Mr. Oliver bought up an interesting point during his discussion that perhaps, in his final work, his depiction of philosophy as a woman might have actually been a hallucination (albeit one that's not very assuring). "She told him that it was God's plan and will, so he should do nothing to counteract it, as things were the way they should be. Not very reassuring if you ask me!
As for a discussion to reply to - Do you think Boethius would have chosen the Grecian gods instead of Christianity's Yahweh if he had been born during the time of Epicurus and Cicero? Perhaps they might have had great philosopher armchair clashes involving competing ideals.
Tomorrow's discussion is Hobbes. I haven't done any research on him, so do come prepared to discuss!
Class isn't even over yet,
Jon
In our discussion of Boethius, we asked the question, 'If God knows every plan that we have, are we really free to make the choices that we make? Or do we just feel free to make the choice we make, when God knew all along what we would choose.' A bit confusing, I know. Ever since class, I have been wondering what answer there could be to this question. I think that God knows what choices we will be given and what choices we may choose to make, but that overall, we have the freedom to choose which path to take. If we choose the choice God wishes us to choose, then we continue on towards the destiny God has planned for us.
ReplyDeleteFor tomorrow's class, my questions are:
Factual: What was the most important book that Hobbes wrote?
Discussion: On page 58 in LH, we are told that Hobbes sees all humans as selfish at heart. Do you agree or disagree? Do you think you could be considered selfish?
Discussion Question: In the year 520, Boethius was working to revitalize the relationship between the churches in Rome and Constantinople. Had this been successful a number of events would have been set in place that in the end will result in the loss of royal favor. How do you think our world would have turned out today?
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