Philosophy The Pursuit of Wisdom

by Pojman, Louis P.

• ISBN13: 9780495007128
• ISBN10: 0495007129
• Edition: 5th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-10-25
• Publisher: Cengage Learning

Summary

Can philosophy be fun? With PHILOSOPHY: THE PURSUIT OF WISDOM it most certainly is. Because of its lively writing style and clear presentation, this introduction to philosophy textbook is both interesting and informative. You'll discover all the major philosophical theories, as well as tackle hot topics like the existence of God, the free will/determinism debate, and the meaning of life.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
A Personal Word to the Student	xiii
PART I INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY	1	(58)
1 What Is Philosophy?	2	(12)
2 A Little Bit of Logic	14	(14)
Deductive and Inductive Reasoning	14	(5)
Abductive Reasoning	19	(2)
Some Applications	21	(1)
Fallacies of Reasoning	22	(2)
Box: Necessary and Sufficient Conditions	24	(4)
3 The Beginning of Philosophy: The Ancient Greeks	28	(15)
The Milesians	28	(3)
Pythagoras	31	(2)
The Eleatics	33	(3)
Heracleitus	36	(2)
The Pluralists: Empedocles and the Atomists	38	(1)
Anaxagoras of Klazomenae	39	(4)
4 The Rise of the Sophists and Socrates	43	(16)
The Rise of the Sophists	43	(5)
Socrates: The Father of Ethics—Knowledge Is Virtue	48	(8)
Box: Plato	56	(3)
PART II PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION	59	(76)
5 The Value of Religion: An Introduction	60	(9)
Terminology	65	(4)
6 The Cosmological Argument for the Existence of God: A First Cause	69	(9)
Traditional Arguments for the Existence of God	69	(1)
The Cosmological Argument	70	(2)
The Argument from Contingency	72	(6)
7 The Teleological Argument for the Existence of God	78	(8)
Paley's Argument	78	(1)
Hume's Critique	79	(3)
The Danvinian Objection	82	(4)
8 The Ontological Argument for the Existence of God	86	(8)
9 The Argument from Religious Experience	94	(13)
Encounters with God	95	(1)
An Analysis of Religious Experience	95	(3)
A Critique of the Strong Justification Thesis	98	(9)
10 The Problem of Evil	107	(12)
The Mystery of Evil	107	(11)
The Argument from Evil	118
The Free-Will Defense	110	(2)
The Theodicy Defense	112	(3)
Evolution and Evil	115	(4)
11 Faith and Reason	119	(16)
Pragmatic Justification of Religious Belief	120	(3)
Fideism: Faith Without/Against Reason	123	(3)
Reformed Epistemology: Alvin Plantinga	126	(9)
PART III THE THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE	135	(34)
12 What Can We Know? An Introduction	136	(14)
Knowledge and Its Types	136	(2)
What Is Truth?	138	(2)
Knowledge and Belief	140	(4)
Types of Knowledge	144	(6)
13 Skepticism	150	(7)
The Challenge of Skepticism	150	(7)
14 Perception: Can We Have Knowledge of the External World?	157	(12)
PART IV PHILOSOPHY OF MIND	169	(48)
15 The Mind-Body Problem	170	(13)
Dualistic Interactionism	170	(5)
A Critique of Dualistic Interactionism	175	(3)
Dualism Revived	178	(1)
Box: The Mind-Body Problem	179	(4)
16 Materialist Monism	183	(8)
17 Functionalism and Biological Naturalism	191	(7)
Box: Intentionality	195	(3)
18 Who Am I? The Problem of Personal Identity	198	(9)
What Is It to Be a Person?	199	(1)
What Is Identity?	200	(1)
What Is Personal Identity?	201	(6)
19 Is There Life After Death? Personal Identity and Immortality	207	(10)
Box: Reincarnation	213	(4)
PART V FREEDOM OF THE WILL AND DETERMINISM	217	(28)
20 Determinism	219	(6)
Universal Causality	220	(3)
Teleological Determinism	223	(2)
21 Libertarianism	225	(8)
The Argument from Deliberation	225	(5)
The Argument from Moral Responsibility	230	(3)
22 Compatibilism: How to Have Your
Cake and Eat It Too	233	(1)
A Reconciling Project	233	(3)
A Critique of Compatibilism: A "Quagmire of Evasion"?	236	(1)
The Argument Against Compatibilism from Moral Responsibility	236	(5)
The Compatibilist Response	241	(4)
PART VI ETHICS	245	(96)
23 What Is Ethics?	246	(10)
Why Do We Need Morality?	250	(2)
The Purposes of Morality	252	(4)
24 Ethical Relativism Versus Ethical Objectivism	256	(13)
An Analysis of Ethical Relativism	258	(1)
Subjective Ethical Relativism (Subjectivism)	259	(1)
Conventional Ethical Relativism (Conventionalism)	260	(3)
The Case for Ethical Objectivism	263	(6)
25 Egoism, Self-Love, and Altruism	269	(12)
Arguments for Ethical Egoism	272	(2)
Arguments Against Ethical Egoism	274	(2)
Evolution and Altruism	276	(5)
26 Utilitarianism and the Structure of Ethics	281	(14)
What Is Utilitarianism?	284	(3)
The Strengths and Weaknesses of Utilitarianism	287	(2)
Utilitarian Reponses to the Standard Objections	289	(6)
27 Kantian Deontological Ethics	295	(14)
Immanuel Kant's Rationalist Deontological System	296	(2)
The Goodwill	298	(1)
Duty and the Moral Law	299	(4)
Kant's Second Formulation of the Categorical Imperative	303	(2)
The Principle of Autonomy	305	(4)
28 Virtue Ethics	309	(17)
Aretaic Ethics	309	(3)
The Aretaic Critique of Action-Based Ethical Systems	312	(2)
Aristotle's Virtue Ethics	314	(2)
What Is the Relationship Between Virtue and Principles?	316	(4)
The Standard Deontic View's Responses to the Aretaic Critique	320	(6)
29 Religion and Ethics	326	(15)
Does Morality Depend on Religion?	327	(4)
Is Religion Irrelevant or Even Inimical to Morality?	331	(3)
Does Religion Enhance the Moral Life?	334	(7)
PART VII EXISTENTIALISM AND THE MEANING OF LIFE	341	(32)
30 Existentialism and the Meaning of Life	342	(20)
The-Three Theses of Existentialism	345	(13)
Assessment	358	(4)
31 The Meaning of Life and the Fear of Death	362	(11)
Appendix: How to Read and Write a Philosophy Paper	373	(2)
Glossary	375	(7)
Credits	382	(1)
Index	383