Up@dawn 2.0

Sunday, March 31, 2013

Stoic Pragmatism Questions by Evan Lester (Sec. H1 Group 4)

I have started reading the book Stoic Pragmatism, and I will try to post questions on the blog as I begin to read it in the next couple of days for John Lachs. Here are a few questions that came to my mind as I began reading the book:

1. According to your book, it says that Alfred North Whitehead "averred that all of philosophy may well be a series of footnotes to Plato." Do you agree with this opinion? Why or why not?

2. Is there a particular philosopher that influenced the writing of your book?

3. Under the section of Ethics, there are three philosophers with different aspects of ethics. Those philosophers are Mill, Kant, and Butler. Do you agree with one of the philosophers over the others? Or do you have a different opinion on the topic?

4. Would you consider Plato and Aristotle as the backbone of philosophy since the disagreement between them on the method of philosophy is still with us today?

These are just a few that I had questions about as I have read. There will be more to come!

Friday, March 29, 2013

Happy days



Coming to MTSU, Fall 2013-
PHIL 3160 –
Philosophy of Happiness
Tuesdays & Thursdays, 2:40-4:05 pm, James Union Building 202. Examining the concept of human happiness and its application in everyday living as discussed since antiquity by philosophers, psychologists, writers, spiritual leaders, and contributors to pop culture.
 “Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence.” Aristotle

“The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts.” - Marcus Aurelius

 “Rules for Happiness: something to do, someone to love, something to hope for.”   Immanuel Kant

“Happiness consists in frequent repetition of pleasure”

“The advantage of a bad memory is that one enjoys several times the same good things for the first time.”  Friedrich Nietzsche

“If only we'd stop trying to be happy, we could have a pretty good time.”  Edith Wharton

“You will never be happy if you continue to search for what happiness consists of. You will never live if you are looking for the meaning of life.”   Albert Camus

“Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know.”  Ernest Hemingway

“That's the difference between me and the rest of the world! Happiness isn't good enough for me! I demand euphoria!” 

“This planet has - or rather had - a problem, which was this: most of the people living on it were unhappy for pretty much of the time. Many solutions were suggested for this problem, but most of these were largely concerned with the movement of small green pieces of paper, which was odd because on the whole it wasn't the small green pieces of paper that were unhappy… I'd far rather be happy than right any day.” ― Douglas Adams

Join the conversation! For more info contact Dr. Phil Oliver, Phil.Oliver@mtsu.edu

Poker philosophy

OK, I'm posting this because the Bill Murray .gif is relentless and I can't bear to see it every time I visit our site. (Guess eternal recurrence is not for me.) Also because we'll be discussing Wittgenstein & Popper on Tuesday.

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Even the Smallest of Choices Counts (H1G1 Sartre)


This is an altogether too familiar scenario. One that almost all of us have encountered and have responded to. For some of us we hit the snooze button on our alarms or, for those stranger creatures, the dismiss button. Either way we are faced with a choice. Wake up, snooze, or sleep the day away? According to Jean-Paul Sartre that is where our free will comes in to play: through the choices we make. In my group we discussed this idea of Sartre's. Do the choices we make really represent our free will or are the results of those choices already mapped out?

Sartre argued that our free will comes in the form of these choices we make. Yet, isn't it possible that all of our decisions are predestined? Or maybe the "choices" we are making are fueled by "chains." For instance, when I hit my alarm clock before work I am choosing to wake up, yes. However, do I really have the free will to decide not to go to work considering the repercussions?

Jean-Paul Sartre

In the end our group, essentially, came to the conclusion that the idea of free will is up to the individual. Is it possible that free will doesn't exist? Or that it does? Or, maybe, is there a fusion of both? Every person seems to believe differently. Maybe that's where our free will comes in, not through our choices but beliefs. 
It's up to you.

H1 Group 2 De Beauvoir

**Apparently yesterday when I tried publishing the blog post, I must have had technical issues. When I checked the site this morning I realized that my post had not been posted. I am sorry for the delay!

