Core Concepts: Society, Culture, and Knowledge in Philosophy
State and Society Fundamentals
Society: A group of people, peoples, or nations that coexist under common rules.
Definition: Society is a system of usages and procedures of authority and mutual aid, of many groupings and divisions, of controls of human behavior and liberties. This ever-changing complex system, which is called society, is a web of social relationships. —MacIver and Page
- A collective of people who coexist, share a space, and collaborate with each other to survive.
- Common standards, which
Humanity’s Symbolic Universe: Language, Signs, and Meaning
The Human Symbolic Universe
Many capacities make human beings unique creatures, but they all share at least the use of a symbolic universe. From the realms of science, morality, art, and more, the human world is not merely a world of physical capabilities. The realities of representation allow us to work in a thousand different ways on reality without having to act directly upon it. The world of representation is not a copy of objective reality but the recreation of a world seen through human eyes;
Read MorePhilosophical Concepts of Truth and Existence
States of Mind Regarding Truth
Ignorance
A state of mind admitting ignorance about a particular matter.
Questioning
A state where one cannot affirm or deny the truth, because the reasons for and against are quite similar.
Subjective Certainty
A state where one’s mind accepts the truth of claims without admitting any possibility of equivocation.
Criteria for Determining Truth
Authority
A statement is accepted as true because it comes from someone credited with knowledge of the subject.
Tradition
A certain concept,
Plato’s Dualism: Soul, Body, and Reincarnation
Plato’s Anthropological Dualism
Plato believes that human beings are composed of two distinct elements, the body and the soul, which are accidentally united. This dualistic view results from a confluence of Orphic-Pythagorean influence and metaphysical elements inherent in Platonic philosophy itself. Without this view, his theory of knowledge could hardly be explained, as developed in his dialogues of maturity: Phaedo, Phaedrus, and The Republic.
Platonic anthropology is developed through the following
Read MoreThe Essence of Philosophy: Concepts, Critiques, and Purpose
Features of Myths
- People turn to gods and heroes.
- Forces of nature are personified and deified.
- Myths are imaginative or fantastic stories.
- Mythical knowledge, though based on observation of nature, is not rational because explanations are not justified or demonstrated.
- The author of the myth is always unknown; it arises from a group, in contrast to scientific or philosophical theories.
- Myths have a traditional and uncritical character; they are anonymous.
The Miletus School
The Miletus School was a group
Read MoreHuman Society: Coexistence, Governance, and Well-being
The Essence of Social Living
Human beings are inherently social creatures. We need to live in company, together. We are born totally vulnerable and helpless, and our long period of dependency as infants creates deep family ties.
Why We Live in Society
To Survive
Living in groups makes survival easier. Humans are genetically predisposed to live in society, unlike some animal species that live alone, while others live in groups.
To Connect and Communicate
Human beings have an essential need to communicate.