Classic Philosophical Questions

by Gould, James A.; Mulvaney, Robert J.

• ISBN13: 9780130830531
• ISBN10: 0130830534
• Edition: 10th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2000-06-01
• Publisher: Prentice Hall

Summary

For Introduction to Humanities courses and Introduction to Philosophy courses. A classic, proven through nine previous editions, this reader stimulates students' interest in philosophy through an innovative and appropriate sides of the argument presentation, with each reading representing a position on each of the fundamental philosophical questions. Using debate and argument as a vehicle, Classic Philosophical Questions simultaneously teaches students the fundamentals of philosophy while also demonstrating that philosophy is a discourse that has spanned centuries and stressing the importance of the philosophical debate. Sure to create lively in-class debates, the collection of readings offers both classic and contemporary readings that challenge students with the basic inquiries that philosophers have discussed for centuries.

Table of Contents

Preface	xi
PART 1 Plato and the Trial of Socrates	1	(40)
Euthyphro: Defining Philosophical Terms	3	(11)
The Apology, Phaedo, and Crito: The Trial, Immortality, and Death of Socrates	14	(27)
PART 2 The Value of Philosophy	41	(10)
What Is the Value of Philosophy
Russell: The Value of Philosophy	43	(8)
PART 3 Philosophical Methodologies	51	(26)
What Is the Best Approach to Philosophy?
Peirce: Four Approaches to Philosophy	53	(12)
Feigl: The Scientific Approach	65	(12)
PART 4 Philosophy of Religion	77	(54)
Can We Prove God Exists
St. Anselm: The Ontological Argument	79	(7)
St. Thomas Aquinas: The Cosmological Argument	86	(6)
Paley: The Teleological Argument	92	(6)
Pascal: It Is Better to Believe in God's Existence Than to Deny It	98	(7)
Kierkegaard: Faith, Not Logic, Is the Basis of Belief	105	(7)
Does the Idea of a Good God Exclude Evil?
Hume: A Good God Would Exclude Evil	112	(9)
Hick: God Can Allow Some Evil	121	(10)
PART 5 Ethics	131	(138)
Are Humans Free
Holbach: Humans Are Determined	133	(10)
James: Humans Are Free	143	(11)
Are Ethics Relative
Benedict: Ethics Are Relative	154	(8)
Stace: Ethics Are Not Relative	162	(14)
Are Humans Always Selfish
Plato: Humans Are Always Selfish	176	(4)
Rachels: Humans Are Not Always Selfish	180	(13)
Which Is Basic In Ethics: Happiness or Obligation?
Aristotle: Happiness Is Living Virtuously	193	(11)
Bentham: Happiness is Doing Good for All People	204	(10)
Kant: Duty Is Prior to Happiness	214	(16)
Nietzsche: Happiness Is Having Power	230	(8)
Sartre: Existentialist Ethics	238	(11)
Tong: Feminist Ethics Are Different	249	(20)
PART 6 Knowledge	269	(100)
How Do We Acquire Knowledge
Descartes: Knowledge Is Not Ultimately Sense Knowledge	271	(13)
Locke: Knowledge Is Ultimately Sensed	284	(16)
Kant: Knowledge Is Both Rational and Empirical	300	(10)
How Is Truth Established?
Russell: Truth Is Established by Correspondence	310	(8)
Bradley: Truth Is Established by Coherence	318	(7)
James: Truth Is Established on Pragmatic Grounds	325	(9)
Can We Know the Nature of Causal Relations?
Hume: Cause Means Regular Association	334	(9)
Hanson: Causes and Becauses	343	(12)
Hume: There Are No Possible Grounds for Induction	355	(14)
PART 7 Metaphysics	369	(68)
Of What Does Reality Consist
Descartes: Reality Consists of Mind and Matter	371	(7)
Taylor: Reality Consists of Matter	378	(15)
Berkeley: Reality Consists of Ideas	393	(7)
Is Reality General or Particular
Plato: Universals Are Real	400	(11)
Hume: Particulars Are Real	411	(7)
Do Humans Have an Identical Self
Locke: Human Beings Have an Identical Self	418	(11)
Hume: Human Beings Have No Identical Self	429	(8)
PART 8 Social Philosophy	437	(32)
The Abortion Issue
English: Most Abortions Are Moral	439	(12)
The Pornography Issue
Ward: Should Pornography Be Censored	451	(11)
The Homosexuality Issue
Gould: Is Homosexuality Unnatural or Immoral	462	(7)
PART 9 Political Philosophy	469	(88)
What Is Freedom?
Dostoevski: Freedom Is Authority	471	(14)
Mill: Freedom Is Independence from the Majority's Tyranny	485	(13)
Bartky: Women Are Not Free	498	(15)
Which Government Is Best
Hobbes: Monarchy Is Best	513	(9)
Locke: Liberal Democracy Is Best	522	(8)
Marx: Communism and Nonalienated Labor Is Best	530	(18)
Dewey: Social Democracy Is Best	548	(9)
PART 10 Aesthetics	557	(52)
Are Artistic Judgements Subjective
Ducasse: Tastes Cannot Be Disputed	559	(12)
Beardsley: Tastes Can Be Disputed	571	(9)
What Is the Function of Art
Aristotle: Art Purges the Emotions	580	(9)
Collingwood: Magic or Amusement?	589	(20)
PART 11 The Meaning of Life	609	(28)
What Gives Life Meaning
Tolstoy: Faith Provides Life's Meaning	611	(13)
Camus: Each Person Determines His or Her Life's Meaning	624	(13)
Glossary	637