Abstract This essay explains, compares, and contrasts the theories and discussions of Plato and Aristotle regarding the best political association. Quotes from "Politics" and the "Republic" are used to support the author's thesis.
Abstract This paper discusses the Enron Corporation scandal and assesses behaviors within the context of ethical principles. The author points out Enron's deceptive practices in the trading of energy market. The paper applies the views of Mill, Aristotle and Kant to Enron activities.
From the Paper "Over a span of several years, high-level executives at the Enron Corporation, essentially an energy distribution form, engaged in a complex set of financially-oriented behaviors designed to deceive customers, government ..."
Abstract This paper describes the writer's perspective of criminological theory. It focuses on why people commit crimes and why people act the way that they do. It then describes the variables that the writer would consider and the methodologies he would use in order to evaluate his theory. The paper concludes that there are many theories that can assist in determining the reasons why things happen and there will be many more theories that will either agree or disagree with previous theorists.
From the Paper "Criminological theories in my perspective are theories from various individuals who have experience or education in criminal justice, sociology, psychology, science or biology. This is due to being able to read people behaviors and understand the mindset of why individuals would commit crimes. I believe everyone who had a theory studied and observed different cultures, communities, and family parenting to get the proof he or she needed to show that their theory has some merit. "Then others tested the theory and either added or improved the findings by using more sufficient information through their research. In other words, criminological theory is the study of criminal thinking and criminal behavior. If criminological and theory is broken down, it gives the definitions of theory is a speculation or abstract thought or contemplation, an ideal of or belief about something arrived through speculation, and a scientific principle to explain phenomena (Webster's New World, 2002). Criminological is the sociological study of crime, criminals and punishment of criminals (Webster's New World, 2002)."
Abstract This paper proves that God exists using the arguments of known philosophers, such as Thomas Aquinas and William Paley. It supports the topic using the cosmological or the first cause argument. It proves its point by challenging and defending the various objections that apply to it.
Abstract An examination of John Mill and Immanuel Kant's theories on ethics. The author examines Mill's view of hedonistic ethics and Kant's view of reason and intentions. The author explains and compares these two point of views.
From the Paper "Ethics, being as broad and opinion-based as it is, can be a difficult issue not only to define, but also to explain clearly to others. In the 18 and 19 hundreds two outgoing philosophers set forth to provide moral theories formed with concrete information, to add to the foundation of ethics. These two men were John Mill and Immanuel Kant, and their views were known as Utilitarianism and Kantian theory respectively. Both avoid interlacing their own opinions, in hope of finding a greater genuineness to their conjectures. Mill offers us a hedonistic ethics, full of pleasure and ends, while Kant proposes ridged principles of reason and intentions. Due to the fact that the subject is so hard to understand, many times their work must be interpreted and simplified. This paper will attempt to do just that, clarify the conjectures of these two theorists."
Abstract This paper is an intriguing philosophical approach at solving the problem with evil. It discusses the conversations and writings of Philosopher Swinburne and the antitheodicist. Arguments are presented between Swinburne and the antitheodicist and an attempt is made to answer the question; does Swinburne succeed in solving the problem?
From the Paper "There shouldn?t be any evils that are not caused by men, such as plagues, earthquakes, natural disasters, AIDS, cancer, and disease to name some of them. Swinburne explains that these tragedies and misfortunes allow men to do noble acts. The September 11th tragedy is a classic example. The entire city of New York came together and sacrificed lives, money, time, and effort to help others. Their crime rates dropped to the lowest ever of that city."
Abstract This paper examines the story of Atlantis, its myths, history, legends and literature. The paper focuses heavily on Plato and his account.
From the Paper "The story of Atlantis has captivated the minds of humans for thousands of years. People from all walks of life have debated weather Atlantis really existed or weather it was just a story, nothing more. The myths and legends concerning Atlantis have come down through the centuries as one of the most enduring legends of all time. Thousands upon thousands of books have been written about weather Atlantis actually existed and there are even more secularization as to where Atlantis actually is. Some stories say that Atlantis was really the ancient land of Thera and the Minoan civilization, others insist that Atlantis was a gigantic island in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean that sunk 9,000 years ago, and still others even believe that Atlantis flew off from the Earth and become the moon. It is no doubt that Atlantis actually existed. Almost every civilization has a myth that tells of an ancient, corrupt civilization that was punished and was swallowed by the sea."
