Things and their Place in Theories
This paper discusses Quine’s thesis on the nature of our ideas and how they are used in order to make sense of the world, and decide what can be said to be reality.
Quine begins his paper by discussing our knowledge of external things and how we can come to know what we know. On page two of Things and their Place in Theories, Quine states, “there is nothing we can be more confident of than external things,” meaning that the pieces of knowledge we can be most sure of are things that are discovered a posteriori, after sufficient empirical evidence is gathered. This quote shows that Quine denies the notion of foundationalism and believes that there is no piece of knowledge that can be said to be a base for all other knowledge. Instead of having a foundationalist view on the world, Quine believes in naturalism.
Quine reveals that he has a naturalistic “unswerving belief in external things, [like] people, nerve endings, sticks, stones,” (Quine, ‘Things…’ p. 21) and he says that the identification and description of all things external to us is to be found in science itself, and not in some prior philosophy (Quine, ‘Things…’ p. 21). His view on nature supports Professor Smith’s statement that the world is something that is made through empirical knowledge, and not an already existing entity that is discovered. Quine says, “Scientists and philosophers seek a comprehensive system of the world,” (Quine, ‘Things…’ p. 9) and the way to do this is
Evidence is concrete examples of raw materials – how we interpret them is an important key when studying history. Evolution and the Kennewick Man will be discussed.
what is true. It was about the pertinence of the primary notion that dictates all life and influences
‘Cogito Ergo Sum,’ - ‘I think therefore I am ‘ one of the most famous and well known quotes or arguments in all of modern philosophy; a phrase instantly recognizable to all those studying in the field of philosophy. This phrase refers to an attempt by Descartes to prove with absolute certainty his own existence; a systematic way to philosophize. The argument, while first proposed by ancient philosophers such as Aristotle and Saint Augustine, was utilized as an argument by French philosopher Rene Descartes in his influential text “Meditations on First Philosophy“. This argument appears in the books second meditation and provides the cornerstone for Descartes argument in the following five meditations and serves as the basis for Descartes overall metaphysical thesis, without which Descartes reasoning system would collapse. Throughout this paper I will
David Hume’s Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion provide conflicting arguments about the nature of the universe, what humans can know about it, and how their knowledge can affect their religious beliefs. The most compelling situation relates to philosophical skepticism and religion; the empiricist character, Cleanthes, strongly defends his position that skepticism is beneficial to religious belief. Under fire from an agnostic skeptic and a rationalist, the empiricist view on skepticism and religion is strongest in it’s defense. This debate is a fundamental part of the study of philosophy: readers must choose their basic understanding of the universe and it’s creator, upon which all other assumptions about the universe will be made.
In David M. Armstrong’s “The Nature of Mind”, Armstrong praises the field of science and seeks to put the concept of mind into terms that agree with science’s definition of minds. His interest is in the physico-chemical, materialist view of man. Armstrong considers science to be the authority over other disciplines because of its reliability and result in consensus over disputed questions.
In this paper, I will compare and contrast Descartes’ and Berkeley’s beliefs on the source of human knowledge and how it relates to their definitions of absolute truth. According to Descartes, the source of human knowledge is found only through thinking, because our senses deceive us. Absolute truth, for Descartes, is objective fact established through deductive reasoning. Berkeley, on the other hand, believes that human knowledge originates from perception and that absolute fact is one’s perceptions of the material world. In this paper I will explore Descartes’ and Berkeley’s opposing views on the origin of human knowledge and their respective definitions of absolute truth. First, I will describe both philosophers’ explanation of the source of human knowledge. Then I will contrast their definitions of absolute truth, and explore how each philosopher uses their respective sources of human knowledge to find this absolute truth.
In Meditations on First Philosophy, Descartes takes the reader through a methodological exercise in philosophical enquiry. After stripping the intellect of all doubtful and false beliefs, he re-examines the nature and structure of being in an attempt to secure a universally valid epistemology free from skepticism. Hoping for the successful reconciliation of science and theology, Descartes works to reconstruct a new foundation of absolute and certain truth to act as a catalyst for future scientific research by “showing that a mathematical [rational-objective] physics of the world is attainable by creatures with our intellectual capacities and faculties” (Shand 1994, p.
This paper will address the problem of skepticism. My focus will be exclusively on Global Skepticism as it is more controversial than Local Skepticism. The stance I am seeking to persuade you to take is one regarding the question of whether or not Global Skepticism is justified. In this paper I will discuss and analyze what other philosophers have said about the topic, my argument, how my opponents might object to my arguments, and how I respond to those objections. My hope is the conclusion to my argument will convince you that Global Skepticism is not justified and we can, in fact, come to ‘know’ things about our reality and obtain knowledge.
You see through the ages of philosophy there have been many debates and opinions. Yet it is those opinions that are the most radical that demand the most attention. On that note, we will address two radical philosophizers: Spinoza and Hobbes. Specifically there theory's pertaining to matter and the mind-body problem posed by Descartes. As such we will first address Hobbes then move to Spinoza and end with a combined statement on matter. Therefore we must begin by introducing Thomas Hobbes.
The concept of mind and body interactions has been debated among many modern philosophers. Some believe that our minds and bodies are different things, thus existing separately, while others believe that they exist as a whole. In this paper, I will be introducing two rationalist philosophical views regarding this topic, one which is by Rene Descartes and the other by Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz. Rationalists, in philosophical terms, are the ones who obtain their knowledge through reasoning rather than the human senses. Descartes and Leibniz both have similar perspectives, but Leibniz takes a slightly different approach to improve Descartes’ argument. This paper will first show Descartes’ original argument, an example that proves the argument to be invalid, and then lastly, a revised version of the argument with Leibniz’s help.
our existence in reality is a question which philosophers have tackled throughout time. This essay will look at the
How do we know what we know? Ideas reside in the minds of intelligent beings, but a clear perception of where these ideas come from is often the point of debate. It is with this in mind that René Descartes set forth on the daunting task to determine where clear and distinct ideas come from. A particular passage written in Meditations on First Philosophy known as the wax passage shall be examined. Descartes' thought process shall be followed, and the central point of his argument discussed.
As with many philosophers worth studying, a common theme present amongst René Descartes, David Hume, and Immanuel Kant is the fact that all three philosophers challenged the traditional ways of thinking about philosophy respective to their eras. In certain aspects, all three of these philosophers also grappled with understanding, discovering, and logically explaining the power of the mind to shape whole truths. From Descartes’ foundational work with methodological doubt to Kant’s contribution to previous philosophical concepts such as synthetic judgments, all three men made undeniably valuable advances in epistemological thought despite the occasional controversies associated with their forward thinking during their time.
“Metaphysics encompass the study of what is sometimes termed “ultimate reality”. As such, metaphysics raises questions about reality that go beyond sense experience, beyond ordinary science. Metaphysical questions involve free will, the mind-body relationship, supernatural existence, personal immorality, and the nature of being. Some philosophers question the very possibility of a reality
In “The Refutation of Skepticism”, Jonathan Vogel establishes an “Inference to the Best Explanation” (hereafter, “IBE”) as a means to refute skepticism about the external world. In this refutation, Vogel acknowledges that skepticism about IBE still remains a possibility, but that this kind of skepticism would be rather outlandish in character and thus could be ignored. This paper shall both establish and evaluate Vogel’s reasoning as to why he confidently dismisses any skepticism pertaining to his IBE, and furthermore will illuminate some points as to why Vogel may have mischaracterized potential threats to his method, leaving his refutation of skepticism vulnerable to doubt that is not as