Abstract This paper differentiates between critical thinking and creative thinking, explaining the features and uses of each of these modes of thinking. The importance of both creativity and critical thinking is highlighted with the use of examples and famous quotes. It concludes by clarifying the place of creative thinking as an essential supplement to critical thinking, as opposed to a replacement for it.
From the Paper "Creative and critical thinking are often used simultaneously, but they have different meanings. Creative thinking can be described as creating ideas or thoughts. Creative is described as creating or power of creating resulting from originality of thought or imaginative. Critical thinking is evaluating the idea or thought. Both are different, but are important in the lives of people."
Abstract Rene Descartes' method of doubt provides a powerful tool for attempting to determine the fundamental nature of reality. The paper analyzes Meditations I and II, where Descartes uses the Method of Doubt in order to attempt to determine which beliefs and opinions are true. It shows that in order to do this, Descartes proposes a series of skeptical hypotheses, each aimed at determining if we can trust our specific faculties of sense, reason, and imagination. The paper concludes that Descartes method of doubt determines that all that we can truly know is cogito ergo sum (I think, therefore I am).
From the Paper "Descartes notes that examining each belief, and determining if it is true "would be truly an endless labor". As such, he argues that it is necessary to attempt to find a principle that can serve as the fundamental basis, or bedrock, for all his beliefs. Descartes argues that examining each individual belief is unnecessary, as well as laborious, given that an examination of his fundamental belief will reveal if all other beliefs, which rest upon it, are true as well. Says Descartes, "as the removal from below of the foundation necessarily involves the downfall of the whole edifice, I will at once approach the criticism of the principles on which all my former beliefs rested" Descartes, Meditations I)."
Abstract This paper discusses the story of "Bartleby, the Scrivener" by Herman Melville told through the narration of the Wall Street Lawyer who knew him. It examines how from the intrigue of the opening paragraph of the enigma of Bartleby, Melville immediately pulls us into the story and makes us want to read using psychological strategies. It shows how Melville continues with these psychological strategies throughout the story in his illustration of the two main characters and their shortcomings. Melville created a character that was so hopeless; he lives on in the reader's minds after reading his story and in the ultimate psychological strategy, constantly makes them wonder about the worth of their own lives.
From the Paper "Bartleby profoundly affects the lawyer, and he discovers more about himself while he deals with Bartleby's eccentricities. He realizes that others who were less understanding would simply have thrown Bartleby out, and never worried about him again. He cannot bring himself to do this, and thinks he is there for some purpose. Bartleby is death, and the story is about death, and how we live our lives trying to get away from it. Most of the time, we try to ignore death, but it is always there, and we know it, we just "prefer" not to. The lawyer alludes to this when he discovers Bartleby is living in his offices. He says he becomes unhappier than he has ever felt before, and says, ?Ah, happiness courts the light, so we deem the world is gay; but misery hides aloof, so we deem that misery there is none."
Abstract The paper begins by listing Lewis? four types of love - affection, friendship, romantic love and charity, and by emphasizing that no form of natural love can outlive charity (Agape), the love that comes from God as divine. It outlines the main theme of the book and distinguishes between these forms of love using quotes from the book to illustrate its points. Next the paper turns to the philosophy of divine love (love from God) ? a form different to all other types of love. It explores why it is the most important form of love for the spiritual development of an individual. It looks at the love relationship between God and man, elucidating how a healthy relationship involves need on the part of humans; and explains how a relationship with God, not based on need, could be perilous.
Table of Contents
The Theme
Distinguishing the Forms of Love
The Philosophy of Divine Love
The Element of Need
A Human's Love for God without Need
Conclusion
From the Paper "The Four Loves by C.S. Lewis focuses to develop the reader's comprehension of the various forms of love. Explaining from the biblical, as well as the modern perspective, Lewis enlightens that there are four forms of love: affection, friendship, romantic love and charity. In Greek, the affection between people and for things is called Storge; fraternal love and friendship is known as Phileo; Eros is the name given to romantic or sexual love; and charity or the love of God, in its divinity is termed Agape. With straightforwardness and cordiality, C.S. Lewis elucidates the ambiguity in one of the most shared and influential experience of human relationships. Lewis emphasizes that no form of natural love can outlive without Agape, the love that comes from God as divine."
