Essay on Philosophers

 I disagree with a member who advocates that Kantian duty-based ethics should be used in defining the morality of torture for the prisoners. According to this theory, the right reason defines the morality of any action. Accordingly, right reason may vary among individuals. While some may find it rightful to subject a prisoner on torture, others may feel otherwise. In addition, s...

Kennedy, 2012, offers a different approach towards the definition of public finance. Instead of coming up with her definition of the subject, she quotes existing definitions that accurately meet the demands of the reader. The most comprehensive is that of Dalton, that states that public finance is concerned with the expenditure and income processes of public authorities and the adjustment of one t...

If I lived during the Socrates times, I could be his great follower and would not have or would not condemn him any other time. Some of the reasons include; not putting into consideration the time spent in the military, Socrates lived his entire live in Athens where he was well known for his moral integrity, thirst for wisdom and self control. Additionally, through his best student’s ...

Freud and Plato have made great strides in influencing the world after their work in their respective fields was completed. Freud has influenced many great psychologists after him and Plato has done the same in his respective field of philosophy. Freud influenced the minds such as: Anna Freud, Melanie Klein, Karen Horney, Alfred Alder, Erik Erikson, and Carl Jung. Freud’s influences in his field...

Human ideals seem to play a big role in culture, literature, and religion. However, there is of course no true human ideal because no two people think exactly the same way. The ideals ranged from fighting for your home and to kill for glory to achieving the ultimate good of happiness. Perfection in this world is merely an idea and it has a hard time fitting in with anything since nothing is truly ...

Platoon is semi-autobiographical. Stone, who served as an infantryman in Vietnam, has grafted many of his experiences into the film, and the primary characters are based on individuals Stone served with. The lead, Chris Taylor (Charlie Sheen), represents the filmmaker. One could reasonably argue that the reason Platoon is so good is because it has such a deeply personal meaning for Stone. Conseque...

In conclusion, both Descartes and Plato in their attempts to challenge the prevailing doctrine of their respective times introduced two of the most influential concepts in the world of Philosophy. Descartes through his examination of systematic doubt uncovers the limitations of the physical senses in acquiring knowledge and introduces further challenges to understanding external reality with the d...

Whereas the Prime Mover is the opposite because it is a necessary being but one who does not in any way interact and act in the world. It is a impersonal being. Also the Judeo-Christian God is not completely immaterial. In Genesis 3, God 'walks' in the Garden of Eden and in the New Testament, God becomes man in the human form of Jesus. This belief is known as the incarnation ('God becomes flesh')....

She put up food on the hottest summer days and didn't complain. Her most sincere prayers were the ones she sent heavenward in gratitude for you. She filled your home with fragrance and beauty and music. The smell or her perfume and fresh-cut flowers, bacon for breakfast and Sunday roast. Her eyes were bright and happy and full of life. She wept though, wept and worried a thousand times for you wh...

While it is beneficial to challenge the government under some circumstances, one threatens the foundation of a stable society by breaking its laws. Socrates, who has lived 70 years of Athenian life, is content by living in accordance with this contract. He feels a state simply cannot exist if laws have no power. He firmly believes in the importance of strict laws, as he calls them the most preciou...

Both the leaders and the public are ignorant and corrupt, without true knowledge of themselves or the world, motivated by self-gratification. They are chained in slavery to ignorance and passions, to mob hysteria for or against fleeting issues, believing in the illusions, the shadows. We live in a time of loss of meaning, of crumbling values of truth and morality, of corruption in political life a...

The basic rights that the government has taken away from the people, solidifies reason to override the government for rights. In conclusion, V is the voice of reason for people; he sees the corruption and oppression that the government is inflicting on its people. He creates a state of rebellion (war) for the rights of the people to override the government. John Locke’s philosophies of reason, w...

