The Duality of René Descartes: An Exploration of His Philosophical Provisions

It is worth noting that Rene Descartes was one of the greatest philosophers who made a great contribution to the development of science, philosophy, and the society as a whole. He was a mathematician, philosopher, physicist, physiologist, and an authoritative metaphysician. He established the foundations of analytic geometry, contemporary algebraic...

Understanding Science Through the Study of Natural Events

Introduction Science is derived from a Latino word “Scientia”, implying acquisition of knowledge. The word science does not have a universal definition. The new Webster Collegiate Dictionary states that scientific knowledge is acquired through both studies and practice. This includes knowledge obtained through experimentation of events using scientific methods; thus,...

Understanding Lao Tzu’s Notion of Effortless Non-Striving

Explain and evaluate the Hindu ideas of Brahman, atman and reality Karma stands for “action” that leads to a number of outcomes, as a result of man’s desire for earthly things (Moore & Bruder 489). For example, Karma suggests that a noble action leads to happiness, whereas, an evil action...

Thomas Jefferson’s Selected Letters: Key Issues and Ideas

Having read Thomas Jefferson’s “Selected Letters”, it is possible to say that each of them contains issues which deserve attention. The ideas delivered by the president are clear and imperative. It is impossible to leave reasonable and argumentative statements without attention. Having read the “Selected letters”, much information seems interesting...

Impact of Descartes on Modern Philosophy: Key Theories and Contributions

The process of understanding the invisible has always been interesting to the philosophers of the epochs preceding the development of science and medicine to the extent when the miracle of thinking could have been explained physiologically. Descartes’ vision of the concept of mind and body and their interconnections is still...

Decartes’ Critique in “The Concept of Mind” by Ryle

Since the philosophy was first implemented as a science, the question of correlation and interrelation between human body and mind preoccupied numerous thinkers throughout the history. Descartes created one of the most influential theories of mind, which prevails to be the basis for subsequent elaborations on the given issue. However,...

Confucianism’s Role in Shaping Modern Chinese Culture and Society

Introduction Virtually, every country cherish specific codes of ethics that makes them unique and therefore, exceptional. As a code of ethics, Confucianism was adopted amongst the Chinese people as the official religion that inspired faith in the Han, Shang, Zhou, and Xia Dynasties (Yang 245). People across the world have...

Buddhist Reductionism and Self-Concept: An Analytical Approach

Introduction This paper aims to investigate the idea of self in its relation to the Buddhist perception of suffering. Also, the notion of objectual and intentional properties will be briefly discussed. The Talk of Persons as Useful Fiction Buddhism, being a significantly variegated and complex religious and philosophical movement, comprises...

American Soldiers as Deontologists

The fundamental aspect of being a soldier is the acceptance and willingness to follow all the rules given by one’s superiors. The power hierarchy is, thus, very important in the military and army bases. Due to this, soldiers usually experience personal battles regarding whether to take an order as expected...

Singer on Speciesism: Animal Rights & Moral Wrongdoing

In this paper I will explore Singer’s claim that our practice of farming non-human animals for human consumption involves systematic moral wrongdoing and that such attitude towards the creatures of the same species as humans is highly immoral because it is close to severe racism and sexism and can be...

Virtue Ethics as an Army Officer’s Moral Code

Aristotle suggests that Virtue ethics is the foundation of a person’s moral character. At the core of the theory is the ideal virtuous person. A person that is kind and generous because part of their moral fabric seeks nothing in return for helping others develop good character traits. The development...

Meaning and the Process of Achieving Success

Introduction There are different perspectives of success. The term success has diverse meanings for different individuals. For instance, certain people attribute the level of monetary reward to success. However, one basic fact is that everyone yearns to attain success. People have associated various achievements to success. Several people fail because...

Role of Changes in Our Life

Change is a continuous occurrence in the life of individuals. Our views, bodies, environments, and feelings are subjects of continuous change. In as much as people take some time to adjust, change introduces challenges that may be minor or major. Fundamentally, people are usually reluctant to changes. Therefore, the changes...

Moral Philosophy: Goals and Concepts

Preliminary steps to appreciate the rightness of an action Before people can intuitively appreciate the rightness of a certain action, they may need to take two preliminary steps. In particular, they may consider potential consequences of an action. For instance, a policy-maker may need to think about the impact of...

Trusting Emotions in the Pursuit of Knowledge

Introduction Answering the question whether one can know when to trust our emotions in the pursuit of knowledge we are to consider the definitions each of these notions expresses. There are cases when emotions are helpful and even necessary in knowing while in another case emotions are harmful. Everything depends...

Human Actions and Character: Philosophical Insights

Any human being is characterized by his/her actions. Their character determines the motifs of a person and proves his/her intentions. However, the given approach gives rise to a number of critical issues related to the subjectivity of the evaluation of any action. Numerous philosophers have sought to outline the main...

Ethical Analysis of Kant’s Categorical Imperative in “Gone Baby Gone”

THE FIRST PREMISE According to Kant’s First Formulation, one should act as if those actions were a universal law of nature. This means that the moral choice should point toward a complete necessity and signify a rational decision that is not impacted by any subjective outlooks of the individual (White...

Idea of Just Wars is Closely Connected to Justice

Wars have always been an indispensable part of human life. At different times, different nations are in the state of war. Though people understand that war is something vicious and undesirable, they also try to justify it. Thus, Ancient Roman statesmen developed a set of criteria that could justify the...

Evaluating Ethical Decisions: Utilitarianism in Supplier-Pacemaker Controversy

Utilitarianism is one of the theories of normative ethics claiming that the right course of action is the one that maximizes utility, meaning going for the decisions that capitalize on benefits while at the same time reducing the chances of suffering or the negative effects. Aristotle was one of the...

