Intro to Philosophy Essay Example for Free

Intro to Philosophy Essay The word philosophy itself means â€Å"the love of wisdom. † Philosophy stands for doing the right thing or being a â€Å"just† person. Philosophy also means to see things for what they truly are and not what they may seem to be. A philosopher’s life is a lifelong quest to find the meaning of things beyond their physical appearance. The Ring of Gyges is a ring that a man puts on and becomes invisible. When he does wrong he is not blamed, he gets away with it. Once a man puts this ring on he can be unjust without punishment. In the second book of The Republic Adimantus argued that the unjust life is happier than the unjust. His argument was that a just man can go without now and enjoy heaven in the afterlife while an unjust man will go without nothing and still enjoy the benefits of the after life. Through the eyes of a philosopher there are two worlds, the visible world and the intelligible world. In the visible you can see things and judge them from what you actually see. If a person sees a flower one could judge that it is a beautiful flower. However, the person is judging this flowers beauty on its physical appearance and their claim is merely an opinion rather than true knowledge. In â€Å"The Allegory of the Cave† men are chained inside of a cave. All they can see is the shadows that are formed on the wall in front of them. The people inside of the cave believe that the shadows that are being cast on the wall is reality. When one of the men is unchained and brought to the outside world at first he is blinded by the sun and cannot see clearly. The man can only see the shadows of the objects in front of him, this can be perceived as the images of physical objects. When his eyes adjust he can see more than the shadows, he can see the physical objects themselves. When the man goes back inside of the cave to tell the others what he has seen he again cannot see clearly because his eyes have not adjusted. The others in the cave laugh claiming that the sun has ruined his eyes. For a period of time he cannot decipher what the shadows on the wall are imitating. They don’t believe what the man is telling them. In Plato’s Analogy of the Divided Line the four stages of cognition, which represent the levels of existence, are explained. The first two stages, the good and the sun, represent the visible world. The third and fourth stages, knowledge and opinion, represent the intelligible world. These stages are represented in â€Å"The Allegory of the Cave. † Without the sun’s light we would not be able to see anything at all. The sun allows us to see the flower that we perceived as beautiful. Without the suns light we would not be able to see or perceive any of the physical objects that exist. The sun is perceived as the things that we see. The sun also allows for all living life on earth. Without the sun all life on Earth would diminish. Without the sun we could not perceive anything at all. 1. A person can only understand something once they have reached the highest level of cognitive activity. One must acquire the Form of Good before they can truly understand something. Images and assumptions are not enough support to truly understand the meaning of something. The images the prisoners in the cave saw and the assumptions they made about what they thought they could be are only their opinions. Although they were able to identify the shadows on the wall as what they thought they were it is not enough to truly know what they are, the identities given to the shadows by the prisoners is merely their opinion. In â€Å"Phaedo† Socrates claims that our soul is attached to our body. Our body acts as a vessel only operating because of the soul inside. According to Socrates our body holds us back from perceiving things for what they truly are and therefore a philosopher should desire death because it enables them to continue their quest of reality. 2. Socrates viewed death as a purification of the body that allows us find pure wisdom. Socrates explained how our souls are glued to our bodies and only when they are unfastened by death is a person able to experience wisdom in its purest state. The body distracts us from finding the truth because it requires maintenance. The body allows us to feel pain and emotions like love, fear and hunger. Socrates admits that philosophers are more or less practicing for death and should embrace it when it comes for them. â€Å"And will he who is a true lover of wisdom, and is persuaded in like manner that only in the world below he can worthily enjoy her, still repine death? Will he not depart with joy? Surely, he will, my friend, if he be a true philosopher. For he will have a firm conviction that there only, and nowhere else, he can find wisdom in her purity. † (Phaedo pg. 65) Socrates believes that philosophy is good because it enlightens us to what things actually are rather than what they’re perceived to be. Philosophy is what brings the unchained man outside of the cave. It pushes us to go into the unknown, which we at one point we thought we knew. Once we realize what things actually are we also realize that we had no idea what they really were before. The man in the cave that once thought that the only reality was the shadows on the wall now realizes that the shadows weren’t reality at all. Socrates was formally charged because he didn’t worship the gods recognized by the states and for corrupting the youth of Athens. The informal charges against Socrates was asking questions that were unusual, or outside of the box. â€Å"Socrates is an evil-doer, and a curious person, who searches into things under the earth and in heaven, and he makes the worse appear the better cause; and he teaches the aforesaid doctrines to others† p. 21 Apology The oracle of Delphi told Socrates that he was the wisest man. Socrates refused to accept this statement and went searching for a wiser man than himself. In search of a wiser man than himself, Socrates talked with many people including politicians, poets and craftsmen who claimed to be wise. Socrates found them to not be wise because they thought they knew things that they did not. Socrates proclaimed himself as wise because he knew that he did not know. Socrates exposed the false wisdom of the men who were thought to be wise. Naturally these men held much resistance and hostility towards Socrates. These negative feelings contributed to Socrates’ trial. Socrates refutes Meletus’ statement that he doesn’t believe in any god, that he is an