PHIL 103 - Midterm

Describe 'participation' in its relationship to becoming and being.

things (becoming world) are constantly participating in its true ideal form (the being world). We do not have on the true definition of beauty but yet we all know when we see something beautiful. That is because things are participating in beauty. The more beautiful something is closer to its ideal form.

Name and describe the three Delphic maxims inscribed at the Temple of Apollo. With these in mind, describe how Oedipus Rex a tragic figure?

1) Know Thyself Oedipus refuses to accept who he is. 2) Nothing to Excess Oedipus lives in excess when he indulges in his anger and commits extreme actions like murder 3) Surety Brings Ruin Oedipus believes he can change his fate

How does "potentiality and actuality" provide an explanation for change in substances?

Instead of explaining change from platonic stand point (where participation is moving towards "forms"/ something outside of our reality), potentiality and actuality are found within our reality and the substance, humans change because we have potentials not because we move towards a form

Should we follow the opinion of the many, who might rule over whether we die or not, or over the one of a wise opinion? How do we cause harm to ourselves in choosing the former? (47d)

It is better to take an opinion of someone who knows what they are doing (wise/knowledgable) rather than an opinion of majority. Ex: Better to take the opinion of a doctor than 10 people

Is Aristotle's 'prime mover' a creator? What is its relationship to being?

It is not a creator, it just is the start of everything

Monism

the belief that reality is ultimately made up of only one essence EX: Thales belief in water being the foundation.

How does Protagoras' statement, "Man is the measure of all things," support a 'moral relativism' that the Sophists were known for?

This statement supports Sophists belief in relativism because it means that truth/false or good/bad are subjective and different for each person or culture. It is up to the man to measure what is beautiful or the truth.

In what way does this metaphysics demonstrate an ethics? (for Plato)

For Plato, metaphysics is the study of true forms. When you participate in the good/forms you are also recognizing the good, truth and beauty in the world. Ex: In the Myth of The Cave, the freed prisoner sees the truth and is then compelled to share it with others. He is compelled to spread the good.

What is eudaimonia?

Living a virtuous life (filled with happiness, satisfaction etc.)

In Crito, is it just for the abused to become an abuser?

Unjust acts will never equal justice. That would be hypocritical. Opposites are not the same.

How does a Platonic dialogue potentially avoid ideology (or at least ideological possession—when one is captured by an idea in an unhealthy way)?

Uses discussion to bounce around ideas, hold everything lightly, has humility, nature of philosophy is dialogue, we have to be open to other ideas and opinions

Name and describe the three Delphic maxims. Use Crito as an example.

1) Know Thyself Socrates believes that through thoughtful reflection every person is able to know themselves by knowing the just/good way to act in a situation 2) Nothing to Excess Crito cannot use reason to come to an answer because he is clouded by the excess of anxiety and fear, not in the golden mean 3) Surety Bring Ruin Socrates agrees that we do not have control over everything in our life, if he did he wouldn't have chosen execution, we have to accept that we can't control/be sure of everything and know we can online control our reactions and actions we decide to take

What are the 'four causes'? (give example)

1) Material Cause: the matter something is made out of Ex: Tree is made out of wood 2) Formal Cause: designing something Ex: someone designing a house 3) Efficient Cause: the cause and effect, whatever makes something happen: a person or event Ex: Rain happens because water evaporates then cools and falls down 4) Final Cause: the "telos", the purpose something has, Ex: for Aristotle, rain's final cause/purpose was to water the grass

What is the ethos of Greek Tragedy? (i.e. what is its view of the world and the gods?)

??? Ethos = general attitude, what something is all about Oedipus = you cannot run away from fate Crito, Socrates = you cannot control fate but you can choose your reaction to it Life is in the hands of the gods. Knowing thyself less about following fate of gods but for the sake of doing good acting freely from. Acting out of fear and anxiety determines ur life

What is a 'secondary substance' according to Aristotle? Why do we call it secondary and not primary substance?

