Formal:(The form of structure of an argument, using symbols to represent premises and conclusions)
Informal: Arguments in everyday language, identifying fallacies or flaws in reasoning.
Propositional: Meanings of logical connectives and the rules of correct reasoning.
Arguments
Abductive: "Best guess" for an observation; the simplest and most likely explanation given the available evidence.
Deductive: Starting with general principles to reach specific conclusions. If the premises are true, the conclusion MUST be true.
Inductive: Uses specific observations to form general conclusions, observing patterns.
Laws
Excluded Middle: For any proposition, either that proposition is true, or its negation is true. (EITHERPOR−P=true)
Identity: The identity of a thing has to do with the actual properties that a thing possesses and, without which, it would not be the thing in question. Whatever a thing is, it is what it is and does not have alternative or multiple identities. (PisP)
Non-Contradiction: A proposition and its negation cannot both be true. (P=−P)
Principle of Sufficient Reason: Everything must have a reason or a cause. If something exists or occurs, there must be an explanation for it.
Parts of an Argument
Premise: A proposition used to support a conclusion.
Proposition: A statement that is considered either true or false.
Conclusion: The statement that is being supported by the premises.
Valid vs. Invalid
(Deductive) In a valid argument, if the premises are true, then the conclusion must be true. In an invalid argument, the conclusion does not necessarily follow from the premises.
Sound vs. Unsound
(Deductive) A sound argument is a valid argument with true premises.
Strong vs. Weak Arguments
(Inductive) Strong arguments have conclusions that are LIKELY to be true based on the premises; weak arguments do not.
Syllogism
Categorical: State whether things belong/don’t belong in categories by proceeding from a general premise to a specific conclusion.
Format:
Major P: All (Middle Term) are (Predicate Term)
Minor P: All (Subject Term) are (Middle Term)
C: All (Subject Term) are (Predicate Term)
Rules:
−P+−P=+C
−P=−C
No conclusion can be drawn from two particular propositions.
Hypothetical: At least one of the premises must express a hypothesis (IF…) and lead to a conclusion (THEN/THEREFORE…).
Affirming the Antecedent (Modus Ponens): If p (Antecedent) then q (Consequent) +p ∴q
Denying the Consequent (Modus Tollens): If p, then q -q ∴-p
Affirming the Consequent: If p, then q +q ∴p
Denying the Antecedent: If p, then q -p ∴-q
Disjunctive: A choice between two propositions (EITHER-OR statements); first premise is a combination of two propositions.
Format: either p or q -p ∴p
To be valid, the premises must contain the denial of one alternative, and the conclusion must affirm the other alternative.
Affirming the disjunct: either p or q +p ∴-q
Bias
A tendency to favor one thing over another, influencing reasoning and decision-making.
Ockham’s Razor
The simplest explanation is the best; we should avoid multiplying entities beyond necessity.
Four Idols of the Mind
Tribe: Common human tendencies that can distort thinking, inherent in human nature.
Cave: Individual prejudices and biases that affect how someone perceives the world.
Individual habits of thought, personal experiences, as well as our own education and interests can color our interpretation or understanding of things.
Marketplace: Errors caused by the misuse of language.
When people thoughtlessly use words that are ill-defined or ambiguous, then "the ill and unfit choice of words wonderfully obstructs the understanding".
uncritical acceptance of ideas or theories/blind acceptance of established systems of knowledge
Philosophers
Aristotle: Laws of reason, Formal Logic, Identifying types of fallacies.
Leibniz: Principle of sufficient reasoning.
Bacon: Idols of the mind.
Descartes: Formal Logic
Metaphysics
Dualism: Reality consists of two fundamental kinds of things or properties (mind and matter).
Interactionist substance dualism - Rene Descartes
the two substances that life consists of are thinking things and things that take up space (eg: mind, brain)
Property dualism
physical things produce both physical and mental properties
Epiphenomenalism - Thomas Huxley and Frank Jackson
states of the mind are byproducts of the physical states of the brain
states of mind have no influence on physical states
Monism: Reality is ultimately one unified all-encompassing thing (mind or matter).
All particular things are manifestations of this one thing.
neutral monists believe it is neither mind or matter, something more basic (mind and body are expressions of this thing)
how to account for the individuality and multiplicity of things without force-fitting all things into one thing
Idealism: MIND IS REALITY.
Reality as mental, or intelligent, or thought-like.
Some believe reality is one all-encompassing absolute mind of which your own mind is a part.
quantum physics believes reality is quantum information running on a universe-wide quantum computer
Physical objects are actually manifestations of minds or intelligences rather than material things independent of the mind.
