Ultimate Questions: Thinking about Philosophy

Description

For courses in Introductory Philosophy An active approach to philosophy While most introduction to philosophy courses focus on reading philosophical texts, Ultimate Questions: Thinking about Philosophy pushes students toward an active learning approach. The text is designed to instigate meaningful discussions between students and instructors, relying on more than 100 "Food for Thought" exercises throughout. These exercises are based on the author's own experience engaging students in lecture environments and are designed to help students discover how well they understand philosophical concepts and how to apply them to real-life scenarios. The 4th Edition has been extensively updated with a new chapter, chapter expansions, and more. Title Page Copyright Page Brief Contents Contents Preface 1 What Is Philosophy? Making Sense of the World The Relationship Between Science and Philosophy The Main Branches of Philosophy 2 Philosophical Tools Logical Consistency A Demand of Reason: Avoid Contradictions Definitions Logical Possibility The Basic Structure of Arguments Putting Arguments into Standard Form Deductive and Inductive Arguments Evaluating Deductive Arguments: Validity and Soundness Evaluating Deductive Arguments: Logical Form Evaluating Inductive Arguments: Probability 3 What Do We Know? Why Knowledge Matters Knowledge, Belief, and Other Propositional Attitudes Searching for a Definition of Knowledge Three Different Theories of Knowledge Skepticism Empiricism Rationalism Final Remarks on Epistemology 4 The Problem of Free Will Why Is There a Problem with Free Will? The Case for Hard Determinism Can Indeterminism Save Free Will? Compatibilism Traditional Compatibilism Deep Self-Compatibilism A Fundamental Problem for Compatibilism Libertarianism The Case for Libertarianism Problems for Libertarianism Final Remarks on the Problem of Free Will 5 The Problem of Personal Identity What Is the Problem? The Illusion Theory The Case for the Illusion Theory Problems for the Illusion Theory The Body Theory, or Animalism The Case for the Body Theory Problems for the Body Theory The Soul Theory The Case for the Soul Theory Problems for the Soul Theory Identity as Psychological Connection Between Life Stages The Memory Theory of Personal Identity The Case for the Memory Theory Problems for the Memory Theory Narrative Conception of Personal Identity Advantages of the Narrative View Problems for the Narrative View Final Remarks on Personal Identity 6 The Mind/Body Problem What Is the Problem? Possible Solutions to the Mind/Body Problem Substance Dualism Arguments for Substance Dualism Arguments Against Substance Dualism Varieties of Physicalism Behaviorism Logical Behaviorism Arguments Against Logical Behaviorism The Identity Theory Arguments Against the Identity Theory Functionalism Functional Concepts and "Stuff" Concepts Functionalism: Mind as Software Functionalism and Artificial Intelligence: The Turing Test Arguments Against Functionalism Eliminative Materialism Final Remarks on the Mind/Body Problem 7 Does God Exist? God, Faith, and Reason What Do We Mean by the Word God? Arguments in Defense of Classical Theism Arguments from Religious Experiences The Cosmological Argument The Design Argument The Ontological Argument Pascal's Wager The Effect of These Arguments Arguments Against Classical Theism The Logical Problem of Evil The Evidential Problem of Evil Final Remarks on the Problem of God's Existence 8 What Ought We to Do? Moral Intuitions and Moral Principles A Fundamental Challenge: Relativism The Case for Ethical Subjectivism Problems for Ethical Subjectivism The Case for Cultural Relativism Problems for Cultural Relativism Final Remarks on Cultural Relativism Some Important Ethical Theories Divine Command Theory Utilitarianism Duty-Based Theories Virtue-Based Theories Final Remarks on the Problem of Morality 9 Should We Be Afraid of Death? What Happens When We Die? Death as the Absolute End: Annihilation Survival After Death Agnosticism About Death Solutions to End-of-Chapter Multiple-Choice Questions Index