What to study for your first philosophy test.
1. The Eleatic Philosophers...they are natural philosophers--they are also called the Pre-Socratics--what does that mean---what were their philosophical projects?
Parmenides--a detailed account of his view of the world.
Heraclitus---his view of the world ( c&c to Parmenides )
Empedocles---a detailed account of his world view ( how did he reconcile Parmenides and Heraclitus )
2. Who were the Sophists? What were their beliefs? What was Socrates problem with them? (see also
pg.83.)
3. Socrates.
his relationship to Plato.
what is Socratic discussion. what is Socratic irony?
what are some of the parallels between Socrates & Jesus?
explain the role of Reason in Socrates vision of how to live a good life.
4. Plato.
what was Plato’s philosophical project ( p.83 )
be able to explain Plato’s “theory of ideas.”
be able to explain what “true knowledge” is for Plato and how it can be achieved.
how does the Myth of the Cave reflect Plato’s views of a dual
reality?
how would Plato’s “ideal state” be organized and governed
5. The Apology
How does Socrates divide his argument and how doe she set about to answer the two charges lodged against him at his trial?
6. Aristotle.
what are Aristotle’s key achievements?
what are the key differences between Aristotle and Plato?
what was Aristotle’s view of form and substance?
what was Aristotle’s views on ethics and politics?
describe Aristotle’s invention in logic. How did he organize nature and what position do humans occupy in the scale of nature and why?