Materialism: MATTER IS THE ULTIMATE REALITY.
Reality ultimately consists of matter.
Matter could be atoms or energy force fields, not mind like or intelligent or conscious.
Consciousness, mind, intelligence, and self are just complex material phenomena - can be fully explained in terms of matter.
Form: Something that gives form and is the essence or intrinsic nature of particulars.
Substance: A thing that underlies or supports changing properties; not subject to changes.
Extended substances - essence is to take up space.
Thinking substances - essence is thought.
Ontology: The study of being.
Taoism
Tao: The fundamental principle of the universe; everything comes from it.
Human reason is incapable of grasping the ultimate nature of reality; language is inadequate to describe reality.
Everything is in orderly flux.
The Tao keeps the universe balanced.
Nothing is permanent.
Yin and Yang - balanced cycle of nature.
Buddhism
EMPTINESS
No essence.
Doctrine of impermanence.
All things are empty (of an intrinsic or deep nature).
All things are unavoidably dependent (they all originate from other things).
Nothing is self-originating.
Everything originates and continues to be in a state of dependence.
Two realities, one conventional (everyday life) and the other ultimate (emptiness, there is no ultimate reality).
Conventional truths, ultimate truth: everything is empty, there is no ultimate truth.
Identity theory
Mental states are identical to physical states in the brain.
There is no separate mental substance; the mind is simply the brain viewed from a different perspectives
Eliminative materialism
Our common-sense understanding of the mind is fundamentally flawed and will eventually be eliminated and replaced by a more accurate, neuroscientific explanation
Terms like "beliefs" and "desires" are part of a "folk psychology" that lacks a solid scientific basis and will ultimately be rendered obsolete as neuroscience advances
Cognitive science
Much of the mind is inaccessible, and conscious awareness is more like a thin veneer than an accurate mirror of the mind's inner workings
The mind is like a computer
Bulk of mental activity is sub-personal
What humans experience is only the final product of unconscious cognition, but not the underlying process
Self, person
Agnosticism: Claiming to have no knowledge about God and/or that it is unknowable.
Cosmological argument: Everything that is has a thing that caused it to be, this is true all the way back to God, who is the First Cause
Aristotle - Prime Mover: Everything in the universe is in motion or change All motion is caused by something else moving it, however this cannot be infinite There must be an unmoved first cause or mover who is the ultimate cause of motion and change
Thomas Aquinas - Original Cause: Everything in the universe has a cause There must be a first cause which is uncaused and the source of all other causes, the origin of everything
Kalam: Everything that begins to exist has a cause The universe began to exist The cause of the universe must be timeless, spaceless, immaterial, and powerful
Argument from design: The world/universe operates by a set of natural laws and/or order. Order suggests that these laws must have been put in place by an intelligent being; this intelligent being is God
Ontological argument: If God can be imagined, then he must also exist
St-Anselm of Canterbury:
God is "that than which nothing greater can be conceived"
It is greater for something to exist both in the mind and in reality than only in the mind
Descartes:
God is a supremely perfect being
Existence is a necessary attribute of perfection
Argument from insufficient evidence
The problem of evil: How can an all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-good God coexist with the presence of evil and suffering in the world?
