Other forms of excercise, Biking, Bowling, Volleyball, Hockey, Auto racing
Overview
The Socrates Plato describes refuses to accept payment for formal instruction, and had no school. Socrates taught by asking questions and inducing debate. The truth can only be discovered by eliminating what is not true. His goal was to teach the younger generation to think clearly, reasonably, philosophically.
Rorty is not asking us to abandon Dewey. Instead he attempts to show how Dewey, in his quest for a metaphysics, loses his direction and falls prey tohis own criticism. Rorty avoids selective emphasis. He does not ask us to use any specific as a starting point. Instead, he suggests that we allow experiences and the problems faced by current society to lead us into philosophic discovery. Dewey was close he had the right tools to do the job to develop his scientific method, he just used the wrong tools for the job. Instead of accepting Locke's starting point, what he needed was Locke's version of causal processes. Instead of using Hegel's version of causal processes, what he needed was Hegel's starting point or the current society. In this way, we can do what Dewey wished; the use of reflection and criticism toward better and more enhanced meaning and value. Meaning and value will be enhanced by using current society as a means for empirical study, and by using only the natural or nature in the empirical method. We cannot use artificial stimuli in empirical studies. We must use the real thing, nature. If we use Locke as a starting point,our reflection and criticism are meaningless, because they have no basis upon current society.
28/11/2008 No man has the obligation to put his life on the line unless to do so would cause the downfall of the sovereign. Hobbes states that "when the defence of the commonwealth, requireth at once the help of all that are able to bear arms, every one is obliged; because otherwise the institution of the commonwealth, which they have not the purpose, or courage to preserve, was in vain" (270). The only reason to set up a commonwealth is to exit of the State of Nature or State of War and enter the State of Man or State of Law. Since, however, there is no authority or power to enforce a covenant between commonwealths, all commonwealths are in a State of War with each other, and it is the obligation of every man in a commonwealth to defend against the enemy in time of need. If the citizens in a commonwealth refuse to defend the commonwealth, the covenant between the citizens is void and the commonwealth reverts back to the State of Nature in which every man is at war with every man. Logically, the rational man would choose to defend the commonwealth since not to do so would be to put their self preservation at risk. The first Law of Nature states "That every man, ought to endeavor Peace, as far as he has hope in obtaining it; and when he cannot obtain it, that he may seek, and use, all helps, and advantages of Warre" (190). Man in seeking peace makes a covenant with his fellow man to set up a sovereign. There can be no covenants between sovereigns, because there is no power to enforce a covenant. Therefore all sovereigns are in a state of war with each other. If a citizen wishes peace he must defend the commonwealth "otherwise the institution of the commonwealth, which they have not the purpose to preserve was in vain" (270), and we are all in the State of War.
However, in Machiavelli's time, as it is today, the States whole reason for being was to serve the citizens, not vice versa. Machiavelli believed the only purpose for a ruler was to make war, and protect its citizens from attacks by other states. The ruler, therefore, is justified in doing whatever is necessary to maintain the country, even if it is unjust. Plato argues a ruler can never be unjust.
27/11/2008 Pausanias discusses two kind of love. Pausanias says Phaedrus—who spoke just before Pausanias—should have differentiated between the heavenly love and the earthly love. He claims there are two loves just like there are two Aphrodites. The first love has an honorable purpose, and enjoys the intelligence of man's nature. The first love is ever faithful and shows no sign of desire for other's and lust. The second is the rougher kind of love, which is the love of the physical body, not the soul. The second kind of love is just as likely to be the love of women and boys as well as man.
Machiavelli is naive, and in many ways promotes violence, if it justifies the ends to a means, "virtu". However, in so doing, he also exposes Monarchy as a fraud, and offers a way of separating morality or religion from politics. Politics is a cruel game, and sometimes politicians must lie in order to ensure the utilitarian good. Machiavelli warns that total honesty is not always what a good Prince needs to hear, but is a type of flattery that should be shunned. He writes: For there is no way to guard against flattery but by letting it be seen that you take no offence in hearing the truth: but when every one is free to tell you the truth, respect falls short. Wherefore a prudent Prince should follow a middle course, by choosing certain discreet men from among his subjects, and allowing them alone free leave to speak their minds on any matter on which he asks their opinion, and on none other. But he ought to ask their opinion on everything, and after hearing what they have to say, should reflect and judge for himself. (Machiavelli, The Prince. The Rennaissance Man, Edited by Daniel Fader, Gorlier: New York P. 113)
30/11/2008 There are many things to learn from Plato's "Symposium" on love. Love must come from the heart not from lust and wantonness. This is real love. We have all experienced puppy love or what the Greeks called Common Love, and we have all been disappointed at the end results. Love based on physical beauty alone is not strong enough to last. Attraction to physical beauty helps, but it is not real love. It is only the puppy love of adolescence. Adults need more than puppy love to feel satisfied. They need the Love of the older Aphrodite. Love that is based on Virtue, honor, and attraction to another's intellect. This is real love, true love, the other is common and as Pausanias says, inferior.
Here Hume goes too far. In defense of his own argument, he makes a claim he cannot prove through experience. He is rationalizing that experiences differ between individuals because we all have different senses. Other beings can have knowledge of cruelty and generosity, even if it is not in the nature to behave in such a way. However, these senses are a product of a beings past experiences and rationalization of those experiences not just one or the other as Descartes and Hume would have us think.
The Manifesto is an interesting document that clearly outlines Marx' views on capitalist society and historical development. The Manifesto is very exact and penetrating. It outlines the historical dev...
Augustine seems to accept this general theory of Plato's, but he then proceeds to extend it to the realm of Christianity. The various forms which Plato believes are the realm of the "intelligible" or ...
Charlie was released on parole in 1954 at the age of 19. Early in 1955 Charlie married and had a son, Charles Manson Jr. Later that year, while in Los Angeles with his wife and child, Charlie was sent...
Dewey is asking us to accept the selective emphasis of the "inconclusive integrity of experience" as a starting point, but by doing so he is guilty of what he criticizes. How can there be "an empirica...
In spite of the fact, Machiavelli is greatly influenced by the Greek and Latin classics, and by the bible, he takes a critical stance in dealing with the idea of morality. A Prince's main duty is the ...
Dewey wanted to be as naturalistic as Locke and as historic as Hegel. This can indeed be done. One can say with Locke that the causal process that go in the human organism suffice, without the intrusi...
Now that it is easier to focus in on some of these topics, a clear and open mind must be available to allow the information that is going to be presented to register. This is where support is helpful,...
The response of the skeptics is to claim that daily reality contradicts Plato, and that contrary to number one, tyrants, motivated by unjust principles, may be found to be happy. Moroever, they argue ...
Likewise, the soldier going to fight the enemy sometimes has the right to refuse. The soldier has the right to transfer his service by paying another to take his place (269). A soldier may also run aw...
All three works have emphasized the transitory nature of the material world and the transcendence of the realm of rational thought, belief in god, or living in the ways of Krishna. Plato and the Gita ...
There are many things to learn from Plato's "Symposium" on love. Love must come from the heart not from lust and wantonness. This is real love. We have all experienced puppy love or what the Greeks ca...
How (it may be asked) can any part of the conduct of a member of society be a matter of indifference to the other members? No person is an entirely isolated being; it is impossible for a person to do ...
A person could argue that yes this makes sense, but how do you explain the different degrees of knowledge people attain. Since we all gather experiences throughout our life, we must actually be ration...
Favorites
Del.icio.us
Digg
Furl
Magnolia
StumbleUpon
Google
Yahoo
Technorati
BlinkList