Introduction
The name philosophy originated from Asia and it literally means ‘love of wisdom’. The earliest philosophers are notably from Greece. Nevertheless, any activity seen today was happening all over the world. For example, the Egyptians would look at the sky and make mathematical calculations. The Chinese were using mercury, and sulfur to work out some chemistry reactions. American Indians are popular for testing plants and coming up with cures. All these activities are associated with science in today’s world. Philosophy is the persistent search for truth. It involves wonder and history. Many questions asked in the past, caused search for the answers that brought about philosophy. Philosophy involves the limited human knowledge, and both practical and speculated life. In philosophy, logic, and ethics are applied.
Why Study Philosophy
Philosophy study helps in understanding complex issues while thinking objectively, and critically. The world is competitive and such skills are vital in order to understand it. Philosophy is concerned with the basics that underlie perceptions, thinking, and beliefs. Philosophy hence looks at the technicalities of sane thought and the basic assumptions in the general understanding of the world in order to understand the different theories, ideas, or beliefs. Philosophy attracts people from different environments. This is because as long as you possess some curiosity on what revolves around the world, philosophy will help one to reason out. Most students join college without any knowledge of philosophy. However, after the introduction, they realize they like the interest ideas. Philosophy students are often inquisitive, and they tend to share their knowledge. They are argumentative, and rarely do they take simple answers like ‘yes’ or ‘no’.
Chapter 2 Buddha
Prince Gautama who later called Buddha discovered Buddhism. His father was a ruler from Nepal, and he remained hidden in the palace for a long time. One day he saw things that changed his life. They were an old man, a sick man, a beggar, and a dead man. This left him with a lot of pain because he did not know people suffered. He left the palace in search of a solution to this suffering. He wanted to know why there was pain and suffering. This is where he based his teachings on. He based the basic rules on the Eightfold path, and the four noble truths. The Four noble truths were life is suffering, suffering is due to attachment, attachment can overcome, and there is a way of accomplishing this. In order to accomplish this, he introduced the eightfold path.
Wrong livelihood comes when a child has everything, and therefore knows no problems encountered by other children. However, in schools, the students are humbled. They should not be tempted into having intimate relationships. He students are supposed to guard themselves from evil. They are not supposed to give false speech. The students are unexpected to take what is not theirs.
There are jobs that an enlightened Buddhist cannot perform. The thing that determines whether career is right is the fact that Buddhism condemns any business that causes harm to other people. It believes that all wealth has to be honestly –acquired. Buddhism does not allow trade in weapons, human beings, any meat from dead bodies, intoxicants, and poison. A true Buddhist will be cautious in whichever business they engage in order to be on the right path.
Chapter 2 Buddha :Eightfold path
One of Buddha’s teachings is the eightfold path. The eightfold path is a guideline to mental and ethical ways of life. This principle is on development of reality, while eradicating greed, and hatred. The eight steps include right knowledge, aspiration, speech, behavior, livelihood, effort, mindfulness, intensive self-examination and contemplation. Buddhism believes that desire causes suffering, and the eightfold path is the only way to cease suffering. It is therefore important to understand system especially identifying the causes for sufferings. It is also important to learn the consequences that come with suffering. Buddhism believes that everything depends on something else called mutual interdependence. The eightfold path ascertains that others are not hurt. A Buddhist is in the right thoughts if he understands the purpose of the teachings. He should use polite language that does not harm anyone. This follows with right actions. Fundamental behaviors should include refraining from sexual behaviors, stealing or destroying living things. Having bad thoughts is common no matter how people try. However, with effort, these thoughts prevent harm.
The eightfold path explains the fourth noble path that as mentioned earlier talks of accomplishment. This path holds that people are not satisfied at the end. In order to achieve this satisfaction, the eight paths are important. This path tested before, meaning it is trodden, and is taught in eight stages. Buddha used the word ‘right’ because it translates as a totally committed involvement. Maintaining these paths is difficult because it requires an everyday’s enthusiasm, application, and effort. In order to acquire the eightfold path, a person repeatedly remembers the four noble truths. They should continue renewing the connection in most essence according to Buddha’s teachings.
Chapter 3 Sophism. Are lawyers Sophists? Are Advertisers? in what ways are professions susceptible to sophistry? Explain.
The phenomenon of sophism involves using commendable wit to lie to people within a given profession. Sophists normally display exemplary with while delivering any ideas about their respective professions. Historically, sophism was an admirable idea, but currently it is not.
Lawyers are sophists attributable to their frequent use of specious arguments. There are minimal occasions in which lawyers tell the truth while defending their respective clients. It is unacceptable mistake the cunning arguments that several layers display to be witty. Lawyers practice sophism to extreme extents making their profession to be questionable. In all cases, these lawyers convince judges about logics that are not necessarily evident for the criminals that they represent.
