PhilosophyA crash course.

Schools of ThoughtO These are some of the philosophical

areas of thought or study.

O We’ll look at specific scholars later—today we’ll focus on a few areas.

On your notecard…O “I think, therefore, I am.”

O What does this mean in a literal sense?

O How can you turn this into a philosophical question?

O Do you know who said this and what school of philosophy he represents?

AestheticsO Aesthetics is the study of art and

beauty as concepts as well as how we ought to evaluate potential instances of beauty and artistic creation.

Aesthetics: QuestionsO What is beauty?O Are some things objectively

beautiful?O What makes for a great work of art?O Can something be humorous even if

it never makes anyone laugh?O What makes something ugly or

objectionable to view?O Why should we care about art?

Africana PhilosophyO Africana Philosophy deals with the

systematic ways in which persons of color have been oppressed, marginalized, and otherwise forgotten throughout the history of western and contemporary society. It also proposes solutions for ensuring that the contributions of persons of color are appropriately valued and taken seriously.

Africana Philosophy: Questions

O What is race?O How should we view interracial

marriage?O What is racism? Is it possible to get

rid of it?O Do we owe slave reparations?O Should there be affirmative action? If

so, in what form?O Why is diversity important?

EthicsO Ethics deals with the question of how

people ought to act with regard to themselves, other people, and the world.

Ethics: QuestionsO What should I do in a particular situation?O How should I decide what to do in a particular

situation?O When, if ever, is it okay to tell a lie?O Do animals have rights?O Should we care about strangers?O Are we ever in a situation where there is no

morally correct course of action?O Should corporations have the same rights as

people?O Given worries about overpopulation, is it morally

acceptable to have more than one child?

ExistentialismO Existentialism begins with the claim

that existence precedes essence. This means that humans are radically free to choose their own life plan and, furthermore, have an obligation to do so. Any limitations placed on this radical freedom by either the government or other persons are moral failings, according to existentialist thinkers.

Existentialism: Questions

O Why do certain life plans seem shallow while others seem deeply meaningful?

O What is it to be authentic?O What is wrong with hypocrisy?O What is the purpose of life?O What attitude should we take toward

life?O Is faith (religious faith, faith in the

goodness of others, faith in a rational universe, etc.) a form of delusion?

Feminist PhilosophyO Feminist philosophy critically

examines the ways in which gender, sex, race, class, etc. are socially constructed, oppressive concepts. It also provides appropriate political responses to the subordination of various groups.

Feminist Philosophy: Questions

O How do you tell when a group is oppressed?O What is it to be a woman or a man?O Should oppression and subordination be

dealt with by political activism?O Is there a difference between gender and

sex?O Should women be primary caregivers for

children?O What does racial oppression have in

common with gender oppression?

LogicO Logic is the study of abstract

symbolic reasoning. It resembles mathematics in that it works from axioms and seeks to prove theorems, but it differs in that it does not involve numbers. It is also self-reflective in a way that mathematics tends not to be. Namely, it questions the truth of its own axioms.

Logic: QuestionsO What is infinity?O What makes an argument a good

argument?O What is truth? What is falsity?O What is the fundamental meaning of

words like “and,” “or,” “but,” and “therefore.”

O Can something be both true and false? Or neither?

O What is nonsense?

MetaphysicsO Metaphysics is the study of what

exists and the structure within which the objects that make up the world operate.

Metaphysics: QuestionsO What is time?O What does it mean for one event to

cause another event?O Could everything exist only in my mind?O Do I have a soul? Or am I just a material

body?O How am I the same person today that I

was yesterday, or five years ago?O What makes something alive?

And so on.