THE VALUE OF PHILOSOPHICAL REFLECTION

mid1, may God help us all

Plato’s Apology

Philosophical defense speech (not a dialogue in the usual sense)

Setting of Plato’s Apology

Socrates' trial in 399 BCE (Before Common Era)

Main Characters of Plato’s Apology

Socrates (speaking to the Athenian jury)

Apology

Socrates’ defense against charges of corrupting the youth and impiety (lack of respect).

Elenchus

Method Socrates defended in his trial (cross-examination)

Protagoras

Socrates debates the famous sophist Protagoras about whether virtue can be taught.

Agora

Socrates philosophizes in the public place

Think

Defend their views

Account for what they know and do not know

Socrates philosophize in the public place (Agora), compelled people to

Socratic Method/Philosophical Reflection

● Effective method of education

● We are compelled to reflect on what we believe or claim to know

● What we believe to be true becomes the basis of our action

Lao Tzu

Stated the following:
Watch your THOUGHTS

They become WORDS

Watch your WORDS

They become ACTIONS

Watch your ACTIONS

They become HABITS

Watch your HABITS

They become CHARACTER

Watch your CHARACTER

It becomes your DESTINY

worldly possession, social/cultural standing and the level of acceptance.

The most common self-image identifications people make, are related to their ______, ______, ______.

How we feel

Sometimes we define ourselves by ________.

past

Sometimes we define ourselves in response to

the outcomes that we had at some points in our ________.

Virtue, Aristotle

_______ is defined by _______ as a mean between excess and deficiency, a balance of character traits and behaviors achieved through habit and rational choice. (sample, sample)

Aristotle

He believed virtues are developed through practice, leading to moral excellence and a fulfilling life.

Virtue

Is the knowledge of good and bad

Philosopo

Is one with skill in evading/avoiding arguments.

Logical fallacy

Is an argument that may sound convincing or true but is actually flawed.

Are lapses of logic that lead us to an unsupported conclusion.

Sophists (Relativism)

Group of people in Greece who are teaching - ARETE -

excellence (poetry, science, mathematics...)

According to Plato & Aristotle, They use arguments to win

and not to find the truth

Arete

excellence (poetry, science, mathematics...)

Protagoras

Uses argument to appear the weak appear stronger. Man is the measure of all things. Every individual has a measure of his own truth

Relative

According to Protagoras, the law of society is _________.

Gorgias

emphasized that society’s laws (nomos) often oppose natural order (physis).

Physis

nature. the strong have power over the weak.

Nomos

society. laws are created to protect the weak and restrain the strong.

Callicles

Argued that laws (justice, equality, fairness) are inventions of the weak majority to protect themselves from the strong minority. For him, these laws go against nature because they restrict the natural superiority of the strong.

Lycophron

Slavery is unjust in the law of nature. Societies create hierarchy not found in nature. Believed that all humans are naturally equal. No one is born a master or slave by nature.

Protagoras

Stated that “On every issue, there are two arguments opposed to one another.”

Sophism

is a term used to describe a particular style of argumentation and reasoning that is often associated with deception and trickery.

It is a type of rhetoric that aims to persuade rather than inform, and that it relies on clever wordplay and logical fallacies to make its point.

Fallacy

A mistake in reasoning that makes an argument invalid or weak. It may sound persuasive, but it does not logically prove the point. Philosophers, logicians, and debaters study fallacies to avoid being misled.

Ad hominem

“to the person“. It’s a logical fallacy where instead of attacking the argument, someone attacks the person making the argument.

“You can’t trust him, he’s a college dropout.”

Appeal to ignorance

Also called Argumentum ad Ignorantiam. It occurs when someone claims that something is true because it hasn’t been proven false, or false because it hasn’t been proven true.

“We don’t know, so my claim must be correct.”

Hasty Generalization

A fallacy in which conclusion is not logically supported by sufficient evidence. Because the evidence is insufficient or biased, the conclusion is not logical. It ignores the need for a large, representative, and fair sample before making a general claim.

“Some teenagers in our community recently vandalized the park downtown. Teenagers are so irresponsible and destructive.”

Equivocation

An argument in an ambiguous way, with one meaning in

the other side of the argument and another meaning in

the other portion of the argument, making the argument

misleading. Shifting the meaning of a word mid-argument.

“Feathers are light. What is light cannot be dark. Therefore feathers are not dark.”

Appeal to Pity

(Ad Misericordiam). A fallacy in which someone tries to win support an argument or idea by exploiting the opponent's feelings, pity or guilt.

“Animal commercials showing sad puppies and kittens before asking for a donation.“

Bandwagon

Occurs when a proposition is claimed to be true or good solely because many people believe it to be so.

Post Hoc

Ergo Propter Hoc. “After this, therefore, because of this”. This fallacy occur when it is assumed that, because one thing happened after another, it must have occurred as a result of it. (Superstitions)

Appeal to Force

Argumentum ad Baculum. When force, coercion, or even a threat of force is used in place of a reason in an attempt to justify a conclusion.

“You should support my proposal; otherwise, you’ll lose your job.”

Pamimilosopo

The true philosopher, observes, thinks and sees clearly with the mind, and speaks the truth. We need the pilosopo to engage others to seethe truth and live by it.