If God is omnipotent, He can prevent evil
If He is omnibenevolent, He would want to prevent it; yet evil exists
Epicurus
Naturalistic arguments: Argument from parsimony
It is simpler to explain the existence of religions and religious beliefs naturalistically, than it is to explain them by appeal to deities
The meaning of life is found in worldly practices involving work, action, thought, or personal relationships
It must be made by you, rather than found
Jean-Paul Sartre
Simone de Beauvoir
Hedonism: Bodily pleasure is the only good, and should be actively pursued and maximized; pain should be minimized
Ataraxia: A state of inner stillness, mental tranquillity
Pessimism: Suffering outweighs pleasure and the world is inherently flawed
Low expectations for happiness
Schopenhauer
Philosophers
Heraclitus: CHANGE
All is becoming; there is no such thing as an unchanging being
Logos: Some kind of reason, measure, plan, or proportion
All things come to pass in accordance with logos
Everything changes, and only logos abides
Constant flow and change
Parmenides: ONENESS
Non-being and nothingness is impossible
Change of any sort is impossible
Being: Timeless, uniform, motionless, and indivisible; cannot originate from something else or be divided into parts
Plato: FORMS
Order and structure
Forms: Something that gives form and is the essence or intrinsic nature of particulars
Distinguishing types of things
All particular physical items, mathematical and logical relations, aesthetic judgements, and moral actions partake in Forms
Some Forms are more universal than others
The Form of the good encompasses all other Forms
Nagarjuna: EMPTINESS
No essence
Doctrine of impermanence
All things are empty (of an intrinsic or deep nature)
All things are unavoidably dependent (they all originate from other things)
Nothing is self-originating
Everything originates and continues to be in a state of dependence
Two realities, one conventional (everyday life) and the other ultimate (emptiness, there is no ultimate reality)
Conventional truths, ultimate truth: everything is empty, there is no ultimate truth
Descartes: SUBSTANCE
Substance is a thing that underlies or supports changing properties
Not subject to changes
Two types of substances:
Extended substances - essence is to take up space
Thinking substances - essence is thought
Ontological argument
God is a supremely perfect being
Existence is a necessary attribute of perfection
Leibniz:
Against functionalism
Finite substance
Arguments for God (design, ontological)
Rationalist
Spinoza: INFINITE SUBSTANCE
Only one substance, infinite, timeless, perfect
Self causing
Necessary, not contingent
Indivisible, expresses itself in an infinite number of finite, temporary, changing states
Substance is God
Heidegger: BEING
Being is the most fundamental of verbs
Being (universal) vs beings (particulars)
The minute you try to describe Being, you turn it into a thing
Each person’s relationship with being is unique
You do not have definite properties; you are defined by Being
Abu Nasr al-Farabi:
Four parts of the mind/intellect: potential, active, acquired, Agent
The mind is a mirror of the Agent Intellect, the mind of God
Ibn Sina:
The soul is a distinct entity from the body, exists after it dies
The mind cannot decompose, be divided, or degenerate
Locke:
The mind is a "blank slate" at birth; all knowledge comes from experience/memories
Personal identity = continuous consciousness
Kant:
The mind constitutes the world and gives meaning and structure to the world
The mind imposes very general forms of space and time, and very basic logical categories, onto the field of sensory data
Zasetsky has lost some of the world, but he still has enough to function
Hume:
Agnostic - naturalist argument
Sartre: Existential Self-Determinism
Epistemology
Skepticism: Nothing can be known with certainty; questioning or doubting all knowledge
Rationalism: Reason is the primary source of knowledge; it can be derived through reasoning alone, independent of sensory experience
Empiricism: Sensory experience is the primary source of knowledge; it is derived from observation and experience
Pragmatism: Emphasizes practical consequences and usefulness of ideas; how beliefs function in practice, not whether they are true/false
Truth: Accuracy or correctness of a statement of belief; correspondence to reality
Belief
Subjective acceptance that something is true or real
Knowledge
Justified True Belief
Plato
The Gettier Problem
Theories of Self
memory theory
Locke
identity persists over time as long as memories connect with a past self
bundle theory
Hume
an object is just a collection of it's qualities/properties/characteristics
Hume’s Fork
Relations of ideas
Matters of Fact
Samsara – Indian philosophy of enlightenment
the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth, driven by karma
goal is liberation (moksha/nirvana)
Socrates – theory of recollection
knowledge is innate and can be recovered through questioning
learning is a process of remembering what our soul already knows
Philosophers
Plato:
Rationalist
Justified true belief
Theory of recollection
The soul is immortal
Physical world is an imperfect reflection of a higher realm of forms
Aristotle:
Empiricist
Observation and experience
Form and matter are inseparable
Knowledge is derived from observing particular things
Descartes:
Rationalist
Systematic doubt/skepticism
“I think therefore I am”
Cartesian dualism
Separates mind and body
Locke:
Empiricist
Knowledge comes from sensory experience
“Blank slate”
Ideas are derived from experience
Primary & secondary qualities
Hume:
Empiricist and skeptic
We cannot have knowledge of anything that lies beyond experience
Hume’s fork
Kant:
Rationalist & empiricist
Sensory experience + experience & structure of mind = knowledge
Transcendental idealism
Phenomena
Things as they appear
Noumena
Things as they are
Synthetic a priori judgements
Berkeley:
Idealist
Only minds and their ideas exist
“To be is to be perceived”
God is the ultimate observer
Ethics
Metaethics: Seeks to understand the grounding of our morality, finding its origin point.
Normative ethics: Seeks to understand how we distinguish right from wrong.
Applied ethics: Applies morals and ethics to day to day situations and problems. Takes the theories of ethics and seeks to solve real-world issues.
