...Essay 3 - Hebrew Wisdom Micheal Coffin October 4, 2015 1 Introduction In this essay, we will discuss the Hebrew wisdom on “wisdom and folly”, also looking at the contrast between “diligence and laziness”. These terms appear frequently in the Old Testament. However, we will concentrate on their use and meaning in the Poetic Books. 1. Background Solomon is considered to be the man who founded the wisdom movement (1 Kings 4:2934). The purpose of the wisdom movement was initially a practical one: to educate the nobility for cultural and political leadership. The main concern of teachers was to inform and discipline the mind and life at an early age. 1 In Israel, however, the practical purpose of the movement was increasingly matched by a concern to say in human terms what the ultimate meaning of man’s life is. In modern terms, from being a movement concerned with practical ethics it becomes a movement increasingly concerned with religious and theological issues. It should be noted that in this respect, Israel’s wisdom movement developed much further than that of Egypt or of other Near Eastern cultures. 2 1. J. Coert Rylaarsdam, Layman's Bible Commentary: Vol. 10 - Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon (Richmond, VA: John Knox Press, 1971), 9. 2. Ibid, 10. 2 2. Wisdom and Folly In 1 Kings 4:34, we see one of the blessings God gave to Solomon to show His pleasure; “Men came from all peoples to hear the Wisdom of Solomon, from all the kings...
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...Jackie Pollard Adam Cleary Philosophy 07/30/14 Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero was a man that came into philosophical fame during the Roman Era. He came from a wealthy family and was born in 106 BC in a town called Arpinum located about 70 miles southeast of Rome. He was known to be a very talented young student which helped him get the opportunity to study in Rome. Cicero studied literature, philosophy, and law in Rome until his studies were interrupted with serving time in the military under Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo during the Social War. After serving in war he continued his studies alongside Servius Sulpicius Rufus and Titus Pomponius. It turns out Cicero was a far better lawyer than those he studied alongside with. His love of Philiosophy flourished during his time of study in Rome and he became one of the leading political figures of his era. Some of his theories are still used to this day. Cicero believed that justice was not a real thing. It is not something that is constant. It is not something that can be controlled. It is each state or person’s own idea of what is right or wrong. What some states may believe is just others might believe is unjust according to their rules, their laws. Who is to really say what is just? Cicero created that question in everyone’s mind of what is really right and how do we really know it is right. An example is hunting animals seems right to us as human beings. We as humans think it is just since we need them to survive. Animals...
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...Chapter 1 Introduction to Personality Theory Learning Objectives After reading Chapter 1, you should be able to: 1. Express your own definition of personality. 2. Differentiate theory from (a) philosophy, (b) speculation, (c) hypothesis, and (d) taxonomy. 3. Defend the need for more than one theory. 4. Show how an understanding of the various theorists' life story is related to their theory. 5. Explain the relationship between theory and observations. 6. List and explain the criteria of a useful theory. 7. Explain why falsifiability is a positive characteristic of a theory. 8. Discuss various components for a concept of humanity. 9. Define reliability and validity and explain why both concepts are important in personality research. Summary Outline I. Overview of Personality Theory From the investigations of Freud during the last decade of the 19th century until the present time, a number of personality theorists have (1) made controlled observations of human behavior and (2) speculated on the meaning of those observations. Differences in the theories of these men and women are due to more than differences in terminology. They stem from differences on basic issues concerning the nature of humanity. II. What Is Personality? The term personality comes from the Latin word persona, meaning the mask people wear or the role they play in life. However, most psychologists use the term to refer to much more...
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...Introduction After World War II, the United States felt it could benefit from assisting the Japanese economy. The United States sent those who contributed to American businesses during the war to act as advisors to Japanese businesses, one of whom was Dr. W. Edwards Deming. Deming’s ideas that made the Japanese increasingly competitive came to be known as kaizen (Maurer 9-10). What is Kaizen? Dr. Deming’s ideas that became known as kaizen included reduction of waste, respect for workers, and service to the customer (Maurer 9). Kaizen is a Japanese term that is commonly interpreted as continuous improvement. Literally translated, it means “good change”; “kai” meaning change and “zen” meaning good (Farris 19; Khan 177). Kaizen is the philosophy that we set standards and then continually improve on those standards (Khan 178). This supports Deming’s Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle (see Figure 1)....
