Exam 1: Philosophical Questions

Philosophy,very often,proceeds through

Writing up a list of virtues is a way of

Scientists tell us that the chair

Both important decisions and trivial incidents can inspire philosophical questions.

The point about imagining whether we'd step into the "happiness box" is to show that we might be dreaming even if think we are awake.

The philosopher Socrates did not willingly go to his death,because he believed he had the right to life.

About five hundred years ago,Copernicus was one of the first people to question the belief that

St.Augustine and Pelagius argued about whether

People who believe that a person is always responsible for his or her actions,even if he or she seems forced into them,

Why,in the absence of a social consensus that the earth moves around the sun,would we have a hard time knowing that the opposite is true?

It is sometimes suggested that what makes human beings unique is that,unlike cows or mosquitos,

Why aren't good people necessarily happy?

Why did Socrates go willingly to his death?

If there are no guarantees of ultimate reward and punishment,

His respect for the laws and his own sense of honor were so strong that Socrates decided the most important thing for him to do would be to show his belief in his own principles by dying for them.In this respect,he is like

In Plato's Symposium,Diotima argues that

By pondering the question of whether you should step into the "happiness box," you will learn about

Pick one of the sixteen questions from Chapter One,and construct a fictional dialogue in which two or more people engage in a discussion about what the question means,and why. Have fun with the dialogue,but try to make the conversation a genuine,probing discussion.Have the respondents (one of whom can be you-or Socrates!)ask one another questions like "What do you mean by that?" "Why do you believe that?"and "Why is that important?" As you write the dialogue,try to feel the issue out and see what viewpoint seems the strongest and why. The dialogue can end with mutual agreement between the participants,or with the participants agreeing to disagree.

Scientists tell us that we are right when we believe that ordinary material objects,like chairs,are solid objects.

Some psychologists,such as B.F.Skinner,believed that there are no such things as "minds," but that people do nothing more than "behave," which is just moving their bodies and making sounds according to certain stimulations from the environment.