atheist. Socrates does this by confirming that he does in fact believe in supernatural activities, such as his inner voice that told him he was the wisest man, and therefore is not an atheist. Socrates states that wealthy young men, enjoy following him around and listening to him question people. It’s entertaining for them. These men, who think they are wise but aren’t, then go out and try to do this on their own. When the people they question get angry instead of being angry with themselves, become angry with Socrates. They accuse Socrates of filling the young men’s head with nonsense. When asked about what Socrates teaches they don’t know and then use claims already made against philosophers against Socrates. Socrates then asks Meletus who he thinks an improver of the youth is. Meletus claims that the law is an improver of the youth, such as judges and senators. Socrates then proclaims that everyone in the state is an improver of the youth except himself. Meletus agrees to this statement. Socrates states that he must either not corrupt the youth or unintentionally corrupt the youth because good do their neighbors good, and evil do them evil. If he had corrupted someone, in theory, they should have harmed him by now. In Socrates’ last defense he says, â€Å"For if you kill me you will not easily find another like me, who, if I may use such a ludicrous figure of speech, am a sort of gadfly, given to the state by God; and the state is like a great and noble steed who is tardy in his motions owing to his very size, and requires to be stirred into life. I am that gadfly which God has given the state, and all day long and in all places am always fastening upon you, arousing and persuading and reproaching you. † (31-32) Socrates is attempting to demonstrate to the people of the city that there is more to their life than what meets the eye. Without philosophers such as himself they will continue to live the life they’re living with no desire to search for more. They will continue to accept the shadows on the wall as their reality. There are three parts to the soul. These three parts consist of the rational, high spirit and the appetitive. The rational portion of the soul is the part of us that seeks knowledge of wisdom. According to Plato the rational should rule the soul. The high spirit consists of the angry and prideful part of the soul that defends and aids the rational. The high spirit avoids shame. The final part of the soul, the appetitive, is the part of the soul that desires. While some desires are necessary, others are not. If not restrained by the rational, the appetitive portion of the soul can over rule all other parts. In addition to the three parts of the soul there are also three parts of the city. These three parts are the gold, silver and the bronze. The golds are the guardians, the silvers are the enforcers of the laws (helpers), and the bronzes are the merchants and tradesmen. The city virtue of wisdom resides within the gold’s, the guardians. In order to posses civic wisdom one must know how the city operates and how all parts of the city are connected. The knowledge of how the city runs and operates allows the city to operate at the highest level. The city virtue of bravery and justice resides with the silvers, the enforcers of laws. Civic bravery is the defined as the Silvers upholding their education about what things are and are not to be feared and in what order as ordered to them by the Golds. Civic justice refers to sticking to your own work whether you are a moneymaker, helper, or guardian. It’s considered unjust to work outside of your boundaries. The city virtue of temperance exists within the bronze citizens, the merchants and tradesmen, of the city. The civic temperance is the agreement (harmony) between the three sections (gold, silver and bronze) as to who should rule and who should obey. The personal virtue of wisdom is housed by ones rational portion of the soul. Personal wisdom consists of knowing all parts of the soul and how they are connected to one another. The ultimate goal of personal wisdom is keeping the soul as healthy and as balanced as possible. Personal bravery and justice is contained within the high-spirit part of the soul. The High-Spirit of the soul is to preserve the education of what is and is not to be feared. The Rational tells the High-Spirit in which order things are to be feared or not feared. The personal virtue of justice minds it’s own within each part of the soul. The appetitive portion of the soul houses the personal temperance virtue. The personal temperance works in agreement between the three portions of the soul as to who should rule and who should obey. The advantage of philosophy with respect to the state is the efficiency. Everyone has jobs that relate well to their attributes. You cannot be a gold (guardian) without first experiencing being a bronze and then a silver. In order to be a gold one must possess knowledge of all three parts of the city. This ultimately leaves the best most knowledgeable citizens in charge of the city. The advantage of philosophy in regards to the individual is the balance between all parts of the soul. All parts of the soul are important to understand and the rational helps us inherit the wisdom needed to understand these aspects of the soul. One who constantly indulges in the appetitive portion of the soul will be overcome by it. When a person posses wisdom they know when a desire is necessary rather than unnecessary. Students and states that pursue philosophy are better off than the ones who don’t because of the level of intelligence they hold. When a student or state has the knowledge of all the levels of either the civic or individual level they’re more likely to excel in their job. Without philosophy there would be no need to extend one’s boundaries and explore the unkown. Socrates was the man in the cave who managed to break free from his chains and see the world beyond the cave. His accusers, the men still chained inside of the cave, refused to accept what Socrates was trying to show them. If they accepted what Socrates was trying to prove it would be a harsh reality for all they ever knew would diminish. Life outside of the cave is unknown. It’s far less scary to continue their life believing that the shadows on the wall are all that there is. Works Cited Plato, and Benjamin Jowett. The Trial and Death of Socrates: Four Dialogues. New York: Dover Publications, 1992. Print. Plato, H. D. P. Lee, and M. S. Lane. The Republic. London: Penguin, 2007. Print.