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...Aristotle Philosophy Shalonda Floyd Ethical Issues in Business and Accounting Professor Gates February 12, 2013 In this paper, I am going to discuss the philosopher Aristotle. This paper will discuss how Aristotle perspective of distributive justice is applicable to ethics. Also, I will discuss Aristotle’s Nichomachean Ethics philosophy, why it is valuable and how it potentially connects to accounting and business. There have been many excellent philosophers and thinkers through past time. There are three main ones that I liked and truly had an accountant and business ethics philosophy. They are Plato, Socrates, and Aristotle. I decided to choose Aristotle as the greatest of them all on this subject. Aristotle was a student of Plato, and he possessed extraordinarily strong ethics. Aristotle born in northern Greece. He was a notable product of an educational program devised by Plato. He studied at an academy for twenty years. His view on individual human beings is they invariably linked together in a social context. Aristotle disagreed with Plato’s view but defended his own vision of ultimate reality. According to Britannica.com, he was an ancient Greek philosopher and scientist, one of the greatest intellectual figures of Western history. He had a wide and a vast range of intellectual pieces. He was the founder of formal logic and the most outstanding as a philosopher among many. This paper will discuss how Aristotle philosopher’s perspective of virtue ethics...
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...Plato Paper: Prompt #2 11/3/14 Why does Plato write dialogues? How does that genre fit with and promote his philosophy? Use Examined life to help promote this concept that Plato embodies. ! From what method of teaching can a learner take away a meaningful interpretation of the lesson taught? Upon determining the answer to this question, one might discern between more and less helpful ways to learn. The old Native American saying goes, “Tell me and I'll forget. Show me, and I may not remember. Involve me, and I'll understand”(Inspirational Quotes). This exact idea is embodied by Plato and also by some of the philosophers in The Examined Life. Plato provides examples of stories to help one wrap their brain around a concept due to their own involvement in the learning. The brilliant Plato methodically sends an equally striking and concise impression-making message to both his readers and interlocutors. Unlike Aristotle, who lays down the law of philosophy in absolute non-negotiable terms, Plato paints a sufficiently big picture for the reader in terms of philosophical conclusion through narrative dialogues and allegories in his writings. Plato does this by granting the interlocutor a paintbrush in drawing the “big picture” so that the appropriate details can be sketched in as needed and refutations are made possible in order to distinguish between what is and what is not relevant. This process gives the readers, as well as the interlocutors, a feeling of overall ...
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...Sadly, in today’s society the majority of the time the greater number prevails. This is especially true in our court systems, and elections. There are many situations that occur around the world where a person or a group of people live contently with doing that which is biased. This makes utilitarianism inappropriate as a governing philosophy for the general population. To reiterate what has been stated in the paragraph before, utilitarianism is only concerned with our happiness, or pleasure. The problem might be that we assign a value to everything. Another issue might be that individuals have their own conceptions of the pleasurable. Some people may like chocolate ice cream, some people may like vanilla ice cream, and there are some that like both. Creating a universal way of measuring everyone’s happiness and perfecting it is...
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...ANALYSIS OF BUDDHISM’S APPEAL TO THE WEST INTRODUCTION “When you come back as a whale, you’ll be bloody glad you put Greenpeace in your will.” — Greenpeace advertisement on billboard in Taylor Square, Sidney, Australia As the above quotation from the advertisement indicates, there is no question that Buddhism has a certain appeal to the West. Donald S. Lopez, Jr. author of Prisoners of Shangri-la: Tibetan Buddhism and The West provides a cultural history of the “strange encounter” between Buddhism (especially Tibetan Buddhism) and Western countries, most notably Britain, Australia and the United States. It is no longer questionable that Buddhism, and again, especially the Tibetan stream, has permeated popular culture: since China’s invasion and occupation of Tibet in 1950, which will be discussed further, but most significantly since the 1990s. This is most likely accredited to the Dalai Lama’s receipt of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989, which brought him and Buddhism much exposure. In fact, every stream of Buddhism announces growing public acceptance in the West since the Dalai Lama first visited two decades ago. The Complete Guide to Buddhist America, written in 1998 for which the Dalai Lama wrote the preface, reports that the number of worship centers in the United States more than doubled from 1987 to 1997 to over one thousand. Several examples illustrate the recent exposure of Buddhism in Western popular and political culture. Firstly, one of the most popular films...