Throughout Socrates’ discussions, he often has conversations with himself and the “Law”. Plato personifies the “Law” by giving it human-like qualities and speech; it is suggested that the Law can be hurt, and angry. He does this to distinguish it as a character that has feelings. For example, “’…you will leave this place, when you do, as the victim of a wrong done not by us, the La...

Lace Wing presents the argument that even if ontology accepted Virtue Ethics, then it is unclear what the practical implications are. If Virtue Ethics is an anti-ethical theory then to how would you practice it? What would you do afterwards? How would knowing these virtues and forms affect you? In the hope of rescuing Virtue Ethics, Aristotle (Plato’s student) delivers his interpretation of this...

Augustine. "The City of God-excerpts on the Two Cities", Medieval Sourcebook, July 1998. Stephen, Cooper. Augustine for Armchair Theologians, 2002. Print. Plato. “The Allegory of the cave”, The History Guide, May 2004. Goheen, Michael W., and Craig G. Bartholomew. Living at the Crossroads. Grand Rapids: Baker Publishing Group, 2008. Print. Gonalez, Justo L. The Story of Christianity. Peabody: ...

The influence of medieval science on the scientific revolution was extraordinary. Even though thoughts and ideas of medieval thinkers as opposed to revolutionary thinkers completely contradicted each other, the medieval era set the stage for the scientific revolution. If it were not for philosophers like Aristotle and Ptolemy, other great thinkers would not have been influenced to search for more ...

Although every theory of knowledge so far has solid counter examples, there is no doubt Gettier rocked the philosophical world when he successfully challenged the Tripartite Theory of Knowledge. Philosophers will continue to argue that Gettier's cases are not really cases of justified true belief or that Gettier's cases really are cases of knowledge after all. Perhaps the one thing all philosopher...

Throughout the play, Aristophanes expresses his clear defined ideologies with a sense so that the intelligent minds could understand how he personally felt during this period of change in Greece. His themes were meticulously thought out as well as the roles of the characters in order to best exemplify his own thought processes. What captures the power of The Clouds is it’s timeless message and ...

Members of the Lyceum wrote up their findings in manuscripts. In so doing, they built the school’s massive collection of written materials, which by ancient accounts was credited as one of the first great libraries. In the same year that Aristotle opened the Lyceum, his wife Pythias died. Soon after, Aristotle embarked on a romance with a woman named Herpyllis, who hailed from his hometown of St...

Policy initiation process, policy formulation process, policy implementation process and policy evaluation process. Policy Initiation/Agenda Setting The first question to ask here is: “Where does policy come from? How do policy agenda emerge?” Initiation is the primary stage of policy agenda that resulted from an issue regarded to come out as a problem if not attended to appropriately. Agenda ...

Although the ideas of academic and total skepticism sought to disprove a need or even the logic behind philosophy, scholars such as St. Augustine attempted to prove that despite the fact that we do not have total knowledge in everything, we are not totally void of knowledge. The three refutations of Augustine serve to help us remember that just as there is an opposite to nearly everything, the con...

For many, the fact that we cannot think of our minds not existing is a far stronger argument than that of say, Peter Geach as looking back over past scriptures is just like copying off of someone in a test who has made their answers up, we would just be looking at something which may or may not be true. While I was slightly swayed by the first argument in favour of the given statement, due to its ...

Document 4 is a speech by Pericles, a Greek statesman, which talks about the empire’s qualities of their government. Any man, regardless of their social class can be elected to hold office. Pericles talks very highly about his government, “... we are rather a role model to others.” His point of view on the government system may be affected by the fact that he is the General of that empire so...

•That even if it is comprehensible, it cannot be communicated Gorgias’s propositions are said to be logical contradictions, how can they be logical if they contradict each other? How is it that "nothing exists"? I'm definitely puzzled, and if it does exist, it's incomprehensible? Was he questioning his/our own existence? How can something be comprehensible but cannot be communicated? I have no...