Bryophyte And Pteropyte Life Cycles :: essays research papers

Although Bryophytes and Pterophytes are both plant divisions with a common ancestor, they have little in common. While Bryophytes (mosses) are generally nonvascular and very short in height, Pterophytes (ferns) are vascular plants that usually grow much taller than mosses. While the dominant generation in mosses is the gametophyte, ferns exhibit the sporophyte generation. The details of their alternations of generation vary as well, although both have diploid and haploid stages. Alteration of generations is defined as a life cycle in which there is both a multicellular diploid form, the sporophyte, and a multicellular haploid form, the gametophyte. Meiosis in mosses produces haploid spores. This process occurs in a sporangium, a capsule in fungi and plants in which meiosis takes place and haploid spores develop. After fertilization, the sporophyte zygote grows out of the parent gametophyte. At the end of this stalk is the sporangium. Meiosis occurs and the haploid spores disperse. In ferns, the mature sporophyte (2N) has small spots on the undersides of its leaves. These are clusters of the Pterophyte sporangia, called sori. As in mosses, meiosis occurs in the sporangia, which then release spores, continuing the cycle. Mitosis in Bryophytes begins germination, or growth. It directly follows meiosis. As mitotic division continues, protonemata (1N) are formed. They grow until they are mature gametophytes. In Pterophytes, mitosis occurs directly after fertilization. The zygote divides and grows until it peeks out of the parent gametophyte, then it matures until it can release its own spores. Mosses exhibit the embryophyte condition, which means their gametes develop with protective sheaths of cells. This was an adaptation that allowed plants to become hardier. Mosses have two sexes of gametangia; the male gametangium is called an antheridium, and the female is called an archegonium. Eggs are produced in the archegonium and sperm in the antheridium. In order for fertilization to take place, the sperm must swim through moisture to the archegonium. This is why mosses must live in damp environments to survive- they cannot reproduce without moisture. The zygote develops within the archegonial cavity. Ferns are usually homosporous as well (there is a single type of spore; the gametophyte is bisexual). In ferns, the archegonia and antheridia mature at different times, which means there is cross fertilization between gametophytes and thus more genetic variation. Sperm from the antheridia swim to the archegonia where the zygote develops. Like mosses, ferns also need a moist envir onment for fertilization to occur.

