Philosophers Essay Examples and Topics

248 samples

Socrates’ Life and Contributions to Philosophy

His key contributions to the field include the Socratic Method that facilitates the critical analysis of hypotheses, ideas about morality and wrongdoing, and the concepts of immortal soul and preexistence.
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  • Words: 1439

Socrates Influence on Plato’s Philosophy

He was accused of corrupting the morals of the youth and misleading the citizens with his unorthodox political and religious views. Plato was so attracted to Socrates philosophy that he made him the principal character [...]
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The Value of Philosophy by Bertrand Russell

Consistent with the aim of philosophy, Russell believes that definite answers to some fundamental inquiries are not indispensable but rather the interrogatives asked in the process of introspection of what may turn out as truth [...]
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Intellect and Will in Descartes’ Philosophy

Rene Descartes is one of the main ideologists of the free will and the error inclination of the human intellectual knowledge, and his main idea penetrating all the aspects of his philosophic views is that [...]
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  • Words: 1140

The Standard of Taste by David Hume

Of the Standard of Taste is an essay by the Philosopher David Hume who attempts to elaborate the need and the possible existence of a rule that will reconcile the taste of individuals to one [...]
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David Hume: Philosophy about Self Essay

This assignment is about what Hume means by the statement that the self is "nothing but a bundle of perceptions, which succeed each other with an inconceivable rapidity" as well as how he explains how [...]
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 630

Socrates’ Impact on Western Civilization

Socrates defined the concepts of evil and good, assuming the achievement of the goals of self-knowledge as the highest virtue. In disputes, Socrates sought to prove the practicality and reasonableness of the world and a [...]
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  • Words: 863

The concept of Being by Heidegger

The author of this paper will also revolve around the ontological composition of the world and its contribution to the question of being. This is because the question of being is constituted in the entities [...]
  • Pages: 8
  • Words: 2187

Socrates and Descartes: Similarities and Difference

The third rule is that the logical process must proceed step by step from the simplest and easiest portion of the problem to clearly and distinctly know and progress in order of difficulty to the [...]
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Herbert Spencer and Emile Durkheim: Comparison

Although he agreed that wrongdoers in the society were supposed to be punished, he did not agree with Spencer that this punishment was supposed to be meted on the poor and defenseless in the society.
  • Pages: 9
  • Words: 2580

Machiavelli and Luther Comparison

He did not support the idea of the church and the Pope who was superior to the King because he believed that faith and Christianity were just meant to strengthen the society and not keep [...]
  • Pages: 9
  • Words: 2420

Aristotle’s Notion of Time and Motion

It is also pertinent that the concept of Time is comprehended in relation to the concept of Motion. In an analysis of the nature of Time, it is most relevant to remember that Aristotle was [...]
  • Pages: 18
  • Words: 4229

Thales vs Anaximander Philosophy

The Milesian philosophers, Thales and Anaximander, advanced a rational or scientific explanation for the metaphysical elements of the universe that departed from the mytho-poetic reasoning of the time.
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1154

Socrates’ Critique of Cephalus and Polemarchus

They include the view of justice that forms the basis of Socrates' criticism and the reason why the philosopher found Cephalus and Polemarchus definitions and views of justice unsatisfactory.
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1384

Todorov’s View on Structuralism

In this article, Todorov argued that the manifestation of the "repetition and difference" aspect of the narrative requires the application of a specific formula.
  • Pages: 6
  • Words: 1732

St Augustine’s Philosophy

God's presence in an individual enables him/her to achieve goals that are consistent with the provisions of the church. They belong to the city of the damned and are responsible for their actions.
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  • Words: 825

David Hume: The Ideology of Self

Incidentally this is the concept from which the science of psychology is based which is best exemplified by the theory of behaviorism: The purpose of this paper is to analyze the concepts of self ideology [...]
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1446

St. Thomas Aquinas’ Influence on Western Thought

Interest in the teachings of Aristotle contributed to the unification of many philosophers, which happened in the case of Thomas Aquinas. The main achievement of Thomas is that he is considered the founder of the [...]
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Socrates as a Founder of Western Philosophy

The jurors argued that Socrates' ideas and teachings corrupted the minds of young people. Some scholars believe that Socrates' views and beliefs could have influenced the later works of Plato, particularly in literary writings.
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The Perception of the Self according to Socrates

The perception of the self, according to Socrates explains the nature of man and the rationale on which man thinks. The capacity of a man is a product of the self in him; this formed [...]
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Eastern and Western Philosophers

Thus, Confucius formulated the measure of human virtue and stressed the importance of learning and love in the human life: "The nature and duties of the human being must be studied diligently and cultivated, he [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 846