Liberalism vs. Classical Conservatism: Impact on Governance and Society

Liberalism has caused more suffering than positive changes through revolutionary hostilities compared to the former systems of governance including the imperialist absolute monarchy. Introduction There are several interpretations of liberal views based on the way people understand liberty. Nonetheless, liberal views are based on common acceptable freedoms. These include free...

Bridging Aristotelian Philosophy with Empiricism: Insights into Knowledge Acquisition

The Scientific Revolution of the 17th century marked the beginning of a new era of modern science that significantly transformed and advanced the existing knowledge and ideas. The philosophers Thomas Hobbes and Francis Bacon played an instrumental role in shaping the theory of empiricism that, to a considerable extent, challenged...

Evaluating Moral Beliefs Through Sympathy: Bennett’s Perspective

We are all people who live in a society that has its particular rules and norms. Generally, we follow them to act decently and be accepted. No one questions the principles he/she was taught starting with the early childhood. Our parents claimed that this is right, and that is bad,...

Life Philosophy in “Nicomochaen Ethics” and “Exodus”

“Nicomochaen Ethics” is a piece of work consisting of ten books written by Aristotle. It is considered one of the best ethical treatises ever written and presents a broad exploration of the way a man should live a life (Miller 1). “Exodus” is the book included in the Old Testament...

Nature of Reality Philosophy: Dualism vs. Materialism

The problem of nature of reality has always been one of the main philosophical issues. Since ancient times many philosophers and thinkers have been evolving different approaches that propose various treatments of this philosophical problem. Among a great variety of approaches, it is possible to distinguish such school of thought...

Grief in Nicholas Wolterstorff’s Book “Lament for a Son”

Introduction Lament for a Son is a book by Nicholas Wolterstorff focused on the author’s personal experiences of the death of his child, grasping his grief, and finding hope in the faith. The objective of this paper is to analyze how the author describes discovering joy after loss, to provide...

God Had Never Existed and That Human Belief Shaped History

The Samsara reveals that the human cycle is a journey. People go through a cycle of desire and suffering because of their ego and ignorance. As a result, they go through a cycle and series of rebirths until they can escape the treadmill. Karma imprisons an individual by the transmigratory...

Exploring Spirituality: Pluralism, Scientism, and Postmodernism

Understanding a personal worldview is not an easy task, and every person has his/her own time to get outside of this issue. I try to stay consequent in all my discussions not to confuse people and not to be confused by myself. As soon as spirituality is discussed in terms...

Bridging Eastern and Western Philosophical Teachings: Key Differences and Similarities

Karma, Samsara, and Nirvana In Buddhism, Samsara refers to the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. Human beings undergo a series of rebirths in various forms until they can escape this routine (Moore & Bruder, 2013). Karma imprisons the individual in the wandering. Karma refers to the chain of causes...

Epistemology and Metaphysics: Diverse Philosophers’ Perspectives

Philosophy is one of the most ancient disciplines in the academic field. Over the years, it has attracted the attention of various scholars. They include, among others, Descartes, Plato, Locke, and Hobbes. In this paper, the author will analyze the ideas promoted by some of these philosophers in the book...

Epistemological and Metaphysical Theories: Exploring Fundamental Philosophical Questions

Evaluate Rene Descartes’ argument for knowledge, including the role of skepticism, the evil demon, and God in resolving his doubts Rene Descartes believed that the best way to acquire knowledge is through the use of the “doubting methodology” (Moore & Bruder 110). Descartes claimed that skepticism is the key to...

Cosmological Argument as a Philosophical Concept

Introduction Numerous arguments have been advanced to validate the claim that science can explain the existence of everything in the physical and metaphysical world. However, given the limited scope covered by science, it becomes controversial to claim that humanity can have a theory on everything. Some physicists argue that it...

The Categorical Imperative, Developed by Immanuel Kant

Immanuel Kant’s views Immanuel Kant would have opposed the directive, that all professors must be fingerprinted, through the categorical imperative argument. The categorical imperative, developed by Immanuel Kant, consists of two formulations. The first formulation has two criteria. The first is universalibility, which states that the reason to do something...

Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience”: People Had a Right to Rebel

Thoreau’s essay called “Civil Disobedience” is a well known philosophical work that suggests a deeper understanding of human rights and freedoms. This work is truly progressive for the time when it was written this is why it still attracts the attention of the public nowadays. Besides, Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience” explores...

Where the Conflict Really Lies: Science, Religion, and Naturalism

Introduction The book, Where the Conflict Really Lies: Science, Religion, and Naturalism by Alvin Plantinga, explores various questions on the three broad areas of life. The author borrows heavily from previous works to bring up a provocative argument that atheism conflicts with science while theism does not. The book is...

The Meaning of Life: A Discussion

Introduction In philosophy, it is a good tradition (if it might be said so) to look for answers to very general questions, such as questions about the origin of the universe, human nature, good and evil, and so on. One of these is the question of the meaning of life....

Freudian Perspective on Dreams

Abstract The progress of systematic knowledge has tried to touch on the analysis of dreams. By the time Freud inscribed about dream in the recent periods, the scrutiny of more complex kinds of psycho-neuroses as well as the sexual philosophy was in the initial stages. The understanding of dreams was...

Taylor’s View of Cruelty and Compassion

The purpose of this work is to consider the prominent philosopher Richard Taylor’s work ‘Cruelty and Compassion.’ In this respect, firstly, it is necessary to discuss the definitions of both phenomena. Secondly, it will be discussed if they are arbitrary or not, and sufficient proof will be presented. The third...