Abstract This paper discusses the concept of liberalism with reference to Hobbes? and Locke's viewpoints. The author of this paper explains that both writers discuss the ideas of government and liberalism from a different viewpoint to other writers in that they refer to ideas of the nature of man and man's conduct in the ?state of nature' rather than ideas based on religion. While both refer to the concept of a social contract as a way to rule and govern, Hobbes stresses the importance of the monarch as the ruling and powerful entity, while Locke emphasizes the importance of the community and people as the superior aspect
From the Paper "In developing their theory of government, both Hobbes and Locke start with a hypothetical ?state of nature.? And both have reason and rationality as their base to arrive at their respective conclusions, rather than concepts derived from religion and divinity. The difference lies in their ideas of the nature of man and man's conduct in the ?state of nature.? Hence their different conclusions. Although both talk of a "Social Contract" while developing their respective ideas of government, Hobbes favors monarchy and holds the monarch, once the people give consent to him, as all powerful, whereas Locke holds that the people [i.e. the community] that give legitimacy to the ruler to govern are supreme."
An analysis of philosopher and politician John Locke's Theory of Natural Law and how this contributed to the pre-Enlightenment era of the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries.
Abstract This paper looks at this philosophy whereby Locke's perception of mankind was an extremely optimistic one, and he viewed natural law and the state of nature as being where all men are naturally moral and reasonable, and are born free, equal and possessing the inalienable rights to protect their life, their freedom, and their property.
From the Paper ""Nature is a state of perfect equality amongst all men. In this state, no one man has more power or jurisdiction than any other man." (Locke 1690)
John Locke (1632 - 1704) was a qualified physician and a respected Oxford academic, in addition to being one of several political philosophers who focused on the theories of natural rights and natural law during the pre-Enlightenment era of the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. Locke's theory of natural law, and of the aims and purposes of government, were detailed in his work, "Two Treatises of Government" (1690), and proved to be influential, not only in Britain, but across the world, especially in America, where his views formed the foundation of the Declaration of Independence and the American system of government."
Abstract This paper traces the issues of evil, pain, and suffering and their relation to life. It uses many biblical references to justify or explain the meaning of why good things happen to bad people and visa versa. This paper is a personal opinion paper relating to a basic philosophical question.
From the Paper "Philosophy starts with the question of the existence of God, including the concept of God you envision and your expectations of Him. This one issue is the basis of every answer to every philosophical question and is essential to everything else we believe in. Then comes the question of evil and suffering. If God exists, why is there so much evil and suffering in the world? "
Abstract The paper discusses the argument that has sent the world into a tailspin as to whether or not people suffering from terminal or excruciatingly painful illness have the right to take their own lives by way of physician-assisted suicide. It shows that proponents contend that what one does with one's life is of no consequence to anyone else -- that it is humane to allow someone to be relieved of constant ? if not unbearable ? discomfort. On the other hand, critics claim that the act of euthanasia is nothing more than a fabricated form of murder. The paper shows that both sides have pertinent points when it comes to understanding and assessing the conflict, but argues that euthanasia supporters have a significantly stronger argument when considering the bigger picture. The general argumentative point of this paper is that physician-assisted suicide is not only the right thing to do for someone seeking such a decision, but it is ethical and humane for a physician to abide by the patient's wish.
From the Paper "The primary focus of conflict with regard to physician-assisted suicide is whether or not it is ethically sound. To determine what is ethically sound, however, one must first define the meaning of ethics. This may appear rather simple to achieve on the outset, but one would soon find that defining such a concept is an extremely personal interpretation. There is no black and white definition of ethics, because each and every person subscribes to his or her own value system; therefore, placing a blanket definition upon the ethical implications of physician-assisted suicide is no different than doing the same with religion or politics: one size does not fit all. To ascertain the ethical nature of euthanasia is to find out what it means to the person requesting the procedure. One will find that to these people, who have suffered terribly at the hands of debilitating and terminal illnesses, the ethical attributes of physician-assisted suicide are far more forgiving than to those who stand by and ignorantly criticize."
