Philosophy 101 Midterm

Invisible gardener parable

This shows that we can't be positive or not that there is a god.

What might be the pragmatist's approach to the philosopher's free will debate?

To be self-conscious and aware, to live a human life, is to feel free

Rationalism

belief in reason and logic as the primary source of knowledge

naive realism

belief that we see the world precisely as it is

Two objections to ontological argument

1. Existence is not a predicate 2. Analogous reasoning leads to a reductio ad absurdum (reduce to insanity)

What are at least two standard objections to the Cosmological argument?

1. If the beginning of the universe was the beginning of time, then you cant talk about prior causation bc there was no time in which it could have happened 2. Prior Universe idea

What are the two options/limitations Martin Benjamin suggests might be true regarding our attempts to solve the free will debate?

1. We currently lack the understanding to solve the problem. 2. We may never have the capacity to understand the problem

What are the three rules that Benjamin feels apply to real doubting, vs. radical philosophical doubting?

1.Plausible reason to doubt 2. Doubt must be resolvable 3. You can not doubt everything at once. Basically real doubts instead of bullshit philosopher thoughts

What is a Valid Deductive Argument? A Sound Deductive Argument?

A deductive argument is said to be valid if and only if it takes a form that makes it impossible for the premises to be true and the conclusion nevertheless to be false. A deductive argument is sound if and only if it is both valid, and all of its premises are actually true

If the experience of exercising free will in decision making is almost universal, why can't we use that as proof that we do indeed have free will?

Because we simply do not have anything to prove it

Causal Determinism

Causal Determinism claims the past controls the future, fatalism claims supernatural powers control the future

Foundationalism (Descartes)

Claims that a belief can be justified if it comes from sound premises

Dematerialization of matter

Dematerialization is the attempt to rid the sciences of the matter concept, thus replacing materialism with spiritualism.

What is the "generative fallacy"?

Examining how something came about is not the same as evaluating whether or not it's true

Be able to state the basic idea behind each of the following defenses against the problem of evil: The finite God defense; the knowledge defense; the free will defense; the greater good defense; the afterlife defense; and the limited understanding defense. What do philosophers think is problematic about each defense?

Finite God Defense: Could be 2-O god but not 3-O. Why would people worship a 2-O god. Knowledge Defense: Knowledge of evil is good and necessary. Why is evil necessary? Free will defense: It is better to have free will and evil than no free will and no evil. Why cant god make us all good but with free will? Greater Good Defense: Suffering is good overall for human race. How much suffering does it take for peace? Afterlife defense: If there is afterlife, nothing in our lives really matters. Limited Understanding Defense: We dont know gods plan for us.

How is giving primacy to 1st person experience supposed to get around the free will/determinism problem?

From our own experience, we have free will

Western Dilemma

God vs. Nature

Be able to recognize in premise/conclusion form, the Ontological, Cosmological, & Teleological arguments for God's existence

God's existence follows from the very concept of God, Derives the existence of God from the existence of the universe, derives the existence of God from the apparent design or purpose in the Universe

What was Beatrice Wood's argument for defending Duchamp's Fountain as a work of art?

He created a new thought for that object

Hard Determinism

Implies that free will is not possible as our behaviour is always caused by internal or external events beyond our control.

What is the principle referred to as Occum's Razor, and which argument for the Existence of God was it used to challenge in lecture?

Intelligent design

Explain how evolution offers as compelling an explanation for the apparent design in the universe as does the teleological argument.

It shows that the universe is designed to function perfectly, so someone must have engineered it.

What is the argument from religious experience, and what can be said in its favor, vs. the risk of committing "intellectual suicide"?

Many people claim to have had religious experiences. Just as sense experience can give us knowledge of the natural world, some claim that religious experience can give us knowledge of the supernatural world. Opting out of the reasoning game gives you nothing left to discuss (intellectual suicide)

Problem of Evil

P1: If the creator of the universe were an all-powerful, all-knowing, all-good God, there would be no unnecessary evil in the world. P2: There is unnecessary evil in the world. C: Therefore, there is no 3-O God (omniscient, omnibenevolent, omnipotent)

Benjamins approach to problem of induction

Productive living and the pursuit of further knowledge necessitates assuming their certitude, we pretty much just get on with our lives

Synoptic Philosophy

Seeing from a big point of view, the wheel shows how everything is part of a whole

What is the difference between substance dualism and property dualism, and how is it supposed to help the Libertarian make a case for free will?

Substance Dualist: Mind stuff is "supernatural" Property Dualist: Agent/ MInd

What are the two horns of the free will/determinism dilemma?

The concept of determinism contradicts that of free will — the deterministic horn, The concept of indeterminism also contradicts free will — the indeterministic horn

Understand the Eastern notion of Karma, and why it might provide a better defense against the problem of evil than the standard Judeo-Christian cosmology

We are responsible for the situation we are born into.

The American Anomaly

We have a surprisingly high rate of people who believe in god compared to other prosperous democracies

intuitive knowing

We know how shit works, but we do not know the thing itself, intuition is a mode of perception

What analogy to the physical world does Raymond Smullyan make in his dialogue, "Is God a Taoist?", to argue for free will?

We literally have to have free will

How is the analogy to winning the lottery supposed to cast doubt on the anthropic principle as evidence of the universe having been designed just for us?

Well, how does the jackpot lottery winner with 1/500 million odds feel? It's a miracle! But it wasn't.

the ship of knowledge

You can never strip your knowledge down all the way and rebuild it or gaze upon it

Empiricism

the belief that accurate knowledge can be acquired through observation

problem of induction

the future might not resemble the past

Web of Belief

the idea that our beliefs are interrelated in a systematic way; flexible, revisable, but with a tendency to resist radical change

Egocentric Predicament

the problem of not being able to view reality outside of our own perceptions

appearance-reality problem

the tendency to define reality by surface appearances