Transcendentalism: Ralph Emerson vs Henry Thoreau

These two thinkers contributed greatly to the development of the movement through the focus on certain basic values and principles as well as the promotion of particular aspects of the overall paradigm.
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  • Words: 1101

Thomas Hobbes’ Views on Natural Laws

The laws of nature provide the fundamental rights based on the concept of reason. The law of nature refers to the general analysis of flora and fauna through reason.
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  • Words: 924

Art as Redemption by Friedrich Nietzsche

One of the first important considerations he gives to his assessment of why humans engage in art is the constant oppositions he finds in nature the male/female opposition being the strongest of these as they [...]
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 622

Aesthetic Life in “Either/Or” by Søren Kierkegaard

Instead he or she is more interested in seeing the logical inconsistencies of life and the paradoxes of people's behavior. On the whole, one should not assume that S ren Kierkegaard is altogether critical of [...]
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  • Words: 556

Harm Principle

Thus, according to the principle, an individual has the right to do whatever he or she wills unless the action brings harm to others and that is the only time power should be used to [...]
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  • Pages: 4
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The Analects of Confucius

Everyone, including the leaders was under the umbrella of proper morals, which he said, was the linen from which the peace of the country was to be made.
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  • Words: 1458

Hume’s View of Miracles

In order to understand Hume's critique of the belief in miracles, it is crucial to begin by defining what a miracle means.
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  • Words: 607

Cartesian Dualism

According to Cartesian dualism, the mind and the body interact at the point of pineal body because it is the only gland in the brain that is not duplicate, which connects the body and the [...]
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  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1357

How Socrates Influenced His World and the Future

Nevertheless, the fact remains undeniable that Socrates significantly influenced both his modernity and the future development of society, demonstrating his unsurpassed oratory, proposing his method of refuting statements, and making his splendid contribution to the [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 943

Was Seneca a Tyrant-Trainer?

When upbringing Nero, Seneca from the point of view of the time solves a problem which was in the centre of attention of the Roman thinkers since Cicero in the new way a problem of [...]
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1408

Rene Descartes: A Brief Perspective

However, as any numerologist would predict, born on the 31st of the month, a number 4, destined Descartes to search for the esoteric and the 'opposing' point of view.
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  • Pages: 2
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Prominent Post-Structuralist Philosophers

The philosophers justified the criticisms made against the western culture and with time, post-structuralism emerged and exposed the norms and cultures of the western society. The people that led to the emergence of post-structuralism were [...]
  • Pages: 15
  • Words: 4212

Immanuel Kant’s Life and Philosophy

Immanuel Kant is considered the most influential philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment and one of the greatest Western thinkers of all times.
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  • Words: 1230

Objection to Feldman’s Attitudinal Hedonism

In this defense Feldman uses another source of intrinsic value that shows that the deceived businessman lives a life of less value and this other source of intrinsic value is truth.
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  • Words: 889

Comparison Between Confucius and Han Feizi

Apart from the fact that he said Confucianism was responsible for the wars that were beleaguering the country; he also was extremely critical of morals and societal rotting that he witnessed.
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  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1346

Hegelian Dialectics

The article situates the reasoning of Hegel in two articles, one being the Second Sex by Simone and the other is the modern woman as a subject by Fanon.
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1091

Arstippus and Epicurus

This especially comes out well in the case of Aristippus who believed in satisfying his craving for pleasure in the present as opposed to postponing them to the future.
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  • Words: 621

Knowledge as perception or opinion

Since perception is as a result of stimulation of the senses, and the senses only give us the appearance of objects not there reality, then it is wrong to consider perception to define knowledge.
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  • Words: 1495

Aristotle’s Philosophy and Views on Ethics

In contrast, Aristotle believed that the purpose of ethics lies beyond the knowledge of what is good or evil, but rather focuses on the application and practice of the theory.
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  • Words: 597

Karl Marx and His Contributions

This is due to the fact that individuals can effectively plan what is of necessity to them and the society in general.
  • Pages: 7
  • Words: 2057

Epistemological Turn On Knowledge

An epistemological turn is a philosophical term which in the history of philosophy, refers to the shift in philosophical attention from the classical and medieval focus on themes of metaphysics to a primary focus on [...]
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  • Words: 1220

David Hume’s Gnoseological Skepticism

One of the main criticisms of David Hume's gnoseological model has been traditionally reflective of the assumption that being strongly reductionist denies the possibility for people to be able to attain a complete understanding of [...]
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  • Words: 1405