A secondary substance according to Aristotle is the broader categories of an individual, the about of a thing - Ex: Emma is primary substance and human is secondary substance - human is a secondary substance because it doesn't define the individual

How does the theory of evolution challenge Aristotle's metaphysical notion of 'form'? Explain why Plato's metaphysics can better accommodate evolution.

Aristotle believed fixed set of forms that exist. Plato believed everything is changing and moving towards forms. Therefore, evolution can exist, we are just moving towards our true form.

"Plato's emphasis on the Forms made it impossible to appreciate the full reality of particular things..." (course textbook, 79) Explain why Aristotle agrees with this statement.

Aristotle believed that in order to appreciate reality, change has to coincide with the eternal parts of reality (in Plato's terms, Forms and participation had to go together). That was the only way to explain why change happened. Believed the answer lies within our concrete reality, how can we give an explanation when "forms" is intangible.

Describe the relationship between 'form' and 'matter' for Aristotle. Do we know matter without form? Can they be taken apart and studied?

Aristotle's idea of form is roughly the same as Plato's except that Aristotle believed they coexist We cannot know matter without form Ex: Wood (matter) can take different forms (chair, plank etc.) No, they cannot be taken apart and studied because they do not exist apart from each other

Describe the 'Myth of the Cave' using Crito as an example of one who is caught in the shadows.

Because he allows fear and anxiety to rule over him (stuck in the cave) which stops him from moving towards the truth or participating in the forms which would lead him to the just decision

Describe 'becoming' and 'being' in light of Plato's metaphysics.

Being is the form. It is a world of changeless and eternal that is only accessible through reason. Becoming is the participation. It is moving towards the "form". It is the world of change and fluctuation, living and dying, world of opinions and there is no one truth.

Explain to someone who has never encountered Aristotle's metaphysics what the study of 'being qua being' means? What sort of things does this 'first science' look at in contrast to sciences like chemistry, physics, biology, etc.?

Being qua being = being as being This looks at what things really are. The essence, substance and form of something. What makes something itself? (the consistent characteristic of a thing) Chemistry - being is mixes of different elements Biology - being is the functions in a thing

For Democritus, what was the 'stuff' of reality? How was his a 'pluralist' position?

Democritus believed that atoms made up reality. Atoms would combine in different ways to make different materials and things in our world. He didn't believe one element/thing made up everything rather that there are atoms that make different combinations.

Describe the paradox at the heart of the Heraclitean proposition of reality as 'constant flux'. How does his most well-known statement, "You cannot step into the same river twice" capture this paradox of constancy and flux?

Heraclitus means that there is something consistent in everything even through change. A river's water is always In motion so there for you could never step in a place with the same water but the constant is that the river is recognizable.

Does "potentiality and actuality" come from a principle already within the substance, or does this change depend on an outside/external principle?

Comes from within the substance

Describe the 'comedy' of the Crito? How does it avoid tragedy?

Crito avoids tragedy by showing that Socrates death was not tragic but it was beautiful in the way that he was dying for the good and true and had lived a beautiful live. As long as we treat ourselves and other justly then our death can never be tragic. Socrates follows the Delphic maxims, he knew myself through reflection, he didn't act in excess of fear, he understood that he doesn't have control over everything.

In the Crito, what is Crito's argument to Socrates? What does he want Socrates to do and why?

Crito believes that it is reasonable and just for Socrates to escape jail and there for wants him to do so. He believes that since his sentence is unjust there is no reason for him to face the death penalty. Crito's points: - Socrates death will reflect badly on his friends - Socrates friends will pay for his escape - If he stayed, he would be agreeing with those who unjustly imprisoned him - Socrates would abandon his children if he stayed

Which one of the 'four causes' remains a focus for modern science?

Efficient cause is how modern science is studied

In Crito, why would other cities not welcome Socrates if he were to escape? (53b)

Escaping would make him a criminal and therefore every city would see him as an enemy.

Describe 'essence' as "the aspect of an individual that identifies it as a particular individual" or substance. (course text, 82) Illustrate with an example.

