Ancient Philosophical Influences

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What is a priori knowledge?
A priori- knowledge considered to be true without being based on previous experience or observation.
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What is a posteriori knowledge?
A posteriori- knowledge which comes from observations or experiences.
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Who was Plato?
Ancient Greek philosopher
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Outline Plato's Analogy of the Cave
A group of prisoners are chained to the wall of a cave; They can only look directly ahead at the back wall. Above and behind them is a fire, which casts shadows of people and animals. The prisoners believe these are real, as they have never seen anything
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What does the Analogy mean?
Cave=material world
Outiside=World of Forms
Escaped prisoner=philosopher
Physical Journey= journey to knowledge.
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Use the Analogy of the Cave to explain our link to the Forms
Plato compares people living in the cave to people who can only see the material objects in the world. These objects are only shadows of their Forms.
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What is the aim of Plato's theory of Forms?
To understand the nature of the universe and reality.
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What book does his theory appear in?
Republic
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What is a 'Form' according to Plato?
The Form is an essential feature of a thing, which makes it what it is. e.g. we know a tree is a tree because it has leaves.
We know what something is because it imitates its corresponding Form.
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Give some characteristics of Forms
Perfect; unchanging; timeless; simply exist.
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Where do the Forms reside?
The World of Forms.
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Where do we reside?
The material world.
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What does Plato think of the material world?
Made of contingent, imperfect stuff; changes and decays. Merely a shadow of the World of Forms.
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How does Plato's theory link to ideas about the Soul?
Believed the soul came from the World of Forms but got trapped in the material body. At death the soul breaks free from the body and returns to the World of Forms.
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How was the world created according to Plato?
The Demiurge created the universe using changeable material but using the Forms as a model.
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How do we recognise what things are without being told?
Plato says we know what an object is through out previous knowledge of the Forms. We recognise that a tree is a tree because we remember the Form of the tree.
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Can abstract ideas, such as notions of justice and beauty, have Forms?
Yes
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How does this work? Use the idea of 'justice' to help explain.
The meaning of an abstract word such as 'justice' corresponds to an external reality. We can recognise when something is 'just' because the Form of Justice actually exists, and we have knowledge of the Forms from birth. Without this knowledge we would not
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The Forms are arranged in a hierarchy. What is the highest Form? Why?
The Form of the Good. It is the highest because it sheds light on the other Forms; Justice for example is an act of Goodness.
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How does the Form of the Good link to the material world?
We can recognise and label things as good, but these are just imitations of the perfect Good.
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Plato argued that things gained their nature by participating or imitating. What do these mean?
Participating: the Forms are part of their corresponding objects in the material world.
Imitating: The Forms are not part of the physical world. The material object copies the Form.
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What is noesis and how does this apply to the Forms?
Noesis: the highest kind of knowledge or knowledge of the eternal forms or ideas. It is the goal of any philosopher to achieve noesis.
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What is the difference between the soul and body according to Plato?
Soul=immortal, part of the World of Forms
Body=mortal, part of the Material world
The soul is temporarily united with the body, but it then returns to the World of Forms.
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What type of theory is this?
Dualism as there is a distinction between the mind and body.
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What is the problem with Plato's Form of the Good?
There can be no single Form of Good because there are lots of different ways to correctly describe something as good; someone might be 'good' at playing an instrument but they might be a bad person.
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Why are the Forms not as important as Plato thinks they are, according to Aristotle?
If they are so essential to true understanding, why does nobody study them?
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Give a problem with abstract Forms?
They have no practical value. e.g. knowledge of an abstract 'health' does not help diagnose and cure a sick person.
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Give an example of something which does not have a Form. What is the problem with this?
No Form of Number, only Form of One, Form of Two, Form of Three etc. As there are infinite numbers, there must be infinite Forms.
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What would empiricists say as a criticism of the Forms?
Use of a priori knowledge means that Plato makes assumptions which may not be true; no empirical evidence for the Forms.