      My group discussed De Beauvoir. We have not discussed many female philosophers, so I found her very intriguing. Being a woman, she was worried about the mistreatment of women. She became an avid feminist as many would suspect. For a majority of our discussion time, we discussed the idea of present-day radical feminists. As many have seen, some present-day feminists tend to take the topic way too far. We understand the need for equal rights of men and women, but some people do not realize that our country as a whole has improved greatly about equality. Some feminists refuse to wear dresses/skirts and act like the "traditional" woman. They refuse to be a stay at home mom, or refuse to take on household responsibilities that many women typically do. Dressing as men to try and make a statement does not really give equality to women. If anything, it is almost validating that men are more influential and powerful. We discussed the "roles" family members play. Typically women are seen as taking care of the kids and cleaning the house. In today's society, the role is often reversed since women are now also being offered high paying jobs. A question asked was, "Can we have it all?" Can everyone truly balance a family, a career, and everything else in life? All people are limited in what they can do to have fulfilment in life. This is not only women, but men as well. There must be at least some sort of balance in every life in order for one to feel complete and fulfilled. To sum it all up, everyone has the opportunity and the ability to choose what role they play in society. No one is forced into being a certain way, or living a certain way. It takes every person a bit of time to figure out his or her own role in society. No matter how long it takes, at least we are all given the option.
FQ: Who said, "Self-consciousness is not knowledge, but a story one tells about oneself?"
         Answer: De Beauvoir

16-2 Exam #2 Questions

This philosopher of the 19th century rejected his love because he believed he was too gloomy and religious to make her happy and believed when it came to religion that is was not an easy, cozy decision but one that required great risk.

Soren Kierkegaard

This american philosopher was a follower of pragmatism and believed that what made something true was its usefulness. For example, he thought God existed because he believed it was a useful belief to have.

William James

This English philosopher lived to the old age of 97 and started what some have called the 'linguistic turn' in philosophy in which philosophers started to analyze the underlying structure of language and its meaning.

Bertrand Russell

The french philosopher of the 20th century expressed her objections to gender roles and constraints by putting a feminist spin on existentialism and writing a book called The Second Sex.

Simone de Beauvoir

The phrase 'Our existence comes before our essence' may be seen as one of the core tenets of which philosophical view?

Existentialism

Exam #2 Study Guide

"Stud" & "Complied": a Freudian slip, Evan? ;)

But seriously... thanks for compiling, all. We'll review at the beginning of class, if anyone has questions. And I've learned of at least one midterm report presentation that almost slipped through the cracks. Last call for anyone else still needing to present.
==

Section H1 Ultimate Stud Guide for Exam #2 (Complied Questions)

I have taken (from Section H1) every group's questions and compiled them into one document. Below are all of the questions that have been posted from every group:


Philosophy Exam #2 Study Guide for Section H1 (Compiled)
Group 1

1. Q: Who was the father of the psychoanalytic theory?

    A: Sigmund Freud

2. Q: A turn towards the focus on the practical consequences of our beliefs instead of towards the abstract ideas of our beliefs is illustrated in the doctrines of what philosophical school of thought?

    A: Pragmatism

3. Q: According to Freud, the third great revolution in human thought was brought about by his discovery of what?

   A: The unconscious

4. Q: The study of any reality lies beyond our senses is _______________.

    A: Metaphysics 

5. Q: Who wrote The Origin of Species, the book that assimilated human beings into a common ancestral lineage with all other organisms on Earth?

    A: Charles Darwin


Group 2

6. Q: Which philosopher addressed the question of whether or not it was best to abandon ethics in favor of faith in God?   
 
    A: James

7. Russell started what is called the ________ turn in philosophy?
     
     A: Linguistic


8.   Q: What is the linguistic turn? 

      A: Philosophers began to think very hard about language and its underlying logical form.

9. Q: Which philosophical belief based on the absurdity of human existence became a cult? 

    A: Existentialism


10. Who studied philosophy as a logical analysis of language and the utilization of precision in the use of linguistics?

     A: Bertrand Russell

Group 3 

11. Q: What philosopher called religion the "opium of the people?"

      A: Marx

12.  Q: The philosopher behind the Ubermensh is...?

       A: Nietzsche

13. True or false, despite his somewhat eccentric ideas, Nietzsche had a positive outlook concerning human life?

      A: True


14. Q: If a sentence is neither true by definition nor empirically verifiable (or falsifiable), then it is meaningless according _______.

    A: Ayer

15. Q: What point was Camus trying to make by utilizing the myth of Sisyphus?

      A: That human life is pointless and absurd.

Group 4

16. Q: Who thinks "mental states and processes have real physical effects in the physical world"?

      A: Tim Crane

17. Q: David Papineau argued that _______________    ________________ is "concerned with the world of unobservables - things that we can't see or otherwise sense."