Essence is what makes up a person, without those things (essence) they could not be themselves Ex: if I lost a leg, I would still be myself, but if grew up in France I would have complete different culture

Did these early pre-Socratic materialists have no sense of the divine in the world (as we might understand modern day materialists)? Explain.

God was a standard belief during the time of pre-Socratics. They often believed in the divine natural order as a way to explain who the puppet-master was behind the scenes. Believed that everything was "alive" and had a soul (animism)

What is the 'golden mean'? Illustrate by applying each of the cardinal virtues, i.e. what would be the extremes on either end of 'justice', 'temperance, 'fortitude', and 'prudence'?

Golden mean - between two extremes Justice (injustice - harsh/false justice) Temperance (no self control - overly controlling) Fortitude (cowardice - recklessness) Prudence (imprudence - false prudence)

Why was Heraclitus called 'The Dark One'?

He expressed his ideas cryptically/not straight forward and with many expressions (aphorism)

Name and describe the four 'cardinal' virtues?

Justice: just behaviour of treatment Temperance: self-control Fortitude: courage Prudence: discipline, practical decision-making

What is the nature of 'matter' for Aristotle? How does its relationship with 'form' explain change?

Matter is what things are made out of (the material) Ex: wood, it cannot be recognized unless it has a form/shape ie: a tree stump Matter never disappears, it can take on new forms, when the matter takes on new forms that is what you would call change ex: I can build a chair out of wood, deconstruct it and build a table, the matter is still wood but its form changed into a table

Describe Meno's Paradox? How does Socrates contest the idea of learning? How do we know things if it isn't via learning?

Meno's paradox is "we can't learn something we already know and we can't seek to learn something if we don't know it already because we wouldn't know where to start" Socrates believes that knowledge can always be found from within. Knowledge isn't opinions, it is eternal necessary truths. Ex: How can we recognize beauty? It isn't something we are taught. Therefore must be found form within

What do we mean when we say 'metaphysics'?

Metaphysics is exploring the fundamental nature of reality The "being qua being" What is the nature or forms of things? In what ways are things connected?

Is a good and virtuous life possible if he escapes his sentence? Indeed, can he still teach and credibly discuss the theme of 'virtue' with others if he escapes elsewhere?

No, it is not because he would be making an unjust decision and become a criminal which wouldn't be virtuous. No, he couldn't teach virtue because he doesn't practice it himself and therefor cannot set an example (not credible).

What was the key term that enabled this synthesis?

The key term is "forms". The idea that although everything is changing, everything is changing/moving towards an ideal form that is eternal.

What is potentially dangerous about metaphysical theories? Why, nonetheless, will metaphysics remain an unavoidable theme of philosophical investigation?

Metaphysics is speculation, to hold them with too much important could be an ideological possession

Describe Plato's 'Myth of the Cave'. In what way does it seek to demonstrate these metaphysics of 'participation', 'becoming', and 'being'?

Myth of the cave is about prisoners that have been shackled inside a cave their whole life and have only seen shadows on the wall. They live in a world of becoming and far away from the world of being. They see a very small portion of the world and they believe the truth of reality is only shadows on a wall. When on prisoner gets free and explores outside of the cave he moves closer to the world of being by participating closer to his true form. Less real - more real

Fo For Heraclitus, what does proposing 'fire' as the ultimate reality express? Did he literally mean fire? If not, what did he mean by this proposition?

No, Heraclitus did not literally mean fire. He used the nature of fire (fleeting and changeable) as an example to explain our reality. He thought it best explained the constant flux in nature.

Does Heraclitus situate us in total chaos? Discuss using his notion of 'logos': What does logos mean? How did it fit into his philosophical understanding of reality?

No, although everything is always changing there is a measure/rhythm that underlays all if it. Heraclitus called this the "Logos", meaning logic or reason, a deeper nature behind things

What did Parmenides describe as the true reality? Why? And what, in contrast, was an illusory reality?

Parmenides believed that for something to be true, it always has to be true (something either is or isn't). Therefore, he believed that true reality must be eternal and unchanging. Since our world is filled with change (people die, trees grow etc.) he believed our reality isn't real.