Finally the word light or the Sun, used to represent the ultimate truth, the answers found to those erroneous beliefs that you thought were true. I completely agree with Plato and I think we can apply this logic to many equations we face in life as intelligent, moral and empathetic people. I learned that people see reality as the visible world when reality really is more than the visible world. T...

In conclusion, arguments about which framework and/or resulting distributions are morally preferable constitute the topic of distributive justice (STANFORD). Regarding justice in a society, both John Rawls and Robert Nozick express opposing beliefs on the best way to achieve this. Rawls explains the value of paying attention to the relative position as a way of appreciating the value of solidarity...

Singing the song of Blue with Raynell…..Cory demonstrates that he can embrace the song of his father without becoming his father. (Monaco) • “…Wilson shows that it is only through the willingness to face and accept the forces of the past that the protagonists will be given hope, power, and ultimately, deliverance.”(Monaco) • Troy is contained by death while the others are able to move ...

Throughout Celebrated Cases of Jude Dee, the relationship between ruler and ruled, between friends, husband and wife, parents and sons/daughters, the elderly and the younger remains incredibly significant, and continuously guides interpersonal relationships. Those whom did not follow the standards of the right relationships were met with punishment from Judge Dee, strongly exemplifying Confucian m...

A tragic hero should be able to arouse feelings of pity and fear; this is because, the feeling of pity is aroused by our deep sympathy for someone whose life is falling out of place whereas that person is neither too good nor too evil to have deserved such a misfortune, and the feeling of fear is aroused by the sheer horror that such a tragedy can fall upon anyone regardless of their stature. Acco...

(2)(2) Secondly, the state of nature, in contrast, has more potential for oppression. The absence of a government allows for conflicts to exist on many levels. Individuals, groups, and organizations would constantly be involved in variety of struggles, and each group would be vying for its own selfish interests. The state of nature is therefore characterized by a lack of unity. Because individuals...

Platoon was instantly acclaimed upon it's release as the first truly authentic look at Vietnam since the end of the war. It was nominated for many academy awards including, best picture, best film editing, best sound, best director, best cinematography, best writing, and best supporting actor. The film won Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best film editing, best sound, and best director. Richard ...

This art would have been well acknowledged at the time, as the paintings shows great thinkers and represents time of knowledge. This is what the Renaissance was about a passion for knowledge and skill. During the Renaissance people had an interest in classical antiquity, it centered around man, his earthly environment and his visual world. The human figure, the landscape, the treatment of deep spa...

In conclusion, these two movements had played a large role in the formation of the United States. The influence of Europe's enlightenment had spread widely in the colonies, and by 1766 Anglo-America had more institution of higher learning than England. A self confident Anglo-American upper class had garnered expertise in law, trade, finance, and politics. The Great Awakening resulted in an outburs...

In this post world war two and post 'Brave New World' time, it is easy to take The Republic as a strange Nazi/Taliban-esque tyrannical state on a first glance. As a state the polis would most definitely have failed. As macrocosm for justice in the individual it is unsurpassed. Its influence to this day was evident recently when it was voted best philosophical work ever by readers of the web page h...

On that point they were extrememly conservative as well, because they didn't take the idea anywhere near to the extreme that Locke proposed. People like Hamilton believed that the average man could not, in actuality, govern himself. Many of those at the Continental Congress shared this sentiment. For this reason the electoral college and the idea of a representative democracy were created. In the ...

Plato criticises his own theory a few times but eventually reaches answers to the things he criticised. This can either cause other people's criticisms to be more valid or less valid depending on the way you look at it. Often, when people criticise their own work before somebody else does, it lowers the value of the criticism as it shows Plato already knew people would criticise him for that. On t...

In conclusion I am dubious of the extent of Utilitarianism real importance when it comes to moral decision-making. Although it may appear to be faultless in theory, as has been shown when it comes to applying it in practice there are some quite considerable flaws. I feel one should always aim to create good and happiness and not pain, but I feel following the theory of Utilitarianism is not a suff...