From the Paper "Justice is a concept we believe we understand even if we have difficulty putting the concept into words. Justice is defined by the relationship that exists between the individual and the state. Justice means that the state treats every person equally and seeks to resolve disputes on the basis of the facts and compared to objective criteria rather than a subjective determination. Justice in the broadest sense is fairness. Justice cannot assure that every dispute comes out "correctly" or that no mistakes are made, but it should be such as to assure that the process by which decisions are made and goods allocated is fair and produces an acceptable result in the aggregate, even if an individual case justice might fail. Justice occurs when the distribution of political power and economic opportunity is as uniform as possible or when the social and political system is such..."
Abstract This paper examines the issue of performance enhancing drugs in the form of over the counter nutritional supplements. In particular it talks about ephedra, androstenedione (andro) and creatine within the context of the sports world today. It discusses the pharmacology of all three, their health risks and why the NCAA have chosen to legalize or illegalize these three drugs. They are all legal to purchase without a prescription, but ephedra and androstenedione have been banned by a majority of sports governing bodies and creatine has caused more problems than any nutritional aid has ever caused a sport governing body.
From the Paper "Androstenedione is also known as Andro or the Mark McGuire drug. Shortly after breaking the homerun record, "Big Mac" came out and said that he used the supplement to gain a competitive advantage. Andro gives an athlete this "competitive edge" by working in a way similar to anabolic steroids. It is what is called a pro-hormone. It is part of the final product, testosterone. The supplement is supposed to increase the amount of testosterone in men much the same way as anabolics, but with out going to the extremes of pure anabolic steroids. A person could think of it as light steroids, except for the fact that it doesn?t work. It has been proven however to increase the levels of estrogen in the male system. This can cause many steroid like side effects, but without steroid like strength gains (Sports, 2001). "
Abstract This paper examines St. Augustine's doctrine on evil. St. Augustine believed that God made a perfect world, but that God's creatures turned away from God of their own free will, through different types of falls, and that is how evil originated in the world. It shows how Augustine's approach to a solution to the problem of evil has three main parts: The author explains how Augustine assumes that evil is a privation and cannot be properly said to exist at all, he argues that the apparent imperfection of any part of creation disappears in light of the perfection of the whole and he argues that moral evil, together with that suffering which is created as punishment for sin, originates in the free nature of the will of all creatures. According to Augustine, God has allowed evil to exist in the world because it does not conflict with His goodness. He did not create evil but is also not a victim of it. He simply allows it to exist.
From the Paper "In Augustine's study of the problem of evil, he argues that there are a variety of things that are good. Without this variety, he says, there can be a greater good ness of things as a whole than there would be if this variety did not exist. Augustine also argues that evil is not completely real in itself. Instead, it is dependent on something more real, like disease, which is a form of evil. He points out that disease can only exist in a body, which is a form of good. Therefore, Augustine says, God, who is the source of everything that exists, is not in contest with a positive being or a counterpart that is evil."
Abstract This paper first outlines Baruch Spinoza's argument in Part 1 of the "Ethics" for "substance monism" - the position that there exists only one substance. It then explains how Spinoza's position differs from that of Gottfried Leibniz in the "Discourse on Metaphysics". The paper concludes with the assertion that Leibniz's account for the nature and number of substances is superior since accepting Spinoza's conclusions leads to a number of logically troublesome consequences.
From the Paper "Leibniz's account for the nature and number of substances differs significantly from Spinoza's. For Spinoza, there is only one substance in the world: God. Leibniz essentially agrees that there is only one true substance. However, to Leibniz this substance is the monad, comparable to a soul or spirit, which "is nothing but a simple substance that enters into composites" (Monadology, p. 484). For Leibniz, God exists external to the world of monads, and might be best thought of as a type of "supersubstance" or "supermonad." It was God who set the world in motion; therefore, substances depend on God for their existence. Since Leibniz's God possesses the will to create or destroy substances "in accordance with the principle of the best" (M., p. 487), God is the only necessary being. All other monads, then, depend on Him for their existence, and as such, are non-eternal contingent beings. Spinoza's pantheism forces the conclusion that all substance is eternal; if it were not eternal, then it would have to be created, which would then violate his definition of substance as something "that the conception of which does not require the conception of another thing from which it has to be formed" (E., p. 416)."