Extract from Frankenstein and in Cold Blood Essay

This essay will be analysing the way in which the theme of wasted lives is portrayed throughout my chosen extracts. My chosen extracts are, an extract from chapter 16 of Frankenstein (FS) by Mary Shelly a gothic novel with features of the Romantic Movement. And an extract from chapter 3 of In Cold Blood (ICB) by Truman Capote, a faction novel (a novel written based on facts). In the F.S extract we are seeing the creature’s view of his killing of William and also his framing of Justine for the murder. Much the same in the ICB extract where it is Perry’s point of view of the murder of the Clutter family. In this extract we also see Capote input thoughts from Dewey, the police officer covering the case. Although both the extracts were written in different time periods, the focus is the same showing how the lack of parental figures, can lead to the destruction of life for something petty. Throughout the chosen extract for FS the portrayal of the set theme wasted lives is portrayed in great detail. Firstly by having three characters who are seen to have wasted lives and also the murder of one of these characters. The first wasted life we see is that of the creature when we are seeing, the depths that he will sink to, to get his revenge on Frankenstein. ‘Frankenstein! you belong then to my enemy – to him towards whom I have sworn eternal revenge; you shall be my first victim.’ He thinks that because Frankenstein disowned him that he now has to get his own revenge, cause pain to Frankenstein in a worse way he caused the creature pain. But in many ways this can be seen as the creature being as bad as Frankenstein himself, not caring about the consequences of his actions and the onslaught of pain and terror they will cause. The life of William is also seen to be wasted. The creature believes that when he first see William that he will be innocent ’unprejudiced’ allowing the creature to have a companion. But we see that this is not so. William seems to be brought up in a world where prejudice is acceptable, but by him judging the creature in this way has lead to his untimely death. The extract also shows the framing of Justine of the murder of William, the creature sees the beauty of Justine but this is not enough to stop him in passing on the blame of his action on to another. He can also be seen to be framing Justine as he realises that he will never have her love, ‘I am forever robbed of all that she could give me, she shall atone.’ Leaving him angry and bitter, towards Justine. The extract chosen for ICB, the theme of wasted lives is portrayed throughout the thoughts and point of view of Perry Smith. This extract, much like the FS extract, is showing the reader more than one wasted life. Not only are the murders of each member of the Clutter family seen as wasted lives, but also those of Perry and Dick. The police officer Dewey helps the reader to realise this. ‘-for Perry Smith’s life had been no bed of roses but pitiful, an ugly and lonely progress towards one mirage†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ Capote is here referring to a previous section where Perry and the section where his father was speaking about Perry’s life were being told to Dick. Capote refers to this extract as it reminds the reader of the lives that they have been both brought up in. To give a sympathetic view of their lives and to also give the reader something to think about as reasoning for them to commit this lowly crime. Within FS we see the firm idea of The Noble Savage played throughout, but within this extract we see a large amount fixed on this idea. The Noble Savage is the idea that mad is ‘noble and good’ but becomes ‘evil and corrupted’ by civilisation. A quote form Jean Jacques Rousseau, a Geneva philosopher states ‘Man is inherently good and corrupted by society. Primitive man was a Noble Savage’. William’s perception of the creature is a key point in this extract when this idea is shown. The creature later states ‘I remembered that I was forever deprived of the delights that such beautiful creatures could bestow;’ We see the creature become angry once again that he cannot be accepted that that he cannot have what he wants, like any other human could have. This way of rejecting the creature makes us see him become more and more evil as his story progresses. A sense of terror is shown throughout the ICB extract, the tone and terror is portrayed through the way in which Capote has shown parts of the murder from the thoughts of an outsider. In this case Dewey. ‘But the voice plunges on, ejecting a fusillade of sounds and  ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬images ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ¬.’ Within this quote Capote uses a strong metaphor with the word fusillade. The meaning of this word is a simultaneous or continuous discharge of fire arms. But in this instance, the metaphor is there to bring the reader in to the room and experience the noises that are continuously there, appealing to their senses. The word fusillade can also be there to help the reader imagine the gun fire happening there, hitting each person. The heavy use of onomatopoeic words also is helping to appeal to the readers senses along with strong description, placing the reader there watching the action unfold in real time. This related to the theme of wasted lives in the way in which it describes the deaths of a family who were innocent in the whole ordeal. In FS we see reference to Paradise Lost, an epic poem by 17th Century poet John Milton, which focuses on the allusion of Adam and Eve. This has been referenced many times throughout FS, first when we see the creature reading this, but he seems to be unaware that it is a work of the imagination, and reads as factual history. In this extract we see what seems to be the creature echoing the words of Satan, ‘Awake, fairest, thy lover is near – he who would give his life but to obtain one look of affection from thine eyes: my beloved, awake’ This quotation is also showing a tender side to the creature, trying to get the affection of a sleeping Justine, maybe realising that tenderness is greater than affection in this circumstance. We also see him halting himself a seduction, for his fear of rejection once again. Linked to the theme of wasted lives by showing the reader the reasoning for a life lost to unfair judgement. Within the confession by Perry of the murders, we see that there has been a temporal tense shift into the present; Capote has