     A: Scientific Realism

18. Q:  _____________________ is the conclusion that we cannot know anything about the world.

     A: Skepticism 

19. Q: What philosopher believes that the tenses of time are a relationship between a person and an event?

     A: Hugh Mellor

20. Q: When talking about skepticism, what philosopher does Barry Stroud refer to in order to get the senses out of the picture as a source of knowledge?

      A: Descartes

==

14-1 Test #2 Questions

Here are the 14-1 Questions for the second test. Happy Studying! 




1. Peirce thought _____ _______ were nonsense, and ______  led to truth.
A: abstract theories, experiments 


2. William James was what type of philosopher?
A: Pragmatist
3. What was another name for Sartre's Philosophy? 
A: Existentialism 
4. Who was the father of the psychoanalytic theory?
A. Sigmund Freud

5. The book that assimilated humans into a common ancestral lineage with all other organisms on Earth was called what, and written by whom?
A. The Origin of Species, Charles Darwin



14-2 Exam questions

1. True or False: Russell accepted God and believed that it was acceptable to have a relationship outside of marriage.

A: False, after reading John Stuart Mill's Autobiography, Russell rejected God.

2. Who said: “Self-consciousness is not knowledge but a story one tells about oneself.”?

A: de Beauvoir

3. True or False: Kierkegaard believed the duty to obey God trumps the duty to be a good father.

A: True

4. Whose philosophy was based on pragmatism that boils down to "truth is what works"?

A: William James

5. Who came up with the cash value of thought concept?

A: Williams James

14-3 Exam Questions

1. True or false: Mill thought that greater happiness would come from individuals having greater freedom in how they behaved. (True)

2. The German philosopher _________ (Marx) was an egalitarian: he believed human being should be treated equally.

3. Which German philosopher said the famous words, "God is Dead"? (Nietzsche)

4. Who had a near-death experience, causing him to eventually question his certainly about whether the mind could continue existing after death? (Ayer)

5. Albert Camus linked existentialism with Greek mythology, using the myth of ______ to explain human absurdity. (Sisyphus)

Posted by 

14-4 Exam questions

1. Crane believes the solution to consciousness can be found by probing the brain itself.
Answer: False

2. What is Scientific Realism?
Answer: The unobservable world, like atoms, viruses, radio waves etc exist even if we can not sense them with our 5 senses.

3. Do skeptics believe in our senses helping to determine the existence of something?
Answer: No. Skeptics do not trust our senses and how we perceive things.

4. Does time have tenses?
Answer: No. We create that to better understand time but in reality, time has no category in which to put it in.

5. What is something a scientific realist would argue exists?
Answer: waves and particles
==

(16-1) exam 2 questions(Darwin,James, and Sartre)

True or False
1)Darwin was a philosopher?
2)Darwin claimed everyone has a ape in their family tree:
3)For William James truth is what people see with their own eyes.
4)Jean Paul Sartre was born in japan
Answers:
1-F
2-T
3-F
4-F

5)Who said that bad faith is running away from freedom?
Answer: Jean Paul Sartre

16-3 Exam Questions

Which philosopher penned one of the most widely-known political books of all time, theCommunist Manifesto?  KARL MARX

Which German philosopher, in Thus Spake Zarathustra, described the idea of anÜbermensch (super-man), an imaginary future person who goes beyond moral codes to create new values?  FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE

Whose most famous words were "God is dead?"  FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE

Who, at the age of 24, wrote Language, Truth and Logic, which declared that most of the history of philosophy was worthless gibberish?  A.J. AYER

Who said that "there are causes worth dying for but none worth killing for?" ALBERT CAMUS

14-3 Exam Questions

1. True or false: Mill thought that greater happiness would come from individuals having greater freedom in how they behaved. (True)

2. The German philosopher _________ (Marx) was an egalitarian: he believed human being should be treated equally.

3. Which German philosopher said the famous words, "God is Dead"? (Nietzsche)

4. Who had a near-death experience, causing him to eventually question his certainly about whether the mind could continue existing after death? (Ayer)

5. Albert Camus linked existentialism with Greek mythology, using the myth of ______ to explain human absurdity. (Sisyphus)

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Albert Camus (H1-G3)

     Today we discussed Albert Camus. Though he is linked with Sartre, he himself disagreed saying that, ""No, I am not an existentialist. Sartre and I are always surprised to see our names linked..." He went against  nihilism, which attests that life has no intrinsic value nor a distinct moral code, even though he did not believe in a god, writing in a letter "If nothing had any meaning, you would be right. But there is something that still has a meaning." Moreover, Philosophy Bites summarized Camus' view with his allusion to the myth of Sisyphus. While seemingly dismal, the endless pushing of the rock up the mountain for it only for it to roll down again, is Camus' optimistic view on life.... it is better than death, so enjoy it.Who knows, Sisyphus might have smelled the roses on the way up the mountain.