Hume’s Guillotine: “one cannot derive an ought (moral prescription) from an is (a statement of a fact)”
Separation between factual statements and moral judgements
Altruism: The tendency of members of a species to behave helpfully towards others
Determinism: All events, including human actions, are ultimately determined by causes external to the will
“Fate” exists and controls everything
Free will is an illusion
Ancient Greek Stoics – the cosmic force that bears on you and controls your actions.
God’s Will – Following the divine plan set before you.
Scientific/natural determinism – natural/universal laws governs all behaviour
Free will
Libertarianism
Much is under individual control and therefore people are responsible for what they choose to do
Existentialism
Humans are “condemned to be free”
Determined forces do exist and influence people = the world is beyond your control. BUT it is your choice to either accept “fate” or to take responsibility for “making meaning” and going beyond what the world has laid before you
Moral relativism
Egoistic Relativism
What I think is right/wrong is right/wrong and we just need to respect that and avoid judging each other
Social Relativism
Social groups decide for themselves what is right/wrong, they are all equally valid (moral relativism is necessary and legitimate)
Metaethical Relativism
Skepticism about the existence of any firm and universal moral principle.
Excusing conditions: Factors that might lessen a person's moral responsibility for their actions
Ethical Groundings
Metaphysical
God - Divine Command Theory/Ethics (WWGD?)
Agapist Ethics - Love yourself and love others the way you love yourself
Buddhist Ethics - Contemplation and enlightenment
Naturalistic
Looking at the natural (via empiricism) to determine a reasonable explanation for morality
Problem - Hume’s Guillotine
Sociological
Surveying the existing moral systems that all societies have created and trying to find patterns, commonalities, groupings/ranks/classes in order to best understand Ethics
Rationalistic
Kant’s Categorical Imperative
A duty to always do what is right, no matter the circumstance/consequence
Consequentialism
The “right” thing to do is what leads to the best outcome
Deontology:
Moral duty, rules, and obligations
Focuses on the rightness or wrongness of actions themselves, rather than the consequences of those actions
Consequentialism: The morality of an action is determined by its consequences.
Hedonism
Maximizing pleasure and minimizing pain
Utilitarianism
Maximize overall happiness or well-being for the greatest number of people
Virtue Ethics: Development of good character traits
Natural Law Ethics: Morality is based on the natural order of the world or human nature as given by God
Affect-Based Ethics: Feelings and emotions control morality
Intuitionism - moral truths are self-evident and can be known through moral intuition
Emotivism - moral statements are expressions of emotion
Pragmatism: Considers the practical implications of ethical principles.
Focuses on the best outcome for a particular situation
Proximity principle: We have a greater moral responsibility to those closest to us, like family, than to people far away
The Good Life – Aristotle:
Eudaimonia - ultimate goal of human life
Achieved through cultivating virtues of character, balance of actions, and good habit
The Apology (Plato) – who, what, when, why, how ? (can you explain the chapter quotes in handout)
Philosophers
Plato:
The Apology
Euthyphro Dilemma (Do gods abide morals or morals abide god?)
Aristotle:
Virtue ethics, the good life, eudaimonia
Kant:
Deontological ethics, categorical imperative
Bentham:
Utilitarianism (form of consequentialism - happiness for the greatest # of people)
Mill:
Utilitarianism, added the importance of the quality of happiness, not just quantity
Kierkegaard:
Existentialism
Personal faith, subjective experience
Challenged objective truth
Pragmatist - thinking for yourself
Philosopher Areas of Philosophy Contributions to Logic Contributions to Metaphysics Contributions to Epistemology Contributions to Ethics
Aristotle
Logic, Metaphysics, Epistemology, Ethics
Laws of reason, Formal Logic, Identifying types of fallacies
Form and matter are inseparable; knowledge derived from observing particular things
Empiricist; observation and experience; inseparability of form and matter
Virtue ethics; the good life; eudaimonia
Descartes
Logic, Metaphysics, Epistemology, Ethics
Formal Logic
Substance: extended (space) and thinking (thought); Ontological argument for God
Rationalist; systematic doubt; "I think therefore I am"; Cartesian dualism ,Rationalist; systematic doubt; "I think therefore I am"; Cartesian dualism
Kant
Metaphysics, Epistemology, Ethics
The mind constitutes the world; imposes forms of space, time, and logic
Rationalist & empiricist; transcendental idealism; synthetic a priori judgments
Deontological ethics; categorical imperative
Locke
Metaphysics, Epistemology
The mind is a "blank slate"; personal identity = continuous consciousness