’t be trusted because there is no consistency. Your right may be someone else’s wrong. He argued that our conscience comes from learned behaviour and isn’t apart of human nature. He believed that you should trust things above your conscience when making big decisions about how to live.

Question 21

What is dualism?

Answer 21

Humans are made of two parts:
Body
Soul (or mind)

Question 22

What are platos 3 division of the soul?

Answer 22

Appetite-the wants
Spirit-seeks honour and prestige
Reason-makes judgements,seeks education and wisdom
Plato says that the ‘‘Best” type of person is guided most by their reason.

Question 23

What is the problematic soul?

Answer 23

-It is not a physical thing, so can it be found?
-If it cannot be seen how do we know what it does?
-Is the soul a problematic thing to believe in? Is it a sortable thing that can be broken down?
-Is the soul immortal?

Question 24

Who was Dr.Penfield?

Answer 24

He was fasinated by the idea of the soul and wanted to find it
Did many experiments and is responsable for mapping parts of the brain. He had never found a soul in any of his patients brain and concluded that it is nonmateriel.

Question 25

Who was ryle?

Answer 25

-Claimed it was a mistake to think of the mind as a thing because it has no physical dimensions
-Did not
deny the existence of the minds but noted that our
Mental stales (as listed above) Could not exist without a physical body
-His definition of human nature is
a
“Complex function of the relationship between mentality and physical
activity. The two are deeply interconnected

Question 26

Extentialisim

Answer 26

Believe that there is no human nature. Human beings are thrown randomly into the world without any purpose. According to them it up to us to find our own purpose. We are free in this project of self definition.

Question 27

Atheism

Answer 27

Atheists believe that there is no God or higher being that gave humans a purpose. They don’t believe that we were made by any supernatural power. Most existentialists are atheists.

Question 28

Camus

Answer 28

Camus was an atheist philosopher who was inspired by Sisyphus who was condemned to push a rock up a hill for eternity. This myth represents life to Camus, unending frustrating tasks that have no final meaning. He thought it was admirable that he kept going despite having to constantly do something meaningless.

Question 29

Sartre

Answer 29

Sartre was imprisoned by German forces during ww2. He was an atheist who argued that freedom is the defining feature of human beings. According to him freedom isn’t about doing anything you want but accepting responsibility for your actions.

Question 30

According to Aristotle what are the three souls?

Answer 30

Vegetative
Animal
Reason(human)