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What does Karl Popper argue?
The nature of the universe is uncertain. Plato looks for certainty. He looks outside of this world because it cannot be found within the world.
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How did Aristotle think knowledge of the Forms could be found?
Argued that knowledge of the Forms comes from observation of corresponding objects (a posteriori)
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What did Aristotle aim to prove?
Why something is the way it is.
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What is the difference between form and matter?
To Aristotle, matter is the stuff something is made of, whilst form is something's characteristics. Matter comes together to make form, and so it is not the matter that changes, but the form of an object.
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What is the purpose of his Four Causes?
To explain the move from potentiality (ideas) to actuality (reality).
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Name Aristotle's Four Causes and explain them
1) Material: the substance something is made from.
2) Efficient: Its maker or builder.
3) Formal: Its design that shapes the concept (makes it recognisable)
4) Final: Its purpose or function.
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What is the Final Cause for humans?
Eudaimonia: living a good life, human flourishing.
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What is the final cause of the universe to Aristotle? How?
God is the final cause: The final cause = the ultimate reason why it exists. The universe exists because of God.
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Summarise characteristics of Aristotle's God.
Perfect; everlasting; NOT the God of Christianity or any other religion; completely transcendent; Prime Mover; Unmoved; unconscious
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What is the aim of Aristotle's Prime Mover theory?
Explanation for cause and change in the world.
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What is the Prime Mover theory?
Everything is in a constant state of movement (change, growth, melting, cooling, heating). Behind every movement is a chain of movements which brought the current movement about. To start the chain, there must be something which moves but itself remains u
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How is Aristotle's God unconscious?
God exercises a 'pull' on things which causes movement. God does not do this consciously; God attracts by nature.
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What example does Aristotle give to illustrate his point?
The saucer of milk analogy: The milk (God) is unmoved by the cat, the cat (humanity) is moved by the milk.
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Explain Aristotle's theory on divine thought.
A perfect being can only think perfect thoughts. Thinking anything less than perfect would be imperfect. Only thing worthy of being thought by a perfect divinity would be itself. So, God contemplates himself. Means he does not contemplate world
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Name some of Aristotle's beliefs about the soul
Everyone has one; not immortal; unique to every individual; no afterlife/ transmigration of the soul.
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How does Aristotle's idea of the soul differ from Plato's?
The soul is not separate to the body. Just as a boat needs a rower to move, the soul ceases to exist at the death of the body.
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What name does he give the soul? Name and explain
'De anima': the animating force in our body. The body cannot move itself, so movement comes from the soul.
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How does he explain the distinction between body and soul?
The analogy of the axe: The wood and metal shape it, but its ability to chop makes it an axe. Without its ability to chop, it would just be wood and metal. In the same way, without a soul humans would just be meat and bones
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What is the name for Aristotle's human soul? Why?
The Tripartite Soul; because the 3 types of soul combine to make the human soul.
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Name the 3 types of soul
1) Vegetative 2) Appetitive 3) Intellectual
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What is the vegetative soul?
Found in plants, and animals and humans; has 2 capabilities: nutrition, reproduction
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What is the appetitive soul?
Found in animals and humans; more capabilities: Nutrition, reproduction, movement, Sensation, Passions and appetites, Emotions.
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What is the intellectual soul?
Found only in humans; has all capabilities of vegetative and appetitive souls + Reason.
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Why are humans at the top of the hierarchy of living things?
Humans are the only living beings with all 3 types of soul.
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Give some strengths of Plato's theory of Forms
Gives a reason for existence;
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What is the main difference between Plato's and Aristotle's arguments?
Plato: Assumes things have an individual Form (a priori)
Aristotle: Though that each thing should be studied individually to understand them (a posteriori)
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'Plato and Aristotle both believe in Eudaimonia.' True or False?
True: Eudaimonia can be achieved through successfully fulfilling a purpose e.g. horses that will be able to win races
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What is a posteriori knowledge?

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Card 4

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Outline Plato's Analogy of the Cave

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Card 5

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What does the Analogy mean?

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