Advertisers are also sophists, sometimes; they abuse their profession by telling lies to their respective clientele. They need to present insincere claims to their clients to increase their respective profit margins. Modern advertising bureaus use significant amounts of their budgets to create deceptive adverts. The adverts claim outrageous satisfactions for clients who will use the products that they advertise. This is a practice of sophistry; it uses wit to convince people to buy their products.
Their law profession is extremely susceptible to sophistry in the following ways. The first way is the legal obligations that lawyers face in the execution of their tasks. This implies that lawyers must practice sophistry regardless of the outcomes it presents to their clientele. The adverting profession is equally vulnerable to sophistry. Advertisers would not achieve their objectives if they did not practice sophistry. This is how the two professions (lawyers and advertisers) are vulnerable to sophistry.
Question 5
Chapter 4
Do you agree with Socrates that no one knowingly does evil? Explain.
I disagree with Socrates idea that no one knowingly does evil. Interpretation of his statement shows that Socrates ignores and despises emotional side of human nature drawing attention on the intellectual side. It is difficult to understand why an intellectual like Socrates make such assumption. It is also disappointing to acknowledge that intellectuals believe that when an individual gets involved in morally wrong act, it is due to intellectual error. This is because they deem that if a person practices his or her intellectuals well, then it will be difficult for such persons to do wrong. I think intellectualist should help individuals in distinguishing between good and bad in order to make them better (Soccio, 2010).
Socrates also claimed that no one knowingly does evil because he believed that wrong had negative impacts to wrongdoer and nobody wants to engage in an action that causes harm. This is not true because some people have moral weakness whereby they know the differences between good and bad but engage in bad actions due to lack of strength to overcome bad actions. This shows their ignorance of what is essential and beneficial to the society. I think it does not matter whether an individual’s ignorance results from inadequate knowledge or personal intemperance. The truth is that most morally weak individuals really believe that some things are more important to them compared to other people, making them engage in evil actions. For example, starving individuals know that stealing from others is evil but they still does. This is because such individuals only consider benefiting themselves without thinking about the harm they will cause to other individuals as well as punishments involved (Notermans, 2001).
Question 6, Chapter 4
Suppose it were discovered that Socrates secretly violated many of his teachings. Would this affect your attitude toward this philosophy? How? Why?
Presume discoveries showed that Socrates secretly violated many of his teachings; it will negatively affect my attitude towards philosophy. For example, Socrates insisted in his teachings that life is not worth living unless individuals examine their proceedings to discover their identity, believe in and intentions in life. Such statement will change my perception making me to regard life worthy regardless of whether people understand who they are or not. Furthermore, Socrates asserted that it is imperative for individuals to care for their souls. This made him conclude that if individuals are not learning and constantly gaining wisdom, it implies that his or her soul will not be healthy. He advised people to note that introspection is imperative in enhancing healthy soul that enables people to discover their true potential. Consequently, discovering that Socrates violated his teachings on soul enhancement will make me disrespect him for lying but it will not affect my perception towards the issue. This is because I also realized that healthy soul supports individuals in attaining their life goals (Soccio, 2010).
Remarkably, Socrates taught that it is hard for a good person to harm or do evils to others. This referred to spiritual harm as he asserted that if an individual’s soul were good, then it would not affect the function of physical things. Regarding this claim, realizing that Socrates violated the teaching will make me to view him as a bad person because if he could have been a good person, he could not have taught people what he cannot practice. This would imply that he did not care whether he will harm other people or not, as he only cared for his personal interest.
Question 7, Chapter 5
Do you agree with Plato that democracy is incompatible with self-discipline? What sort of self-discipline do you think Plato was concerned about?
I disagree with Plato’s claim that democracy is incompatible with self-discipline. Democracy is compatible with self-disciple and it is illustratable through the values placed on self-discipline by a democracy as well as the trust give to the subject due to its strong ethos and mechanism to self regulate. This allows democracy and self-discipline to operate freely and independently within the society. The compatibility comes in because the values that self-discipline attempts to uphold are similar as those of democracy. Freedom of knowledge production associated with self-discipline is a characteristic of democracy, claiming that democracy extremely values self-discipline. Self-discipline has enabled democratic societies to advance into knowledgeable societies running on expert processes as well as expert systems helping it to achieve the democratic goals. Notably, a democratic environment is convenient for self-discipline to operate through because of the high level of regards and enthusiasm given to the discipline. Furthermore, continuity of self-discipline needs active involvement of interested and capable discipline, which happens with the availability of appropriate democratic conditions.