From the Paper "The word euthanasia literally means "good death" in the original Greek. In dictionary definitions, euthanasia refers to an easy or painless death. In modern times, the word has been most closely associated with the concept of mercy killing: allowing or helping someone to die who is suffering from an incurable illness. There are two types of euthanasia in actual practice. Active euthanasia involves taking an active role in causing the death of a suffering patient. Passive euthanasia, on the other hand, involves simply allowing a terminally ill patient to die by "withholding from the patient drugs, the use of life-support systems, or other life-prolonging medical care" (Heintze 39). This paper will consider the contrasting points of view regarding these two types of euthanasia and will argue in favor of the "good death" in strictly defined cases."
Review of the arguments of Descartes and Hume for the existence of God. Descartes' argument from definition and Humes' teleological argument (argument from design) are examined.
1,575 words (approx. 6.3 pages), 2 sources, 1990, $ 55.95
From the Paper "Rene Descartes, in his work, The Meditations on First Philosophy (1953) ed., and David Hume, in his work, An Inquiry Concerning Human Understanding (1955 ed.), both argue for the existence of a supreme deity. Descartes believes that the deity is a perfect being living in the consciousness of men. Indeed, his God represents the supreme consciousness or all.knowing mind. David Hume sees proof for the existence of God in the perfect and complex order of nature. Thus, the primary difference between the two philosophers concerns where they seek their evidence for the existence of the Deity. Descartes seeks God within man or through internal evidence. Whereas Hume seeks evidence for God's existence through external observations of the world around us. Although to some degree Hume also accepts Descartes' hypothesis that God must exist as long on as man carries awareness of him in his"
Aristotle's "Nicomachean Ethics" deals with, among other things, the distinction between moral and intellectual virtue. This discusses the distinction with a special emphasis on voluntary and involuntary actions.
1,350 words (approx. 5.4 pages), 1 source, 1990, $ 47.95
From the Paper "In the Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle carefully considers the issue of responsibility and finds that the human being is indeed responsible for his or her actions. In fact, humans may be morally culpable even for unintended consequences. However, Aristotle makes a distinction between moral virtue and intellectual virtue. The essential difference between the two is that intellectual virtue can be instilled by teaching in the course of life; moral virtue, however, does not work this way, and comes only through intended habits. In other words, in order to form moral virtue, the individual must consciously choose to act in a virtuous manner.
The individual is responsible both for his or her moral disposition and also for the manner in which moral questions are decided by him or her. Indeed, this is seen as a natural process so..."
From the Paper "The purpose of this paper is to discuss, analyze and critique the book, "Freud & Man's Soul" by Bruno Bettelheim.
This is a very interesting book, which is probably familiar to philosophers but not to medical practitioners of psychoanalysis. In this book, the author, Bruno Bettelheim, noted educator and child psychologist, discusses the humanistic side of Freud's teaching, which has not been available to Americans, (according to the author), because of the mistranslations which have been made of his works. Bettelheim believes that Freud's technique of psychoanalysis was never meant to be a medical treatment, but an investigation into our own souls (4). Freud believed that the soul of man could become aware of itself--not an easy undertaking--through his methods.
The author believes that the biggest shortcoming of the ... "
From the Paper "This paper discusses the following three possibilities concerning the problem of free will versus determinism: (1) No one is free; (2) Some people are more free than others; and (3) Everyone is free.
The concept that no one is free is basically a form of hard determinism, which takes the position that humans lack free will because their decisions are determined.
