The hobbesian state of nature: A prisoner's dilemma?
Thesis - 7 pages - Philosophy
In his 1651 work Leviathan, English philosopher Thomas Hobbes argues in favor of a societal structure in which individuals must waive a portion of their natural rights to an ?artificial man? in order to avoid battling with each other. Most famously, Hobbes declared that this condition of war was...
Aristotle's teleology and the doctrine of the four causes
Thesis - 4 pages - Philosophy
In Aristotle's Physics, he presents his teleological theory of nature as comprised of changing materials which are to be understood in terms of the factors that brought them about, particularly their final causes (i.e. the function that they ultimately exist to serve). In his view, wisdom is...
The decay of magic: Karen Tei Yamashita's postmodern fable
Thesis - 6 pages - Philosophy
In her satirical, surreal debut novel Through the Arc of the Rainforest, Karen Tei Yamashita asks us to believe in magic. She puts forth five original miracles at the beginning of the story: a lucky man named Kazumasa who happens to have a sentient ball floating around his head; feathers that can...
Historical analysis of the Shakers
Thesis - 8 pages - Philosophy
The early Shaker belief system rested on an understanding that Christ's second coming had arrived. The founder of the sect, Mother Ann Lee, experienced a mystic vision of Christ while imprisoned. This vision was of the Christ and his church on earth. The early Shakers believed Ann Lee was the...
Construction and development of anthropology
Thesis - 10 pages - Philosophy
Often times, especially in ideological disciplines, there is a great gap between theory and practice. Not all theories apply to lived experiences and not all lived experiences can be summarized in theories. Nevertheless, this paper seeks to construct an ideal relationship between anthropological...
The anti-apocalyptic Markan community
Dissertation - 7 pages - Philosophy
Apocalyptic literature often is ignored when constructing theology and ethics. Theologians and ethicists ignore scriptural images of otherworldly beasts and supernatural beings. Prophesy of cosmic suffering and references to apocalyptic literature are not calculated in the work of most...
The origins of Freemasonry
Thesis - 7 pages - Philosophy
Freemasons have been a focus of interest for centuries, partly because of their secrecy, and partly because they have been linked to esoteric and secret knowledge. One of the most common questions asked about Freemasonry is, how did it begin? It may surprise some that this question is hotly...
A fractured fluency: Amy hempel's exploration of grief
Thesis - 5 pages - Philosophy
Amy Hempel's story “The Cemetery Where Al Jolson is Buried” appears to be a bleak depiction of human selfishness and avoidance in the face of death. A woman visits her dying friend in hospital, but instead of staying to offer comfort, she departs abruptly, leaving her friend crying in...
Religious analysis of death
Thesis - 5 pages - Philosophy
Many controversies arise from the interaction between human ideas and religious thought. One of the issues that create much confusion among religious scholars, as well as the average man has been death. Since it is believed that there is no turning back, death raises many questions, and creates...
Critical evaluation of the respective interpretation of cultural relativism as explained by Bernard Williams and Alasdair MacIntyre
Thesis - 3 pages - Philosophy
The moral relativism denies that any moral code has universal validity, and ethical propositions do not reflect absolute and universal moral truths. Morality is relative to social, cultural, historical or personal circumstances. The idea of relativism is not new. Protagoras, a Sophist, claimed...
Robert O.Paxton: The anatomy of fascism
Book review - 5 pages - Philosophy
Many authors have proposed definitions for the question “what is Fascism?”, but most of them failed to give a complete definition. The historian Robert O. Paxton answered this question for the first time by focusing on the concrete: what the Fascists did, rather than what they said. To...
Why did Aristotle believe in natural slavery?
Thesis - 3 pages - Philosophy
Aristotle wrote Politics as a criticism of Plato's Republic, after having been his student for 20 years. Aristotle especially disagrees with Plato's view that only knowledge and perfect forms count. He would criticize Plato's view that women and children should be held in the perfect state and...
Are forgiveness and a search for the truth a better solution to heal the minds and bodies of the victims of wars than externally imposed tribunals?
Thesis - 4 pages - Philosophy
Even after a settlement is reached and a peace agreement is signed, it is by no means the end of the conflict. For a conflict to really end, healing the minds and the bodies of the victims of wars is necessary. Indeed it is the necessary first step to reconciliation to appear and people who have...
The Third Way by Anthony Giddens
Book review - 7 pages - Philosophy
Anthony Giddens, director of the London School of Economics and Political Science published The Third Way in 1998. What does “Third Way” mean? For The author, the goal is a renewal of the social-democracy. Through this phrase he refers to a framework of thinking and policy-making that...
Violence and expressionism
Thesis - 4 pages - Philosophy
Expressionism is an avant-garde movement in which violence is everywhere in themes, in forms, in the expression of the artist in general. We can define violence by aggressive facts, language immoderation, brutality and provocation. When we talk about violence in art, the violence is not...
