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FORMS OF PHILOSOPHICAL WRITING
November 20, 2023

THE PERSONAL ESSAY

The personal essay is a self-reflective search for meaning. Unlike most philosophical writing, it is not argumentative. Instead, it is exploratory and speculative, often even somewhat confessional. It is typically…
History Of PhilosophyTHE EARLY MODERN PERIOD
November 15, 2023

TRANSCENDENTAL IDEALISM

The philosophical system developed by Immanuel Kant (1724–1804), Transcendental Idealism sought to overcome the epistemological problems of Empiricism while providing a rational justification for Liberalism.
WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY?
November 12, 2023

WHAT IS THE “SUBJECT MATTER” OF PHILOSOPHY

“There is a common misunderstanding that philosophy—like chemistry or history—has a content to offer, a content that a teacher is to teach and a student is to learn,” writes Professor…
History Of Philosophy
November 15, 2023

THE SOPHISTS

The Sophists were not a single school but a professional grouping of largely itinerant teachers of rhetoric, philosophy, and legal argumentation. Their importance lies not in any specific doctrines but…
PHILOSOPHICAL BOOKS AND TEXT
November 27, 2023

CRITICAL THINKING AND LOGIC TEXTBOOKS

Textbooks on critical thinking and logic.
Writing Philosophy
November 24, 2023

HOW DO YOU DO PHILOSOPHY?

How do you do philosophy? Unlike many of the questions asked in the name of philosophy, this one has a straightforward answer. You do philosophy primarily through writing. Now, if…
PHILOSOPHICAL BOOKS AND TEXT
November 27, 2023

INTRODUCTORY PHILOSOPHY TEXTS

There is no substitute for grappling primary sources. Nevertheless, secondary sources—including scholarly research, literary reviews, historical summaries—are valuable tools. They not only show you how you can begin thinking about…
FORMS OF PHILOSOPHICAL WRITINGWriting Philosophy
November 19, 2023

OTHER CATEGORIZATIONS OF PHILOSOPHICAL WRITING

There are other ways of classifying the forms of philosophic writing you may be asked to produce. The most prominent of these are: The Expository Paper The Argumentative Paper The…
FORMS OF PHILOSOPHICAL WRITINGWriting Philosophy
November 19, 2023

THE EXPOSITORY PAPER

We have already touched on the expository paper, but let’s discuss it briefly here. Look at the adjective expository. It is derived from the noun exposition, which is the noun…
FORMS OF PHILOSOPHICAL WRITINGWriting Philosophy
November 20, 2023

THE ESSAY OF REFUTATION

The essay of refutation takes the position “I disagree.” Its objective is to persuade the reader that the argument of another is false, flawed, unlikely, implausible, or in some other…
CLASSICAL PHILOSOPHYHistory Of Philosophy
November 15, 2023

ARISTOTLE

Aristotle (384–322 BC) was born in Stagira but moved to Athens as a young man to study at Plato’s Academy. Following Plato’s death, Aristotle traveled, became tutor to Alexander the…
Logic
November 15, 2023

QUANTUM LOGIC

Most non-classical logics are motivated by either philosophical considerations, such as the metaphysical status of the future, or technical concerns about the neutrality of the logical connectives or the notion…
STRATEGIC WRITING CHOICESWriting Philosophy
November 18, 2023

STRATEGIC WRITING CHOICES FOR PHILOSOPHY CLASS

Writing philosophy should not be easy, but you cannot allow it to become impossible. Here are five strategic rules of thumb for embarking on a successful writing project for philosophy…
PHILOSOPHICAL BOOKS AND TEXT
November 23, 2023

PHILOSOPHICAL BOOKS AND TEXT

ESSENTIAL READING IN THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY BOOKS TO GUIDE NOVICE PHILOSOPHY STUDENTS INTRODUCTORY PHILOSOPHY TEXTS GUIDES TO PHILOSOPHICAL WRITING INTRODUCTORY LOGIC TEXTS CRITICAL THINKING AND LOGIC TEXTBOOKS
FORMS OF PHILOSOPHICAL WRITINGWriting Philosophy
November 20, 2023

FORMS OF PHILOSOPHICAL WRITING

The word essay comes from the French infinitive verb essayer, meaning “to try” or “to attempt.” In fact, when the word was first borrowed into the English language, as essay,…

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  • Nietzsche and Levinas: “After the Death of a Certain God” (Insurrections: Critical Studies in Religion, Politics, and Culture)

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Terms & Concepts

S

Subjective truth (subjectivity)

Søren Kierkegaard’s (1813-1855) view that “truth is subjectivity” is not to be confused with relativism, which is the view that something is true because one believes it. Instead,subjective truth is…
W

Will to power

Friedrich Nietzsche’s (1844-1900) view of the aim of every human action. Also,fundamental human striving. https://youtube.com/shorts/41RKsgm3wyg?feature=share
P

Psychologism egoism

The descriptive theory that human beings are ultimately motived by self-interest. https://youtube.com/shorts/PZbemHiUtxA?feature=share
Q
Quantity
C
Categories
P
Principle of sufficient reason
Q
Qualities
C
Contradictories
P
Polytheism
A
Aphorism
M
Material conditional
E
Entitlement
View All