What 'distinction' did Parmenides notice emerge in the philosophies of his contemporaries and predecessors? Describe this distinction and illustrate with an example (e.g. how did Thales' philosophy express this distinction?).

Parmenides noticed that many of beliefs philosophers had before him had the appearance/reality distinction. They claimed different elements such as water made up reality but yet that's not how it appeared to the human eye. Ex: Thales believed everything was made out of water but yet we can't actually see water in everything.

Who was Parmenides?

Parmenides was a mathematician and followed Pythagoras's ideas. He focused more on eternal certainties (math) that the fluctuating everyday experience.

Describe Plato's concept of 'participation'. What was Aristotle's difficulty with this concept?

Participation - Things moving towards there ideal "form" Aristotle believed: - Plato had failed to explain the relationship between forms and particular things - participation was an empty phrase/poetic metaphor - Plato focusing on "forms" (something that is unconceivable/intangible) and the idea of participation was useless because it doesn't answer the question "how do things change" (central theme of Aristotle's philosophy)

What are moral exemplars?

People who have "mastered" and practice virtue and lead by example

What were complications in Plato's metaphysics, particularly around the multiplicity of things' participations in forms, and how did Aristotle's notion of 'substance' and 'essential properties' offer a more agreeable model of understanding?

Plato - complicated because "forms" still participated in other things, how can something have one true form if it participates in other forms Ex: Horses also participate in legness, armness, animalness Aristotle - Substances can have essential properties Ex: Emma Fenty (substance) is also human and female (essence) I am not participating in these things but rather that they make up who I am

Describe Aristotle's understanding of the soul and body. How would this differ from Plato's conception of the soul and body's relationship?

Plato believed that the soul and body were not connected and therefore reincarnation was possible, which goes along with his views of "different worlds" the world of eternal and the world of change Aristotle believed that the soul and body were connected because he believed in only one reality or "one dimension/world"

Describe 'recollection'. Why is this a cornerstone to Platonic metaphysics?

Plato believes learning is more like recollection. Ex: How do we know something is beautiful without being told? This knowledge comes from within. We are recollecting the knowledge we hold inside ourself. This is a cornerstone because Plato puts forth questions about how and why things work beyond our understanding from reality. How do we tell the difference between things? Why are we attracted to truth? How do we know good?

Describe 'potentiality and actuality'.

Potentially/potency, a substance can have the opportunity to become something else but that does not make it it's substance Ex: a tree has the potency to become a bookshelf but the substance will always be wood Actuality is when the potency becomes true Ex: Stacey has the potential to become a movie star, when Stacey acts in a movie and it becomes a hit, Stacey actually is a movie star (doesn't mean her substance is a movie star)

Explain why a secondary substance is predicable of a substance (e.g. John is a human), and why the concrete person John (primary substance) is not predicable of anything else.

Primary substance isn't predicable of anything else because it is the primary substance. It is the first defining feature you can't get any more true than that.

Describe Aristotle's idea of the 'prime mover'. Why must a cause begin somewhere, at some point? What happens if we don't suppose this first cause?

Prime mover = the very beginning cause of everything - motion needs a beginning Ex: dominos, the first domino has to fall before everything else does

Who was Pythagoras? And how did his philosophical perception of reality include both music and mathematics?

Pythagoras was a philosopher who wasn't a materialist. He believed that math/numbers were the ultimate reality. His reality also included music because he saw that there was a math behind harmonies, there was an absolute truth about it like math.

If Crito acts to excess, in what way does Socrates act virtuously?

Socrates acts virtuously by choosing virtuous action or making virtuous decisions. He chooses to not escape because escaping would mean committing a crime which is an unjust act. Doing an unjust act can never be just or virtuous. He sticks by his morals and seeks the just decision in every situation. He chooses not to drag others down with him and chooses not to become the "abuser". He acts virtuously to Crito by leading him to make a more virtuous decision.

