Writing PhilosophyWHAT IS GOOD PHILOSOPHICAL WRITING?
November 24, 2023

WHAT IS GOOD PHILOSOPHICAL WRITING?

Writing effectively for a philosophy course does not merely start with the general principles of good writing just outlined, it sets out to show mastery of these principles. It embodies…
WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY?WHAT IS THE “SUBJECT MATTER” OF 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 PhilosophyANALYTIC PHILOSOPHYLOGICAL POSITIVISM
November 15, 2023

LOGICAL POSITIVISM

Originally founded by Auguste Comte (1798–1857), Positivism was primarily a view about science. Influenced by Immanuel Kant’s (1724-1804) assertion that knowledge of things-inthemselves was impossible, Comte argued that our scientific…
History Of PhilosophyANALYTIC PHILOSOPHYORDINARY LANGUAGE PHILOSOPHY
November 15, 2023

ORDINARY LANGUAGE PHILOSOPHY

Between the 1940s and the 1960s, analytic philosophy shifted away from investigating the (supposed) underlying logical structure of language. While it was still primarily concerned with conceptual analysis, this was…
LogicPREDICATE CALCULUS (PREDICATE LOGIC)
November 15, 2023

PREDICATE CALCULUS (PREDICATE LOGIC)

The next development of the propositional calculus is the predicate calculus. This considers the logical relationships that hold between predicate expressions, along with the quantifiers ∃x (“there is at least…
CLASSICAL PHILOSOPHYHistory Of PhilosophySTOICISM
November 15, 2023

STOICISM

Founded by Zeno of Citium (334–262 BC), early Stoicism shared many similarities with Epicureanism, including the belief that the world was largely deterministic and that the overall goal of the…
FORMS OF PHILOSOPHICAL WRITINGWriting PhilosophyOTHER CATEGORIZATIONS OF PHILOSOPHICAL WRITING
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 WRITINGTHE ESSAY OF AFFIRMATION
November 20, 2023

THE ESSAY OF AFFIRMATION

The essay of affirmation takes the position I agree. If you want to write an essay agreeing with—affirming—the ideas of another, such as a philosopher, a simple statement of agreement…
Philosophy BranchesTraditional Branches of PhilosophyMETAPHYSICS
December 12, 2023

METAPHYSICS

Metaphysics is the philosophical investigation of reality, including the nature of the world and the entities it contains. While such an investigation inevitably overlaps with natural philosophy—the sciences, especially physics…
CLASSICAL PHILOSOPHYHistory Of PhilosophyCYNICISM
November 15, 2023

CYNICISM

Founded by Antisthenes (c. 445–360 BC), who taught the importance of individual virtue over material luxury, Cynicism was contemptuous of political institutions and organized religion. It rejected refined philosophical speculation…
Writing PhilosophyGOOD PHILOSOPHICAL WRITING
November 23, 2023

GOOD PHILOSOPHICAL WRITING

BASICS OF GOOD PHILOSOPHICAL WRITING: A DEEPER DIVE Having surveyed the elements of good writing from 30,000 feet, let’s swoop in on some of the most important specifics. This means…
CONTINENTAL PHILOSOPHYHistory Of PhilosophyEXISTENTIALISM
November 15, 2023

EXISTENTIALISM

A broad philosophical and literary movement that flourished during the first half of the twentieth century, Existentialism emphasized the uniqueness of human experience over the generalizations of traditional scientific or…
Writing PhilosophyWRITING PHILOSOPHY
November 24, 2023

WRITING PHILOSOPHY

How Do You Do Philosophy? Writing Is Central To Philosophy What Philosophy Professors Want From Student Writers What Is Good Writing? What Is Good Philosophical Writing? Grading Criteria for Philosophy…
Writing PhilosophyWRITING IS CENTRAL TO PHILOSOPHY
November 24, 2023

WRITING IS CENTRAL TO PHILOSOPHY

For the great majority of us, writing is instrumental to thinking. Since it is reasonable to describe philosophy as the application of disciplined thought to a variety of topics, issues,…
Writing PhilosophyHOW DO YOU DO 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…

Books

  • The Dhammapada (Easwaran’s Classics of Indian Spirituality Book 3)

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  • What the Buddha Taught

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  • The Silence of Animals: On Progress and Other Modern Myths

    $17.00
  • Existentialism and Excess: The Life and Times of Jean-Paul Sartre

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  • Practicing the Power of Now: Essential Teachings, Meditations, And Exercises From the Power of Now (Easyread Large)

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  • The Quran and the Secular Mind: A Philosophy of Islam

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  • What Do Philosophers Do?: Skepticism and the Practice of Philosophy (The Romanell Lectures)

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  • Nature and Norm: Judaism, Christianity, and the Theopolitical Problem (New Perspectives in Post-Rabbinic Judaism)