Plato’s and Aristotle’s Philosophical Differences

According to Plato, the functioning of every human being is closely linked to the entire society. Therefore, the major difference here is that for Plato, the function of every individual is to improve the entire [...]
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  • Words: 164

Marx and the Young Hegelians

Many of the writings of the Young Hegelians focused on the refutation of religion and need to replace religion with philosophy as the moral criterion for the society and means for understanding history.
  • Pages: 7
  • Words: 1951

The Basis of Good Government according to Analects

Confucius says that passing of knowledge to people is the work of government. According to Confucius, good government should take the needs of the people into consideration by doing the right things and upholding virtuous [...]
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  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 621

Socrates’ Conception of Law and Justice

Socrates advocated the idea that justice was good, and that meant that injustice was equal to evil. The point he makes here is that justice is the cure for evil, and that a man who [...]
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  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 631

Surrealism and Freud

As for surrealism movement, it is better to pay attention to one of Freud's theories, the theory of dreams, where Freud called dreams as a kind of road to the unconscious.
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  • Words: 1114

Descartes “Two Proofs for the Existence of God”

He does not satisfactorily give justification of his claim that the relationship between the truth of the idea objective and the recognized truth of the event that brings about the idea is direct.
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  • Words: 1094

The Enlightenment Era: David Hume and Immanuel Kant

The rapid progress of humanities in that period was close-knit with economic and technological developments across the whole Europe and North America, in particular, the invention of the internal combustion engine, formation of the new [...]
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  • Words: 798

Al-Ghazali and Inability to Affirm the Creator

Although God can annihilate in the twinkling of an eye, those who do not die will know that God is the creator of the world who has brought it into existence from nonexistence because, since [...]
  • Pages: 6
  • Words: 1861

Conceptions of Descartes and Nietzsche Analysis

In many ways, the extreme rationalism of Descartes, its traditional alternative and empiricist aspects and the debate between them, constitute the part of the Enlightenment which had the greatest influence in the nineteenth century.
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Khun’s Contributions to the Philosophy of Science

Khun introduced the concept of "paradigm shift" in mainstream science by suggesting that scientific models undergo paradigm shifts and therefore, the notion that scientific models develop in a linear manner is untrue. After weighing the [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 830

Socrates on Death and Virtue

This is the purification that comes from the separation of the soul and body. The hindrance to the realization of the true virtue is corrupted by the body and its elements.
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Karl Marx’s Life and Philosophical Ideas

Karl Marx expressed his sentiments on alienation and pain in the lower class workers imprisonment by the private individuals who have the resources to manipulate and twist social, development, and welfare aspects of the masses [...]
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1094

Jung’s spiritual realm theories

In modern times, people also think that this scholar's teachings are relevant because he found a way of relating the level of one's spirituality with one's psychological state.
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  • Words: 578

Paulo Freire’s Life, Philosophy and Teachings

Apart from the liberation theology, which resulted in a political uprising in the country forcing him to left the country, the other works of Freire include 'The Pedagogy of the Oppressed' and 'Education as the [...]
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David Hume’s Reflection on Religion

The principle of inferring the existence and nature of God from the cosmic design is uncertain because the design of the universe is beyond human experience, and is useless because no one can revert and [...]
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  • Words: 1404

Epicurus’ Perception of Pleasure and Justice

Pain which is brought about by harm is the main source of injustice, pursuing pleasure involved refraining from doing what does not bring pleasure to oneself but ensuring that obtaining utmost personal pleasure would be [...]
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  • Words: 565

Success of Socrates’ Defense

Fist, he does not appear to be apologetic and to the contrary confirms the general opinion held by majority of his jury that he thinks he is the wisest.
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  • Words: 1113

Socrates’ Trial and Involved Forces

This essay will examine the delays in Socrates' prosecution, the local, national, and international forces that affected his trial, and the supporting documentation from the dialogues we have studied, the Hughes movie, the studies of [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 833

Socrates as a Model for the Philosopher’s Way

For instance, Protagoras convinced people that truth depends on the ability of an individual to convince others about a given concept regardless of the logic embedded in the reasoning.
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Georg Hegel: Self-Consciousness and Desire

The discussion begins with a recognition of man as a self-conscious being as the underlying factor that differentiates him from animals and that the use of the phrase 'I' is a manifestation of that attribute. [...]
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Information About Socrates: Analysis

Socrates addresses the problem of humans, the question of the essence of man, of his nature. It is important to mention the glory of Socrates.
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  • Words: 1047

Husserl’s and Descartes’ Philosophies

The differences in the concept of philosophy as a science between Husserl and Descartes relate primarily to the concept of intentionality and the method of intentional analysis.
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 925
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