The idea that some people are more free than others is actually soft determinism, which is the view that humans have free will not as a result of indeterminism, whether or not determinism is true. More simply stated, both determinism and free will are in some way true. This approach is really a compromise and attempts to find a philosophical place for both of .... "
From the Paper "According to the theory of reincarnation, the soul survives the death of the body and is reborn at a later time into another human or animal body. The origins of this idea can be found in the ancient belief system of Hinduism. In fact, the majority of Hindus today still believe in reincarnation, just as their ancestors did thousands of years ago. In the Western world, by contrast, there have been few adherents of the theory of reincarnation. Although some practitioners of alternative faiths believe in the theory, most Western philosophers and scientists have rejected it completely. One exception to this rule is ... Despite the views of liberal-minded researchers like ... "
From the Paper This study will provide a book review of Free To Choose, by Milton and Rose Friedman. The study will include a summary of the book, a detailed discussion of the authors' major economic arguments, and an evaluation of those arguments.
In their Preface, the authors declare that Free To Choose is a follow-up work to Capitalism and Freedom, the 1962 book which established Friedman as an ardent advocate of the capitalistic system. We read that "Free to Choose treats the political system symmetrically with the economic system. Both are regarded as markets in which the outcome is determined by the interaction among persons pursuing their own self-interests (broadly interpreted) rather than by the social goals the participants find it advantageous to enunciate" (x).
The Introduction begins with another statement making clear..."
Places the characters and world of Pulp Fiction into Nietzschian terms. The thesis is that while these characters may not reflect the attitudes and ideas of Nietzsche, their world of amorality (as opposed to immorality) does.
1,350 words (approx. 5.4 pages), 2 sources, 1994, $ 47.95
From the Paper "The film Pulp Fiction (1994), directed and written by Quentin Tarantino, presents a series of characters from the Los Angeles underworld. They are minor criminals battling one another for territory, for supremacy in the drug trade, and for a certain sense of honor based on an unwritten code that seems to support all their activities. This code can be very important to them even when they are unable to articulate why, for it gives them a structure within which their violent world can make some sense to them. This is also a world of kitsch, of pop icons, of commercials, of fast foods, of brand names, and so on, but it is a world that these individuals have imbued with a certain philosophy. One of the hit men has indeed started developing a more full-fledged philosophy based on his reading of a passage in.."
From the Paper "The problem of racism is not specifically an American problem, though Americans have made it into an important political and social issue as they have tried to find a way to eliminate racism from their society. Racism occurs whenever there is a dominant racial group that uses its position to discriminate against a minority racial group on the basis of racial characteristics. Traditionally, discrimination has been seen as a creature of prejudice, and until the late 1960s the dominant perspective among social science analysts of discrimination was that prejudice and intolerance were the causes of discriminatory actions. Other observers have focused on individual racists and have seen the problem as the individual motivated by hatred of a given "outgroup." Still others consider the issue in terms of patterns of segregation and community..."
From the Paper "The idea that Christian ethics is a ressentiment ethics is a Nietzschean conception. Max Scheler says much the same when he notes that Christianity is defended by certain believers as if taking vengeance on antiquity, combating the evil that prevailed before Christianity came into being and challenged that power (Scheler 48).
The term "ressentiment" has been made into a technical term by Nietzsche, but it is first of all the French word for "resentment," though as Manfred S. Frings notes, the French word possesses a sense of lingering hatred that the English word does not. Nietzsche expropriated the French term because the German language does not have a word for "ressentiment" (Frings 5).
In the opening chapter of On the Genealogy of Morals, Friedrich Nietzsche examines the history of the central concepts ..."
From the Paper "This study will compare and contrast the beliefs, theories and philosophies of Thomas Hobbes and John Locke as expressed in Leviathan and Second Treatise of Government. The study will argue that the basic difference between the two philosophers is Hobbes' distrust of the people and Locke's relatively greater trust of the people and distrust of the government's power and the likelihood of the abuse of that power.
Hobbes' political philosophy aims at ensuring civil order, which means for him the absolute power of the government, or the Leviathan, which power the people have given him through the social contract. Locke, on the other hand, keeps much more power in the hands of the people through the legislature, which means, in effect, majority rule. Locke was also deeply concerned with maintaining the rights of the people, especially the right to own ..."