done this to try and show the significance and importance of the confession. This can also be seen as the climax of the novel, because the reader had known who the murders were all along and of their guilt, but this is now solving the mystery of the motives and how the murder took place. Overall Mary Shelly has a very complex writing style; this can be seen is the narrative method in which she has chosen to write the novel in. Shelly uses an embedded narrative which is not only allowing the reader to hear the voices of all the characters, but it is providing the reader the multiple views on the central events of the novel. This format also brings the attention to the story being told rather than this being just a novel. We also see the complex writing style by the use of rich vocabulary used being highly descriptive, particular when Shelly is describing landscapes, or the feelings of a character. ‘But presently my rage returned: I remembered that I was forever deprived of the delights that such a beautiful creature could bestow: [†¦] have changed that air of divine benignity to one of expressive disgust and affright.’ This quotation shows the reader words that are not commonly used in everyday English now or in the writing style of Capote. These words include: ‘Bestow’, ‘Affright’, ‘Benignity’. Compared with the writing style of Capote, who although descriptive uses a less complex way. This can be because of the fact that this novel is bringing to the attention of the public the views of the crime of the century. The narrative method Capote uses is writing the story in the third person although there are times throughout where Capote brings the story into the first person allowing the reader to feel more sympathy for the characters. Capote does not involve himself in the novel in first person as he believes that you should not make an appearance in your own novel. But another reason as to why he may be doing this is hide his close relationship with Perry and Dick, and avoid the public of getting the wrong idea. In Psychoanalytic Literary Criticism, the creature is seen Frankenstein’s replacement for his mother. But this creation comprises of all the unacceptable traits of humans, those which we usually suppress. This comes from the theory of Jacques Lacan, about the ‘child’ competing with the parent of the opposite sex for the others affection. But as the creature has no other parent to compete with, we see him possibly taking his unsuppressed traits out on the loved ones of Frankenstein. In this extract William and Justine. We also see that Shelly has not made the creature monstrous but society has made him this way. This yet again refers to the extract with the previous point on The Noble Savage. In conclusion, the theme of wasted lives is portrayed as a thing that is causing murder, murderous thoughts and death seen in both extracts. Both are confessions of murder of innocent people, just to get something very little back from it. But both extract show underlying issues that arise to the murders eventually being committed. As in FS there is the underlying issue of having no father and upbringing. And in ICB we see the underlying issues of poor upbringing once again. In both extracts the use contextual information surrounding the novel helps to bring the theme across stronger.

Joy Luck Club Character Analysis - 1045 Words

The Joy Luck Club Theme Analysis The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan is an entertaining book that focuses on four Chinese American immigrant families. They face problems in their hometown which causes them to move to the United States. They end up moving to San Francisco and face many different problems with their cultural background. The theme of The Joy Luck Club is the relationship between both the mothers and their daughters. A variety of different events occur throughout the book that explains the complex relationship between the mothers and their daughters. They always have a special bond between them even though their different cultural and generational conflicts occur constantly. The mother and daughter relationship is shown†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"She never thinks anybody is good enough for anything† (Tan 183). She explains how her mother criticizes everything. There are many events that happen within the book that show the negative side of the relationship. On t he contrary, there are many events within the book that show the positive side of the relationships between the mothers and their daughters. There are many events within the book that represent the complex relationships between the mothers and their daughters. An example from the book that shows the positive side of their relationship would be in the American Translation section of the book. â€Å"She grabbed my hand and put the necklace in my palm, then shut my fingers around it† (Tan 235). Suyuan Woo gave a necklace to her daughter June. Suyuan said that she wore it and when June would wear it, she would know her mothers meaning. â€Å"This is your life’s importance† (Tan 235). Another example from the book would also be The American Translation. â€Å"I am not telling you to save your marriage, I only say you should speak up† (Tan 216). In this part of the book, An-Mei Hsu told her daughter, Rose Hsu Jordon, to speak up for herself because her husband was trying to get a divorce. Her mother was able to see what was going on and encouraged her to speak up. There are many different examples of The Joy Luck Club that show the positive side of the relationship betweenShow MoreRelatedCharacter Analysis : The Joy Luck Club1005 Words   |  5 Pagesyou who do not really understand what physical conflict is, it is a type of external conflict that occurs in a story when individual characters struggle against other external forces; a character may struggle against other characters, animals or even natural forces. 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TheRead MoreReading report: Two Kinds by Amy Tan1347 Words   |  6 PagesReading report: Two Kinds by Amy Tan A summary of the passage Two kinds, one of the short stories in The Joy Luck Club, by Amy Tan, first published in 1989, vividly displays a bittersweet relationship between Jing-mei, the narrator and protagonist, and her mother Mrs. Woo, and explores conflicts between a Chinese mother and her disobedient Americanized daughter. The story happened in the Chinatown in San Francisco throughout the 1950s and maybe the early 1960s. It begins with Jing-mei and her