In Crito, line 50b, the laws ask Socrates, "By attempting this deed, aren't you planning to do nothing other than destroy us, the laws, and the civic community, as much as you can? Or does it seem possible to you that any city where the verdicts reached have no force but are made powerless and corrupted by private citizens could continue to exist and not be in ruins?" The city, it seems, has rendered an unjust sentence of execution on Socrates' life (at least in his and Crito's opinion). Why doesn't he therefore escape?

Socrates doesn't escape because: - escaping would be going against the law, if he wasn't guilty before he would be guilty now - he would live a bad life: live in exile, no city would want him, he would be seen as a criminal by everyone, his children would be treated the same - he couldn't preach virtue or his morals if he went against them - set a bad example for his children - he had the option to leave Athens if he didn't agree with the laws, but chose to stay, they gave him two options (exile or death) and he chose death - Athens and its laws are what built him to be who he is, going against them would go against everything that raised him

Describe friendship as a central virtue to the Crito in the context of a healthy political environment? However, where does this healthy political environment begin? In grand political theories? (Clue: not in grand political theories)

Socrates shows the value/importance of friendship in the Crito. Just like in a healthy political environment, Socrates shows that respect, kindness, loyalty - all things in a friendship must be present in order to have healthy discussions and successful solutions. It begins from the bottom, treating those around you like friends. Friend spush each other to be good.

What is the 'common ground' that Socrates requires from Crito? (49d-e)

Socrates tries to find common ground with Crito by asking if justice can be obtained from injustice

What is a Socratic dialogue? Why might we describe it as a 'literary drama'?

Socratic dialogue is what Plato would used to convey his and Socrates ideas in a discussion format. It is considered a literary drama because the writing follows a narrative like a story. Which included rising action and climax and so on. Sometimes these dialogues would be inconclusive or make unconvincing arguments. Plato did not make it clear that these are his ideas.

Describe 'Socratic Therapy' in terms of reasoned reflection. What sort of 'distance' does reflection give us? What are we searching to discover and weed out? What is the difference between a healthy and an unhealthy fear? Explain using Socrates as a model of the former, Crito as a model of the latter.

Socratic therapy/reflection gives distance to anxieties and fears because by talking through them you are able to get them our of your head and body and onto the table to examine them from an outside perspective. It searches to weed out the unhealthy fears that are clouding someone's judgement. Socrates of course has some worry to face death but he isn't letting it cloud his judgment of making a just decision. Crito on the other hand is making decisions based off of his fear and anxiety and therefor not making a just decision. Crito also based his decision on the fear of opinions of others that are not important.

Who were the Sophists? What was their view? Why are they looked upon somewhat negatively?

Sophists were a group of thinkers that were often paid to make arguments. They often criticized others ideas but didn't believe in one truth themselves. They were relativists, meaning that they believed good and bad/true and false varied from culture to culture. Ex: One culture may believe tan skin is beautiful another culture may believe pale skin is beautiful. Therefore there isn't one true idea of beauty. Many people thought negatively of them because they were scene as a group of people that used language tricks to debunk peoples arguments

Describe Aristotle's notion of 'substance' as the 'what' of a thing and not the 'about' of a thing.

Substance - the "what" of a thing, what stays consistent Ex: a chairs substance is wood About of a thing - secondary facts that don't define a thing Ex: height, weight, colour

Describe the difference between artifacts and substances? For instance, what is the substance of a chair? Does a chair as a chair have within it an inner orienting principle?

Substance is something that occurs naturally, an independent being, doesn't rely on something else to exist, the factor of a thing that is unchanging Artifact is something that is given its nature, man-made Ex: a chair wouldn't exist without us, if we are taken out of the equation a chair would rot and decompose, its true substance is wood

What does telos and teleology mean? How does a teleological perception of the world differ from our modern scientific perception? Describe this difference using an example to illustrate.

Telos = purpose Teleology = everything in this world has a purpose/goal, why do things happen? Ex: Why does it rain? The rains purpose is to water the earth. Modern science = How do things happen? Ex: Rain happens how? The water is heated and evaporates, then cools and falls

Describe the three Ionian Naturalists covered in class. What did they propose as the 'stuff' or single substance of reality (or 'arche'), respectively?