     We moved on to discuss other topics. We hopped on to the feminist train named Beauvoir, after not really wanting to rehash out where we get our meaning of life from. Here we had conflicting opinions. It is my opinion that men and women are different, and thank goodness for that. There are tasks that women tend to be better at and there are tasks that men are more suited for. It doesn't make those tasks gender defined. Like in leadership positions. Honest to goodness in high school I held a big one and a certain percentage of the male population would never ever listen to me because I was a female. Not all but a good percentage.I also believe that while in marriage, man and wife are equal, though the man is the head of the house. However, I have been raised by a strong single mother and she occupies the title of the head of the household. Likewise the mention of single fathers, who act as a nurturing mother would, are not restricted by their gender.

16-3 Exam Questions

Which philosopher penned one of the most widely-known political books of all time, the Communist Manifesto?  KARL MARX

Which German philosopher, in Thus Spake Zarathustra, described the idea of an Übermensch (super-man), an imaginary future person who goes beyond moral codes to create new values?  FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE

Whose most famous words were "God is dead?"  FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE

Who, at the age of 24, wrote Language, Truth and Logic, which declared that most of the history of philosophy was worthless gibberish?  A.J. AYER

Who said that "there are causes worth dying for but none worth killing for?" ALBERT CAMUS

Section H1 Ultimate Stud Guide for Exam #2 (Complied Questions)

I have taken (from Section H1) every group's questions and compiled them into one document. Below are all of the questions that have been posted from every group:


Philosophy Exam #2 Study Guide for Section H1 (Compiled)
Group 1

1. Q: Who was the father of the psychoanalytic theory?

    A: Sigmund Freud

2. Q: A turn towards the focus on the practical consequences of our beliefs instead of towards the abstract ideas of our beliefs is illustrated in the doctrines of what philosophical school of thought?

    A: Pragmatism

3. Q: According to Freud, the third great revolution in human thought was brought about by his discovery of what?
 
   A: The unconscious

4. Q: The study of any reality lies beyond our senses is _______________.

    A: Metaphysics

5. Q: Who wrote The Origin of Species, the book that assimilated human beings into a common ancestral lineage with all other organisms on Earth?

    A: Charles Darwin


Group 2

6. Q: Which philosopher addressed the question of whether or not it was best to abandon ethics in favor of faith in God?  
 
    A: James

7. Russell started what is called the ________ turn in philosophy?
    
     A: Linguistic


8.   Q: What is the linguistic turn?

      A: Philosophers began to think very hard about language and its underlying logical form.

9. Q: Which philosophical belief based on the absurdity of human existence became a cult?

    A: Existentialism

10. Who studied philosophy as a logical analysis of language and the utilization of precision in the use of linguistics?

     A: Bertrand Russell

Group 3

11. Q: What philosopher called religion the "opium of the people?"

      A: Marx

12.  Q: The philosopher behind the Ubermensh is...?

       A: Nietzsche

13. True or false, despite his somewhat eccentric ideas, Nietzsche had a positive outlook concerning human life?

      A: True


14. Q: If a sentence is neither true by definition nor empirically verifiable (or falsifiable), then it is meaningless according _______.

    A: Ayer

15. Q: What point was Camus trying to make by utilizing the myth of Sisyphus?

      A: That human life is pointless and absurd.

Group 4

16. Q: Who thinks "mental states and processes have real physical effects in the physical world"?

      A: Tim Crane

17. Q: David Papineau argued that _______________    ________________ is "concerned with the world of unobservables - things that we can't see or otherwise sense."

     A: Scientific Realism

18. Q:  _____________________ is the conclusion that we cannot know anything about the world.

     A: Skepticism

19. Q: What philosopher believes that the tenses of time are a relationship between a person and an event?

     A: Hugh Mellor

20. Q: When talking about skepticism, what philosopher does Barry Stroud refer to in order to get the senses out of the picture as a source of knowledge?

      A: Descartes