Philosophy 15 May

Key Ideas Error is inexorable from truth…that is to say all error contains some truth and does not exist in a vacuum. Each philsopher influences other Progress in ϕ is not necessarily linear Jacques maritain 2 kinds of progress 1) in the empirical sciences -> progress by substitution 2) in ϕ -> progress be deepening Belief/disbelief requires questioning 2 kinds of logcal reasoning : synthetic (each thought compels the consecutive though) versus analytical (each though implies the next one)

Logical reasoning several things are required to make something logical reasoning 1) Argument: more than one statement (a particular kind of sentence that either affirms or denies something) second condition to have an rgument 2) there has to be a relationship between the statements…some statements provide evidence or support for one statement (these are called premises) and the statement that is proven by the premise and that is called a conclusion What is philosophy? Philosophy is an activity Branches… Relationship between history of philosophy and philsophy itself ( relationship between eroor and truth) (the definition of a skeptic, current and classical) (history of ϕ as a conversation, melody and a frame in a film) doing ϕ requires that we become familiar wih the history of ϕ-> we need to be familiar with the history of ϕ and how it relates with doing ϕ in that the two are intrdependent, interactice each one influences the other Errors are involuntary instrumets of truth… First reason why the ideas the grreat ideasfrm philosophers are present now is because we deal with issues that are so unavoidable also there is often a direct connection in the way we think to day and the thought patterns of the great philosophers . Their ideas have seeped into our western tradition. They shape the way we think through centuries. We are continually engaged with pphilosophical ideas whether we realize it or not.

Doing ϕ is likebeing in a relationship you have to constantly work at it and it is always mysterious and evolving Philosopher literally means a lover of wisdom The successful philosopher endlessly decides to explore more ideas Three basic criteria that we can use to evaluate a ϕ 1) conceptual clarity - we have to realize and understand the words and the key ideas if we are going to understand the ϕ 2) experiential confirmation a ϕ should not be contradicted by established facts, and it should be supported by our expeirence 3) Rational Coherence-the thoughts in a ϕ have to go together…we hould not have a contradicition in an unstated assumption and the conlusion that the philosopher has follows logically from the central premise that the ϕer proposed

• Φ Begins in Greece • Eastern Wisdoms versus Westen ϕ the difference between to thwo is that eastern wisdoms usually have some element of religion tied into it; there is truth to be found in both • Complex relationship between Greek ϕ and Greek Mythology • Mythology-story telling as to why things are they way they are and are often incredible or hard to believe. Athropological findings -> In ever culture that we have a record of, the same set of questions, albeit it in different languages > Where does the world come from? Death? Is there life after death? How should we live a life?Why is ther evil in the world? Etc… • Intellectual axiom: Brilliant minds can be found in any part of the world and from any time period • Myth can be understood as the attempt by brilliant minds over the centuries to answer these kind of questions through stories involving gods • Myths contain wisdom • Greek Mythology - initially communicated orally which mean there were embellishments and slightly dynamic • VIII BCE they were written for the first time Hesiod & Homer (iliad and odyssey)

• Gods are immortal Humans beings-> mortal • Immortality is an indication of divinity • Homeric virtues or heroic virtues (courage, phisical endurace, discipline) • The virtue of moderation • Anoter fundamental tradition in Greek Mythology: order both physically and Morally • Every part of the world is ruled by a god; so nothing in the physical world happened by chance - and even the gods have a hierarchy and above all of them is Zeus • The moral order: Wickedness is always punished and virtue is rewarded • Above all ese the greeks value fame and honor • Homeric justice= give to each person the honor that is due to them according tot their postion ad status • The view of the afterlife in greek mythology was shadowy, ghost like existence • View of inspiration : the poets have a git that the ordinary people lack and they articulate the moral insights of the greek people • Hubris a fundamenta human flaw, the belief that mortals can act like gods • The first group of philosophers are called pre-socratic it refers to a group of early greek ϕers, some of them were contemporaries of socrates “pre” just means that the new kind of thinking compared to thee old thinking, it is not a temperoal pre it is a pre that the ϕ has not yet taken the direction that socrates’ had. • The questions o the pre-socratic are way more important than the answers • Thales of Mileros • May 28 585 BCE … • What is the basic stuff out of which everything is made? • The importance of thale’s Q: the question presupposes that underlying he multiplicity of things there is fundamental order • He is giving an answer that does not rely on the traditions, on the poets or on the gods

• But is based on reason and observation and that his answer can be validated by any person using only reason and observation • What made possible Thales’ Q • Fundamental shift in his view of the world and his attitude toward life • The view f the world a the time was that it was surrounded by powers, ad that point of view will shape that attitude toward life ‘the best way to live our life is to befriend these powers and hopefully they will help’ • Thales viewed the world differently ; he felt that he was surrounded by things , not powers • Thales radically difference between subject ad object (objects exist independent of me) and as a subject I am radiclly different than the objects that surround me, only through observation can I attempt to epxlain what they are • Explain what things are • This way of thinking is called mythic consciousness • And the way Thales thought of the world was called theoretic consciousness • So Thales’ question was possible because he had a shift from mythical thinking to theoretic thinking an this is called ‘the discovery of things’ • A discovery so fundamental that we take it for granted it is a new awareness a new way of • Seeing is interpreting . Discovery of a new interpretation of the world • Thale’s Q is also important because of th presupposition of an order in the world of things -> this position makes western science possible because there is an order to be discovered • “all things are full of gods”-omething immortal in things even though things cease to exisit there is a regularity of behavior, so If a new hing is created to replace the old thing it will perform a simmilar action or duty ad thus never really dies • The explanantion of things is to be found in things themselves • Anaximander • Student of Thales

• Agreed with Thales: • The explanation of things is to be found in the things themselves • Disagreed with thales in that the common object between everything was water. ; he believed that things consist of pairs of opposites • Two questions : what is the source from which all things come and hat is the basic stuff out of which everything is made? • Looking at the present state of the world, = X • And this present state must have come from a previous state= Y • Why had an origin also that we call= Z • But there has to be an original source that has no beginning We cannot have an infinite regress, and this is what he calls the Apeiron (Boundless) • Being source of everything > must contain everything Cannot, thus be any thing specific > an undifferentiated mass with no beginning and no end • How do we explain the process of the Apeiron to the differentiated specific things that we see? • The process of differentiation from an undifferentiated apeiron • Vortex motion > from the apeiron to the opposites and then by combinations by the pairs of opposites we have different and specific things • Anaximander has a saying “exisiting things make reparations to one another for their injustice according to the ordinance of time.” • Exisiting things means pair of opposites • In justice the hot in summer does an injustice by supressing the cold in winter, the reparation of that injustice is that went winter comes it will replace the encroachment of the heat of summer . He is using the homeric view of moderation to explain how the universe works, moderation is now a cosmic principle • Taosim the Tao is manifested in the rythyms of nature