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A Must Have Book For Every Philosophy Student
ANALYTIC PHILOSOPHYHistory Of Philosophy
November 15, 2023

ANALYTIC PHILOSOPHY IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY

The analytic tradition arose partly as a rejection of Hegelian idealism in favor of what George Edward Moore (1873–1958) called a “common sense” view of the world, alongside developments in…
Writing 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,…
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…
History Of PhilosophyNON-WESTERN PHILOSOPHICAL TRADITIONS
November 15, 2023

MIDDLE EASTERN TRADITIONS

As the Middle East is often called the cradle of civilization, it is also the source of some of the earliest philosophical literature. Much of it is devoted to what…
History Of Philosophy
November 15, 2023

POST-KANTIAN PHILOSOPHY IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY

Kant’s philosophy continued to dominate throughout the nineteenth century, although there were increasing concerns about the overall coherence of his system; in particular, there was doubt as to whether the…
Logic
November 15, 2023

RELEVANCE LOGICS

A relevance logic is motivated by the idea that the premises of a valid argument must be somehow “relevant” to its conclusion. The idea is motivated by the fact that…
Modern Branches of PhilosophyPhilosophy Branches
November 14, 2023

HERMENEUTICS

Originally applied to scriptural exegesis (interpretation), hermeneutics is more generally the theory and method of all “textual” interpretation. In the modern context, this refers to both verbal and non-verbal “texts”…
CONTINENTAL PHILOSOPHYHistory Of Philosophy
November 15, 2023

CONTINENTAL PHILOSOPHY IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY

While the focus of western philosophy has primarily been on the analysis and understanding of our most basic concepts, another important theme has been the preparation and education of man…
Writing Philosophy
November 21, 2023

ESSENTIAL WRITING SKILLS

Having just walked through the basic process of writing a philosophy paper, we turn now to the essential skillset you should develop and apply not only to the writing of…
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…
FORMS OF PHILOSOPHICAL WRITING
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…
Writing Philosophy
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…
Writing Philosophy
November 24, 2023

GRADING CRITERIA FOR PHILOSOPHY ESSAYS

The eight skills just listed are so central to philosophical writing that we may count them among the criteria most instructors use in grading essay assignments. Keep these eight skills…
History Of PhilosophyMEDIEVAL PHILOSOPHY
November 15, 2023

MEDIEVAL PHILOSOPHY

The Medieval Period is usually dated between the fall of the Western Roman Empire (476)and the beginning of the Renaissance (c. 1300). In terms of philosophy, the period begins inthe…
PHILOSOPHICAL BOOKS AND TEXT
November 27, 2023

BOOKS TO GUIDE NOVICE PHILOSOPHY STUDENTS

This list is aimed at curating those texts that will both challenge a novice researcher, and continually reward repeated encounters as you develop your philosophical interests.

Books

  • How to Think Like a Roman Emperor: The Stoic Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius

    $13.12
  • Virtue Ethics: An Introduction (Prometheus Lectures)

    $25.03
  • Hinduism For Dummies

    $14.39
  • The Tacit Dimension

    $21.00
  • Schopenhauer Collection: World as Will and Idea Volumes 1-3, Wisdom of Life, Counsels and Maxims, and The Art of Being Right

    $24.99
  • Deleuze and Music (Deleuze Connections)

    $42.60
  • The Communist Manifesto (A Penguin Classics Hardcover)

    $22.00
  • The Complete Essays of Montaigne

    $32.00
  • A Treatise of Human Nature: Being an Attempt to Introduce the Experimental Method of Reasoning into Mor (Penguin Classics)

    $12.49
  • Discourses and Selected Writings of Epictetus (19th century classics illustrated edition) in modern English

    $24.63
  • Into the Headwinds: Why Belief Has Always Been Hard―and Still Is

    $10.37
  • Marsilio Ficino, Three Books on Life: A Critical Edition and Translation (Volume 57) (Medieval and Renaissance Texts and Studies)

    $41.85
  • Meditations Illustrated Edition: Wisdom Unleashed: Empowering Lessons from a Stoic Emperor

    $9.99
  • The Works of … Hugh Binning

    $31.95
  • Truth as Conceived by Those Who Are Not Professional Philosophers

    $17.51
  • Metaphysics: An Introduction

    $34.95

Terms & Concepts

W

Well-Formed Formula (wff)

In symbolic logic, a “logically grammatical” statement. https://youtube.com/shorts/rXxqpE4zEx8?feature=share
E

Egoism (or psychological egoism)

The descriptive theory that people act in their own interests. (See also Ethical egoism.) https://youtube.com/shorts/rolckiIxGXo?feature=share
H

Heteronomy

For Kant, heteronomy is the opposite of autonomy. Whereas an autonomous person is one whose will is self-determined, a heteronomous person is one whose will is determined by something outside…
D
Deductive argument
L
Language game
P
Positive right
R
Reductio ad absurdum
A
Apeiron
I
Internal meaning
N
Nominalism
T
Teleological argument
C
Correspondence theory of truth
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