Our assigned philosopher today was Arendt. Most of the LH section on her revolved around Eichmann who, while not having a direct hand in the Holocaust, used his skills to do his job and make sure it went by smoothly, although he may not have necessarily known it at the time.
According to Arendt, this was an evil in the form of banality, or apathy. Eichmann's ignorance of the horrifying events around him makes him just as guilty as someone who knows what he's doing and supports the Nazi regime with full force. The results matter, not the intentions, according to him.
Do you agree with Arendt? It's very possible that Eichmann would have been an average joe anywhere else, but in his case his banality combined with the circumstances in which he lived caused a good deal of Evil to occur.
Factual: According to Arendt, is a salary-based employee of the Nazi Regime still to blame? Yes.
Discussion: Do you think the evil of Banality is occupying a place in the US elections?
For our next class, here are my questions about Thomson.
ReplyDelete(F): What does Thomson compare pregnancy after the use of contraception to? A: A violinist with a kidney problem
(D): Thomson has a lot of thoughts on abortion, what do you think about the subject?
"The results matter, not the intentions." Sounds familiar. I feel like this sentence alone sums up U.S politics. So many people just want to be on top, regardless if they can make change happen or not.
ReplyDeleteFactual: When Arendt fled the Nazis herself, where did she leave Germany to go to? France.
Discussion: Arendt's philosophy was inspired by the events around her, is yours? If so, how?
Thompson:
ReplyDeleteFactual - What was Thompsons stance on getting pregnant even though contraception was used?
-The fetus doesn't have an automatic right to your body
Discussion- Do you think "the man plugged into another man" is a good example of an unwanted pregnancy?