Saint Thomas Aquinas: Life and the Five Ways
Saint Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas was born in Naples in 1225. He was destined to become abbot of Montecassino. He completed his initial studies at the University of Naples and then went to Paris where he met Saint Albert the Great and became his disciple. He went to Cologne where he completed his training and returned to Paris. He became the master of the papal curia, having to follow the Pope in his various travels. He returned to the University of Paris and died in 1274 on the way to the Council
Read MoreUnderstanding Empiricism: Locke, Hume, and Critique of Metaphysics
Empiricism: Key Concepts and Hume’s Research on Knowledge
Empiricism Character: Reliance on experience as the criterion of truth. Locke posits that the mind is initially a blank slate, acquiring information through sensory experience. Knowledge is thus bounded by the source of sensitive impressions, with science based on experience (physical). Empiricists and rationalists share the view that the subject constructs reality.
Hume’s Research on Knowledge
Hume argues that studying human knowledge is fundamental
Read MoreKant’s Physics, Dialectic, and Metaphysics: A Summary
Physics (Pure)
Kant refers only to physical “pure.” Its purpose is to Nature, which means all phenomena. These laws must be synthetic a priori propositions. The problem is this: How do the laws of nature, on whose synthetic character cannot be doubted, be a priori? Indeed, if nature is the set of phenomena, they are subject to the possibility of experience, i.e., the categories; therefore, the rules of use of the categories (understanding) are also laws of Nature. Physics is possible because it is
Read MoreMachiavelli: Political Philosophy and Statecraft
Machiavelli: Historical Background
Niccolò Machiavelli was born in Florence in 1469. At that time, the Italian peninsula was divided into many city-states, involving foreign powers such as France and Spain. Florence, ruled by the wealthy Medici family, was the intellectual center of Europe. Machiavelli participated in numerous diplomatic missions, and Cesare Borgia would serve as a model for his concept of “The Prince.”
Machiavelli’s Conception of the State
- Human Nature is Inherently Bad: While the
Understanding Key Concepts: Reality, Illusionism, and Society
Key Concepts in Philosophy and Social Science
Reality
In philosophy, reality is a concept that designates the common features of what exists. It is studied by metaphysics. The primary object of metaphysics is what makes something ‘is’ as such. It is the study of beings, before the analysis of entities or existing real beings.
Illusionism
Illusionism refers to a reality that stems from a false perception of the outside world. It is linked to a mistaken appearance that does not correspond to reality.
The
Read MoreUnderstanding the Foundations of Philosophy and Science
1. The Philosophical Knowledge: Experience acquired through thinking. Philosophy is the process of using reason to critically and rigorously understand the fundamental structure of reality and reason.
2. Evolution of the Term “Science”: The modern notion of science emerged during the Renaissance, a period known as the Scientific Revolution. This is when science and philosophy began to diverge. Certain particular sciences, especially those of an empirical nature, such as physics and astronomy, became
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