Dealing With Metaphysics

In the Discourse on Metaphysics by Leibniz he suggest that, "we maintain that everything that is to happen to some person is already contained virtually in his nature or notion, as properties of a circle are contained in its definition." This assertion raised a difficulty for Leibniz. This difficulty was that "human freedom will no longer hold, and that an absolute fatality would rule over all our actions as well as over all the rest of what happens in the world." With such a reality there would be no use for free will and whatever fate succumbs an individual is the will of the Most High; in other words, being destined. But for Leibniz, this is not the determined reality of humanity. Leibniz

Four years ago, the first iPhone was released and it still remains as a popular aspect of our technological culture today. Though it is in its fourth iteration with more to come, the iPhone continues to be one of the best selling smartphones. In a fast paced world with new technology constantly being released, the iPhone is still remarkable although some might argue that it is outdated and overhyped. This device is more than just a phone to consumers, but another way to connect with the world. There’s just something about this device that has Americans camping outside Apple stores and enduring long lines to get their hands on one. Although the iPhone may seem like just another smartphone, it is a cultural phenomenon because of the way it

Years past, and as time went by man obtained more and more knowledge about the

These changes included: the scientific revolution, change

Today, we the people have the ability to make an educated opinion on who we want to be

Dear Past Murray, this is your present-day self. I am writing this letter to help guide you in your journey through the Masters of Counselling graduate program. You are going to experience a fundamental shift in your perspectives on human nature and the nature of change. Currently, your point of view and insights are limited to a behaviorist context (Skinner, 2012) and to a behavior analysis approach (Fee, A., Schrieber, E, Nobel, N. Valdovinos, M, 2016). This has served you well in your work with youth and young adults with challenging behaviors. However, as you start this journey you have started to ask yourself what theory to follow. The answer to this question will be found when you take a step back from the various models of counselling to look at what really makes a difference to client outcomes and to develop a

Aristotle defines

Aristotle was an ancient Greek scientist and philosopher who sought the answer to our existence and the truth of reality. Aristotle was a pupil of Plato, a Greek philosopher who was famous for his theory of forms, but following his (Plato’s) death, he changed his views from Platonism to empiricism. Where Plato thought that true reality was based in what was abstract and intangible, Aristotle instead thought of

Furthermore, there are three main aspects which were customarily associated with a science: metaphysical, theoretical and methodological assumptions. Under metaphysical it is believed that to gain scientific status requires the certainty that the subject matter i.e. human thought/ behaviour, is similar to that of other accepted sciences. This could then be true for Psychology, as particularly since Darwin’s suggestion of a continuity between behaviours of humans and other species, behaviour has become more scrutinised. However, this must be assumed in respect of determinism, suggesting predictions could be made. ‘Heisenbergs uncertainty principle’ suggests that when relating evidence of indeterminism within the universe to human behaviour, it proves ambiguous, and with parts of the discipline believing strongly in free will it seems difficult to establish a common ground (Valentine E.R. page 2).

In this time period led towards the concept of humanism, which is the valuing of uniqueness, talents, and rights of one person. (Marshall) Examples of change due to individualism appear in the change of lyrics in poetry when the lyrics are personal. (Bulliet 108) In the time before the great philosopher Socrates and philosophers before him were referred to as pre-Socrates philosophers. Pre-Socrates philosophers did not want the traditional religious explanations and sought out for rational answers. They were concerned on how the world was created, what it is made of, and why changes occur. (Bulliet 108) An important advancement in science was when pre-Socrates philosophers theorized that the world is made out of atoms. Because of that one philosopher, the world was able to advance much quicker and that theory is the basis of science. (Bulliet 108)

Metaphysics can be defined as an attempt to comprehend the basic characteristics of reality. It is in fact so basic that it is all inclusive, whether something is observable or not. It answers questions of what things must be like in order to exist and how to differentiate from things that seem real but are not. A common thought is that reality is defined as what we can detect from our five senses. This type of philosophy is called empiricism, which is the idea that all knowledge comes from our senses. An empiricist must therefore believe that what we can see, touch, taste, smell, and hear must be real and that if we can not in fact see, touch, taste, smell, or hear something, it is definitely not real. However, this is a

In The Physics Aristotle deduces that there must be two main principles of change. These principles are 1) matter and 2) form. Matter stays the same in general composition throughout change much as a rock would stay the same even after being broken into several small pieces. Form, however, is what changes through various processes.

The theory of the Four Causes refers to an influential Aristotelian principle whereby the causes of movement and/or change are categorized allowing us to have knowledge of our existence and everything around us. Aristotle wrote that "we do not have knowledge of a thing until we have grasped its ‘why’, that is to say, its cause." He provided an account of the operation of various individual substances in the universe. Distinctions were made between things of two sorts: those that are contingent on something else’s movement and those that necessary in their own movement. Aristotle not only suggested a proper description of these but also attempted to answer particular questions such as ‘Why does this event happen?’ and ‘Why is this object as

Aristotle asks many what questions when talking about what is a living being. He discusses us as a specific type of animals and how it relates to animals, plants and nonliving things. There is an hierarchy when discussing the differences between these things. For instance, all living things can ensouled destructible mobile substances. This means, all living substances can die and their body can disintegrate when no soul is in them. The essential features of “being an animal” is that it has a soul but not a rational soul compared to a human being. As stated in Arwin and Fine (1996), “An animal is a living item that has perception.” (413b1-5) These perceptions state that the animals have wants, desires,

“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