When Plato made a claim that democracy is incompatible with self-discipline, he had a strong believe that each step in human life begins with a desire for the good. According to Plato, self-discipline entails self-love, which is the private well-being desire that needs transformation into rightly ordered self-love. This shows that Plato was referring to self-discipline as the desire for human perfection that when rightly ordered, acts as a motive for actions that makes an individual fit for a genuine friendship (Soccio, 2010).
(Chapter 5 Plato)
The “Allegory of the Cave” is the realization that generally human beings can think and speak without an awareness of their realm. Plato is using the cave to liken people chained in the cave to their gilded realms of the form, where they cannot turn their heads. In their realms, the only thing they see are the walls, the boundaries, borders, or hindrances. People under the gild of their realms cannot see reality, like those in the cave that cannot see the puppets or the real objects that are behind them. The only awareness they have is of the shadows and echoes of the real objects that are a reflection on the cave walls by the fire. Those that are in the cave at first cannot see in the outside world, which is full of light, or in reality. This is because they still have elements of their lack of awareness and are dotted with the constraints of their binding realms.
This analogy is essential to Plato’s philosophical thought as the philosopher took the literary and allegorical meanings or symbolism and metaphor to present his ideas. The cave represents the world of ignorance and lack of knowledge. Those in the cave cannot see real objects since the lack of knowledge binds their ability to tell false and reality. Even, upon release into reality, they cannot perceive since they are still in chains to the limitations of the material world. Therefore, this is a perfect representation of Plato’s philosophy of reality and perception, especially showing the linkage between spiritual and sensory perception. Plato’s philosophy always explores how people behave and think in the sensory perception or the world of appearance, illusion, and falsehood.Spiritual perception is the world of enlightenment where those with knowledge can reject the senses and attain true knowledge and real meaning. The “Allegory of the Cave” is the true representation of Plato’s true philosophy, which seeks the difference between truth and falsehood.
(Chapter 7 Stoicism)
Doing what is right entails the being and doing a service to fellow human beings. However, according to Stoic the reason we do right and then let go is due to our innate human nature. This is by our inanimate nature that controls our thoughts. In essence, the action of doing what is right originates from our thoughts. In this philosophical thought, human beings will do or relax from doing right due to the fear of consequences and obsessions associated with control. For example, a person will fear the impression they will make on their secret admirers, yet the object of admiration is not aware of the effect they have on their admirers. The admirers will act, think, talk, and do everything in their power to gain the attention of their admiration. However, if the object of admiration is not aware or is not thinking of their admirers, the admired will not elicit any response.
Thinking is an innate or inanimate nature that cannot change. Therefore, if humans cannot change their thinking, they then cannot change their reasoning. In light of this, in the free will context, a person, therefore, has not controlled on the likes and dislikes of others, since they too have a free will or the power to control their feelings and actions. Under this line of thought, we should be free from the fear of consequences and control. The reason we have fear of consequences and control is due to our innate irrationality. Under stoic’s philosophy, anything we should not fear anything we cannot change or control, rather than fear we should change the way we think. This is because our thoughts cause our fears of consequences and control to arise. However, it is difficult for a human being to let since worry and fears continually makes them dwell on an issue. The only way to prevent this is to exert a will on their thoughts and thinking process because they are responsible for their thoughts. A person must remember that their thought patterns are responsible for their feelings and hence must instill control over them.
Tenth Page: (Chapter 7 Stoicism)
The concept of avoidable and unavoidable suffering is from stoic’s free will concept. This is where humans have the choice of how they respond to different problems. Therefore, by choosing to respond to suffering with strong emotional and mental anguish, a person experiences unavoidable suffering. For example, a person with a salary may be unhappy due to “how little” the salary is. The “how little” begins to create the thinking and reasoning process that is the basis for their perception of their problem or suffering. This person begins to perceive their salary as “little” since they have conditioned their minds to the reality that their salary is “little.” On the other hand, another person given the opportunity to work and earn the same amount of salary as the first person would be extremely happy. This person looks at their experience, as “I would be extremely happy if I would get that job.” The second person has conditioned their mind with “very happy.” Therefore, with such practical examples, we find that the manner in which we choose to respond to situations or events creates avoidable and unavoidable suffering.
To tell the difference between avoidable and unavoidable suffering in this context, one must pursue the differences in the realities of each suffering. This implies that the sense perception of a suffering will determine it is avoidable or unavoidable. This, therefore, draws from Stoic’s philosophy of our being or existence being consequences of our beliefs that are on sense perception. The realm in which the suffering occurs determines if it is avoidable or not. Moreover, the realm in which the sufferer conditions their thinking determines if they perceive their suffering as avoidable or unavoidable.