Thales: water Anaximander: premoridal stuff/apeiron Anaximenes: air

Pre-Socratic philosophy was concerned with the search for the 'arche' of all reality. What was this 'arche' intended to explain? Illustrate your explanation using the example of one of the Ionian Naturalists.

The "arche" is the unifying principle of diversity in nature. It implies there is a rational order to everything in life. It is the source of life and motion.

What is the Crito about?

The Crito is a dialogue between Crito and Socrates who discuss whether Socrates escaping the prison is just or unjust. On a bigger scale Socrates poses the question, "is there ever a time where unjust actions are just?" Socrates had been unjustly given the death sentence and Crito believes escaping would be the best option. Crito: eye for an eye, escaping is just Socrates: escaping is never just, he has a social contract with Athens, if he escaped, he would go against all his morals, never see his children, could never preach like he used too

Materialism

The belief that reality is composed of "material" stuff. EX: Anaximenes belief that air was the foundation of reality.

Pluralism

The belief that there is more than one "thing/element" that makes up the universe

Discuss 'animism' in the context of these ancient philosophers? How does this understanding help us distinguish Democritus' perception of 'atoms' from the modern scientist's perception of atoms?

The pre-Socratic philosophers believed in animism. Animism is the belief that all things have a soul (from books to animals to trees). Democritus saw the soul as something material that was made up of his version of "atoms". Modern science views material as dead matter and the soul isn't something that is material or that can be proven/accounted for.

What was the philosophical concern of the pre-Socratics? How did Plato carry on this legacy and seek a greater synthesis?

The pre-Socratics were concerned with what the ultimate substance of reality was and what was eternal and what was changing and how do they relate to each other. Plato presented that being and non-being can be both at the same time. What connects them is the world of becoming (participation) and the world of being (forms)

Why does the freed prisoner feel the need to return into the cave to help set free the others? Why couldn't s/he just run off and enjoy the pure Form of the Good s/he has discovered? How is education thus central to this myth?

The prisoner has seen the goodness in the world and in seeing it he wants to help others to move towards it as well. Part of moving towards the truth and goodness is spreading it to others.

Where does 'form' exist in Aristotle's metaphysics? In other words, where do we find form? Describe in contrast to Plato's understanding of Forms.

The shape that something takes = form Aristotle believed forms were real but not separate from our reality The shape that something takes = form Plato believed they were separate, form was inconceivable

Why is it so difficult for us to first see the true Forms? Why, at first, do we turn away? Explain this resistance.

There are steaks being in the shadows. In order to move towards the true forms, we have to give up that comfort (could be pleasure ie: addiction) which is difficult. Many times people may not want to give up that shadow.

The 'prime mover' is described by Aristotle as 'thought thinking itself.' Explain what he might mean by this, contrasting the way in which we must think to the prime mover's non-relational way of thinking.

We can't really think of thinking itself, we need to have some content to think about Prime mover - needs nothing to put itself into motion, it thinks of thought

When we inquire into the 'what' of a thing, we inquire into the _________ of a thing.

We inquire about the substance of a thing. (the consistent characteristic of a thing)

We have described how elusive it is to know what the good or beauty is. These are qualities or values we participate in. We don't know them exhaustively, in their full eternal completeness. But what makes a thing like a 'horse' just as difficult to know? Discuss in the context of the Forms.

What truly is a horse? If we take away its' legs we still know it is a horse. If we only hear it's voice we know it's a horse. So what is a horses true form?

Was Parmenides a monist?

Yes, he believed there was only one reality.

In Crito, could Socrates have left Athens at any point he wished?

Yes, he could of left anytime during his life. He was also given a choice between exile and death when he was found guilty.

Describe one of Zeno's paradoxes and how it supports a Parmenidean understanding of reality.

Zeno's paradox: A person travelling to the end of a path. Before she gets to the end, she must go halfway. Before she gets halfway, she must go a quarter of the way and so on. This supports Parmenides ideas because it shows the illusion of motion. This person never arrives at her destination. Reason shows that we cannot go anywhere and therefore nothing changes so our changing reality isn't real.