UNIT # 4 The Human Person as Unity

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms and definitions from UNIT 4 The Human Person as Unity.

Cogito, ergo sum

The Latin phrase from Descartes meaning I think, therefore I am; the starting point for self-knowledge in philosophy.

Cartesian Doubt

Descartes' method of doubting that everything can be questioned to reach something indubitable.

Evil Genius

Descartes' hypothetical deceiver who could cause us to doubt reality as a whole.

Ship of Theseus

Thought experiment about identity when all parts are replaced; raises questions about what makes something the same object.

Essential Qualities

Properties that are essential to the nature of a thing; changing them would alter what the thing is.

Accidental Qualities

Properties that can change without changing the identity of the thing.

Existence before essence

Existentialist idea that humans define themselves through actions rather than having a preassigned essence.

Existentialism

Philosophical movement focusing on individual existence, freedom, and responsibility.

Subject

The perceiver who gives meaning to the world and acts within it.

Object

The thing perceived by a subject; including the body as experienced in the world.

Embodied Knowledge

Knowledge that is integrated in lived bodily experience and often automatic.

Abstract Knowledge

Knowledge obtained through reasoning or learning, not necessarily tied to bodily action.

Primary Qualities

Intrinsic properties of objects that exist independently of observers (weight, size, shape).

Secondary Qualities

Properties perceived by subjects, such as color, taste, and smell, which can vary between observers.

Locke

17th century philosopher who distinguished primary and secondary qualities.

Merleau-Ponty

20th century philosopher who emphasized embodied perception and the difference between abstract and embodied knowledge.

Primary Reflection

Marcel's stage viewing the body as an object studied by science.

Secondary Reflection

Marcel's stage viewing the body as mine and experienced from within.

Gabriel Marcel

20th century philosopher who explored the body and self, introducing the concepts of primary and secondary reflection.

Intersubjectivity

Mutual meaning making through interaction with other subjects.

Aesthetic stage

Kierkegaard's stage driven by impulses and emotion without fixed moral standards.

Ethical stage

Kierkegaard's stage guided by moral standards.

Faith stage

Kierkegaard's stage of living by faith in God, with Abraham as an example.