Descartes’ Philosophy: God’s Existence and Reality
Descartes’ Proofs for God’s Existence
Descartes’ tests for the existence of God are characterized by several key principles:
- Certainty from the Cogito: Part of the cogito, the existence of God is presented as the only other certainty.
- Beyond Deduction: No demonstration can be made purely by deduction, as this method was challenged by the second stage of methodic doubt. Instead, testing for God’s existence should extend the intuition of the cogito.
- A Posteriori and A Priori Tests: The first two proofs
Plato’s Philosophy: Ideas, Influences, and Historical Impact
Plato’s Philosophy & Greek Tradition
Plato’s thought is an effort to solve two major problems he inherited from previous philosophy:
- The pre-Socratic problem on the Nature of Things: What is the origin, cause, and foundation of everything that exists?
- The Socratic problem concerning human nature: What is man and how to behave?
The Theory of Ideas solves both problems at once. Indeed, Ideas are the essence of things. Moreover, the man whose soul partakes of the eternity of Ideas should reflect, through
Read MoreSocrates: Athenian Philosopher’s Life, Teachings, and Enduring Impact
Socrates: Life, Philosophy, and Enduring Legacy
Socrates’ Early Life and Context
Birth, Environment, and Family Influence
Socrates was born in Athens around 470 BC and died in 399 BC. He lived in an environment marked by relativism and skepticism. His mother was a midwife, an influence that later shaped his philosophical method.
Socio-Political Landscape of Athens
The socio-political climate of Athens during his lifetime was tumultuous, characterized by the Peloponnesian War and significant political
Read MoreAristotle’s Philosophy on Society and Governance
Aristotle’s Political Thought
Human Sociability: The Role of Language
Language is the human trait that best proves the argument for the natural sociability of human beings, according to Aristotle. Nature does nothing without a purpose. Why language? Because of the complexity of the relationships we experience. To cooperate effectively in a complex world, we need a complex system for cooperation.
We, human beings, live with an awareness of the present, past, and future, unlike animals, who can only
Read MoreNatural Law vs. Legal Positivism: Core Jurisprudence Concepts
In this question, we are dealing with the two classical classifications of legal theory: Natural Law tradition and Positivism. The main discussion between them is whether the law is linked to morals or not. Of course, there are more points of view that address this issue and are not strictly naturalist or positivist, but rather a nuanced perspective between black and white. However, it is said that these two are the most important and form the basis of the rest.
Natural Law Tradition
On the one hand,
Read MorePlato’s Philosophy: Justice, Soul, and the Ideal State
Plato’s Ethics and Politics
When discussing Platonic ethics, it is crucial to note that the individual is entirely dependent on the state. An individual’s behavior is ethically correct when they act as a good citizen, always striving for justice. Justice reigns in the polis (city-state) only if harmony reigns within the soul of the city, and vice versa.
Achieving harmony in the soul is possible only if each of its component parts performs its proper function. Plato distinguishes three parts in the
Read More