Democracy and totalitarism
Thesis - 6 pages - Philosophy
Nowadays the term ‘democracy ‘has become a widespread reality which is practically accepted everywhere. Even China's leaders argue that their country is on the path to democracy but “it needs time” (Wen Jiabao, China's Prime Minister). Nevertheless many dictatorships still...
Essay on the national liberation struggle in mozambique
Thesis - 7 pages - Philosophy
Mozambique is, in the early 20th century, a very heterogeneous country. Without any linguistic, cultural or ethnic harmony, the only point that is common all over this southern African country turns out to be the Portuguese colonial power. However, after an intense liberation struggle, Mozambique...
The Jews and the passion
Thesis - 3 pages - Philosophy
The Passion narratives must be understood through the Jewish historical experience, religious tradition and, above all, holy scripture. It is crucial to remember that the Passion story, considered as the birth of Christianism, is very linked to the Jewish culture and holy scripture since,...
Occidentalism, the redefinition of a concept in the discourse of international culture
Thesis - 6 pages - Philosophy
Occidentalism can exist and develop only in relation to its pre-existing coefficient, orientalism” . Indeed, there exists a dichotomy between these two concepts. It refers to the description of the World and its organization. Therefore, an analysis of the meaningful concept of...
Catholic religious orders in Europe
Thesis - 3 pages - Philosophy
Monarchism started in Egypt during the IInd century and may have its roots in the forms of some Jewish sects. Saint Antony (236-347) created next to Alexandria what we call anachoretism. He organized a hermits' life. These men gather in communities called anchoret. They live alone but meet on...
The universal human rights concept
Essay - 5 pages - Philosophy
The UN was founded immediately after the horrors of the Second World War because of the Nazi-regime and in response to the economic and social difficulties after the Depression. This need of security by law was explained by a particular tradition in Europe where in the seventeenth and the...
A critical comparison of Aristotle's and Augustine's concepts on time
Thesis - 5 pages - Philosophy
Aristotle and Augustine are two men whose intricately crafted ideas have been regarded as some of the most intelligent for thousands of years. Both men came from very different times and many times took very different approaches when explaining their ideas. Aristotle conceptualizes using mostly...
Would I lie to you
Thesis - 5 pages - Philosophy
What do job interviews, parents, significant others, store managers, telemarketers, homeless people, personal managers, and movie ticket agents have in common? They've all been lied to. At job interviews, applicants may tell a little lie about their qualifications in order to get the job. An...
The mysticism of Teresa of Avila
Thesis - 7 pages - Philosophy
Teresa of Avila (1515-1582) was a nun who came forward in the tumultuous years of the Spanish Inquisition to found a new order of nuns, the Carmelites. The new order had stricter rules about poverty and seclusion than other Spanish orders of that time. Teresa was a contemplative who was famous...
The image of the mother in the Tao Te Ching
Thesis - 7 pages - Philosophy
Western scholarship has traditionally portrayed Chinese cultural as patriarchal and not supportive of women. This perspective often fails to look at ways that the feminine has been acknowledged and honored in major Chinese religious traditions. Kuan Yin, for example, was originally the male...
The role of Eros, madness and desire, and physical sexuality in Plato's philosophy
Thesis - 7 pages - Philosophy
The philosophy of Plato had a strong impact on the development of Western thought and the evolution of Western culture. His ideas were influential with Christian thinkers in the third and fourth centuries and with European philosophers in the Renaissance and after.This paper will examine Plato's...
Pam Gems feminist vision in "Stanley". Exploring queer aesthetics through historical reflection
Thesis - 6 pages - Philosophy
Stanley Spencer, one of England's most lauded post-war visual artists, is also among the most obscure outside of the context of his reception in England, which included his being Knighted near the end of his life.(Hauser, 2001) In a “Self-Portrait” from 1914 the artist paints himself in...
The light and the dark - Goethe's faust and the theme of the search for inner wholeness
Thesis - 6 pages - Philosophy
In dramatic literary history, tragedies are a form through which dark elements in human motivation, character and decision making are explored. Often the tragedy revolves around the flaw of its main character, known as the tragic hero. The hero may have a tragic flaw such as egoistic hubris, or...
Heine's philosophical thinking
Thesis - 10 pages - Philosophy
This essay will explore ideas from “On the History of Religion and Philosophy in Germany” written by Heinrich Heine, one of the most famous German poets and cultural figures in general, of the early to mid 19th century. The paper will argue that in his often enigmatic and aphoristic...
Healing and the modern day servants
Thesis - 5 pages - Philosophy
The miraculous power of faith has been deemed able to heal a countless number of ailments from the time when Jesus walked the Earth performing miracles all the way to present day medical miracles involving prayer and strong faith. But what do these miracles tell us and prove in both the teachings...