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...PHI 150 3/11/14 Socrates Paper Socrates is believed to be one of the greatest philosophers of all time and he is credited as being the founder of western philosophy. This paper will explain some of his views to the most fundamental questions of today’s age. These questions will include topics about morality, the human condition, solution, and death. After Socrates’ views on these topics are explained, a critique will be done on his answers. I will start out by explaining exactly who Socrates is, and the time that he lived in. To start out, we will first examine Socrates’ view on morality. There are many questions that could be asked about the topic of morality. Questions like, what are the central moral principles, who is the ideal person, how do you determine right versus wrong. In Socrates’ eyes, I believe that the question of morality comes down to one main question, is it just or unjust? When Socrates was imprisoned facing his death, one of his close friends, Crito, came to him and presented him with an opportunity to escape and he replies to the proposal by saying, “Then in light of this admission we must consider whether or not it is just for me to try and get away without being released by the Athenians. If it turns out to be just, we must make an attempt; if not, we must drop it.” (Crito 48c). Crito then continues to give him reasons why they must escape including how Socrates is endangering the reputation of his friends, how he was put into jail unjustly...
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...short scientific history. Philosophical Background In the seventh century B.C., the King of Egypt conducted what many, including psychology historian Morton Hunt, consider to be the first psychology experiment. Though flawed and rudimentary, the king tested his idea that thoughts and language came from the mind. Although unscientific, the idea of the minds overall ability to do more was put to the test. Socrates (460-399 B.C.) often considered and referred to as a father of philosophy, stated “One thing only I know and that is I know nothing.” This realization came when he concluded that philosophy can only begin when one learns to doubt, particularly the thoughts and ideals that each individual holds dear and sacred. In short, real philosophy cannot start until one’s mind begins to examine itself. Again the mind is central and paramount. To modern psychology he gave the Socratic Method of questioning, which demanded definitions be as accurate as possible, clear thinking at all times, and exact analysis of all details. Hippocrates (460-370 B.C), the father of medicine, developed a new method of research that necessitated the need for careful observation followed by precise collection and interpretation of facts. This method was incorporated into the study of individual physical, emotional, and...
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...Renaissance Humanism encompasses the philosophy that people are capable of truth and goodness. Much of this ideology and philosophy representing art and literature, whose roots are deeply planted in classic Latin, came to the forefront in the Fifteenth Century. Art and literature in the Fifteenth Century were a revival of “Greek and Roman studies, which emphasized the value of the classics for their own sake, rather than for their relevance to Christianity” (Hunter & Payne, 2003). Humanists believed that through the study of “…the classical study of text of ancient Greece and Rome” (Humanism, 2007) one would be able to improve on society as a whole. During previous periods, this type of teaching was kept mostly to theologians, authors and philosophers. During the Renaissance though, the people who had the means and desire to study classical art and literature were from a broad spectrum of royalty to merchants. The students were not studying for professional reasons but more so for pleasure. The interest in art broadened from works Classical Greece to what, at the time of the Renaissance, were referred to as contemporary works and existed as objects of learning or ideal beauty Literature had its foundation deep in classical roots and there are many similarities and contrasting points of view in their themes. One of the most significant documents of literature, during this period, was the theses (“intellectual propositions”) written by Giovanni Pico della Mirandola...