    $71.14
  • An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding: with Hume’s Abstract of A Treatise of Human Nature and A Letter from a Gentleman to His Friend in Edinburgh (Hackett Classics)

    $9.00
  • Greek Thought, Arabic Culture: The Graeco-Arabic Translation Movement in Baghdad and Early ‘Abbasaid Society (2nd-4th/5th-10th c.) (Arabic Thought and Culture)

    $45.24
  • The Brothers Karamazov: A Novel in Four Parts and an Epilogue

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  • The Visible and the Invisible; Followed By Working Notes

    $46.00
  • The Philosophy of Aristotle (Signet Classics)

    $5.99
  • Paradox Lost: Logical Solutions to Ten Puzzles of Philosophy

    $64.99
  • In Search Of The Miraculous (Harvest Book)

    $13.59
  • Foundations of Relational Realism: A Topological Approach to Quantum Mechanics and the Philosophy of Nature (Contemporary Whitehead Studies)

    $69.99
Reexamining Spacetime Substantivalism: A Critique of Modal Arbitrariness and Determinism in Teitel’s Framework

Reexamining Spacetime Substantivalism: A Critique of Modal Arbitrariness and Determinism in Teitel’s Framework

Philosophy StudentPhilosophy Student
Reexamining Spacetime Substantivalism: A Critique of Modal Arbitrariness and Determinism in Teitel’s Framework

Reexamining Spacetime Substantivalism: A Critique of Modal Arbitrariness and Determinism in Teitel’s Framework

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Rule-Following and Artificial Intelligence: A Kripkean Perspective

Rule-Following and Artificial Intelligence: A Kripkean Perspective

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The Eternal Coexistence of Consciousness and Spacetime: A Philosophical Inquiry

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Embracing Contradiction: An In-Depth Analysis of Dialetheism

Embracing Contradiction: An In-Depth Analysis of Dialetheism

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Analysis of, and Responses to Edmund Gettier’s “Is Justified True Belief Knowledge?”

Analysis of, and Responses to Edmund Gettier’s “Is Justified True Belief Knowledge?”

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The Unstable Foundation: A Critique of the Ontological Proof of God’s Existence

The Unstable Foundation: A Critique of the Ontological Proof of God’s Existence

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Meta-Modal Actuality: A Dynamic Framework for Possibility, Actualization, and Causality

Meta-Modal Actuality: A Dynamic Framework for Possibility, Actualization, and Causality

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Killing, Morality, and the Human Condition: A Philosophical Investigation

Killing, Morality, and the Human Condition: A Philosophical Investigation

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The Intricacy of Existence: A Philosophical Exploration of Complexity, Contingency, and Divine Agency

The Intricacy of Existence: A Philosophical Exploration of Complexity, Contingency, and Divine Agency

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The Ethics of Procreation and the Rational Acceptance of Life: A Critical Engagement with Weinberg’s Argument

The Ethics of Procreation and the Rational Acceptance of Life: A Critical Engagement with Weinberg’s Argument

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Imagination, Consciousness, and the Nature of the Soul: A Philosophical Inquiry

Imagination, Consciousness, and the Nature of the Soul: A Philosophical Inquiry

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The Interplay of Karma, Rebirth, and Non-Self in Buddhist Philosophy: A Metaphysical Inquiry

The Interplay of Karma, Rebirth, and Non-Self in Buddhist Philosophy: A Metaphysical Inquiry

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Metaphysical Perspectives: A Comparative Analysis of Theism and Atheism

Metaphysical Perspectives: A Comparative Analysis of Theism and Atheism

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The Infinite Universe, Death, and the Search for Meaning: A Philosophical Exploration of Existence, the Divine, and Human Mortality

The Infinite Universe, Death, and the Search for Meaning: A Philosophical Exploration of Existence, the Divine, and Human Mortality

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The Unconscious Artistry of Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Reflection on Spinoza’s God and the Blind Watchmaker

The Unconscious Artistry of Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Reflection on Spinoza’s God and the Blind Watchmaker

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The Ethics of Procreation and the Rational Acceptance of Life: A Critical Engagement with Weinberg’s Argument

The Ethics of Procreation and the Rational Acceptance of Life: A Critical Engagement with Weinberg’s Argument

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Terms & Concepts

E

Entitlement

The having of a right. https://youtube.com/shorts/tBm4A06G8aE?feature=share
U

Unsound

The evaluation term for an argument that is either invalid or valid with at least one false premise. https://youtube.com/shorts/CkFSDnbDplY?feature=share
C

Consequentialism

The ethical view that the rightness or wrongness of an action is determined by itsconsequences. https://youtube.com/shorts/WS3xSCC4V8s?feature=share
D
Disposition
W
Weak argument
A
Ahimsa
E
Equality
N
Natural kind
M
Material conditional
S
State of nature
C
Contradictories
I
Indeterminism
View All