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...PREFACE This major project examines the indispensable desiderata of Transcendentalism in comparison to the Dark Romantics background and how these technicalities prepare this work of art as an influential synthesis of human imagination incorporated with mystic facts. Transcendentalism and Dark Romanticism were two literary movements that occurred in America during roughly the same time period (1840—1860). Although the two had surface similarities, such as their reverence for Nature, their founding beliefs were quite different, enough to make one seem almost the antithesis of each other. Moreover one’s genesis is ventured out from other; i.e. Dark Romanticism from the roots of Transcendentalism or precisely the lacunae are best determined for raising up the term called Dark Romanticism. Contents S. No. Page no. Chapter 1.........................................................................................................4-14 Chapter 2.........................................................................................................15-23. Chapter 3..........................................................................................................24-27 Resolution.........................................................................................................28-29 Work Cited................................................................
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...Plato’s Republic and Machiavelli’s The Prince are each hugely important texts in the history of philosophy. Even though they were written approximately 1900 years apart, they represent two of the most valuable commentaries on political philosophy. They are of course, very different in their discussions of philosophy, yet some similarities are evident. Plato writes about philosophy through the mouth of Socrates, illustrating indirectly through a lengthy dialogue his own ideas and opinions. As a contrast to this method of narration, Machiavelli writes The Prince as a letter of personal advice to Lorenzo Medici. Within his work, Machiavelli makes numerous recommendations that have earned him the label of a heartless and cruel man. Plato, on the other hand, makes much of his discussion about the true nature of philosophy and the just treatment of all citizens. Despite numerous differences, Plato and Machiavelli each desire the rule of philosophers in their states, but while Plato approaches this with direct rule and education of philosopher-kings, Machiavelli appeals to manipulation and deceit in order to secure the rule of philosophers. Plato’s aim in his political state is for the greatest good of all people, through the best balancing of the natural elements on an individual and political scale. According to Plato, the human soul is comprised of the reasoning part, the spirited part and the appetites. The parallel elements within a city are the rulers, warriors and artisans...
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...Aaron Mitchell Teacher: Shawn Haake January 18, 2015 PHI101FD0215SP CHAPTER 1: Introduction to Western Philosophy Origins of the word Philosophy: The word "philosophy" comes from the Ancient Greek (philosophia), which literally means "love of wisdom Explain Modes of persuasion Persuasion is clearly a sort of demonstration, since we are most fully persuaded when we consider a thing to have been demonstrated. Of the modes of persuasion furnished by the spoken word there are three kinds. Persuasion is achieved by the speaker's personal character when the speech is so spoken as to make us think him credible. Secondly, persuasion may come through the hearers, when the speech stirs their emotions. Thirdly, persuasion is effected through the speech itself when we have proved a truth or an apparent truth by means of the persuasive arguments suitable to the case in question. MYTHOS: a set of beliefs or assumptions about something. LOGOS: Logos (Logical) means persuading by the use of reasoning. This will be the most important technique we will study, and Aristotle's favorite. We'll look at deductive and inductive reasoning, and discuss what makes an effective, persuasive reason to back up your claims. Giving reasons is the heart of argumentation, and cannot be emphasized enough. We'll study the types of support you can use to substantiate your thesis, and look at some of the common logical fallacies, in order to avoid them in your writing. Who was THALES? Was a pre-Socratic...
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...In contemporary philosophical discourse, the heart of discussion revolves around the efforts of ancient pioneering philosophers; and today, our philosophy integrates empiricism and rationalism. Empiricism implies that knowledge is gained through experiential insight, while the rationalism assumes that knowledge is gained through one’s practical understanding. During the early Greek times, the vast majority of the Greek philosophies and theories were composed of empiricism and rationalism. Questions that relate to human existence; mind and body, as we will see, were developed on the assumption that knowledge comes from experience. Some theories were so powerful that they have been moulded and manipulated to fit into the faculty of various religious beliefs and practices. The contributions of Socrates (500 BC) still remain to this day, and are studied in great depth such as the “Republic of Plato” which was written by Plato. Socrates, one of the world’s most influential philosophers, who was seemingly ahead of his time, shaped elegant theories which illuminated many of the puzzling aspects regarding life and death – body and soul. In the following narrative, we will describe the main differences, properties, and functions between the body and the soul, according to Socrates. Accompanying will be an explanation of what Socrates sought to be the underlying characteristics interacting within the body and soul. The ways in which Socrates describes the characteristics is what makes...
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