Recent Responses
In which book, which chapters does Hegel talk about 'everything happens for a reason'? Are there other authors that talk about this topic? What are the titles?
I can answer the second part
Michael Lacewing
August 28, 2015
(changed August 28, 2015)
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I can answer the second part of this question, but not the first (sorry!). The claim that 'everything happens for a reason' is known as the Principle of Sufficient Reason. It is commonly associated with Leibniz (and before him, Spinoza), but played an important... Read more
Do philosophers ever assume anything in books or journals (not including thought experiments) and wouldn't that be completely contrary to the intent of philosophy?
If by "assume," you mean
Allen Stairs
August 28, 2015
(changed August 28, 2015)
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If by "assume," you mean "accept without argument," then the answer is yes to the first part of your question and no to the second.
Yes: philosophers assume all sorts of things. They usually assume that there is a world out there and that there are people who... Read more
Is bearing a child really a right? The state does not know much about its own citizens other than date of birth and tax information so bringing unwanted children into the world is unfair to the child and the rest of society that must deal with all of the associated problems. Irresponsible parents or single mothers cannot guarantee the welfare or even the survival of their wanted children so why not prevent problems by passing a law allowing the state to licence and decide what type of people are allowed to have children according to certain criteria just like a driver's license? Those denied a license can always reapply at a later date once they've proved they are responsible enough. Right to privacy ends once the child leaves the womb since it is then a separate human and legal entity.
Your questions touches on a
Michael Cholbi
August 27, 2015
(changed August 27, 2015)
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Your questions touches on a number of issues within the emerging philosophical field of procreative ethics, the field addressing questions concerning the ethics of reproduction and parenting.
I concur with the spirit of your last sentence: It is interesting that la... Read more
Can every philosophical word or term listed in peer-reviewed philosophy dictionaries be explained with a real-life example? If not, how can we know that it's not just BS?
A not-really-relevant aside:
Allen Stairs
August 27, 2015
(changed August 27, 2015)
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A not-really-relevant aside: most philosophers don't own philosophical dictionaries, but let that pass.
Here's a non-philosophical word: unicorn. It's easy to explain what it means, but there aren't any real-life examples. Whether a term can be clearly explained and... Read more
Is science held to a lesser standard of proof than religion for analytic philosophers?
Interesting question. To
Charles Taliaferro
August 27, 2015
(changed August 27, 2015)
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Interesting question. To begin, matters of "proof" are rarely involved in analytical philosophy of religion. In fact, the days of when any philosopher claims to "prove" a thesis in metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, philosophy of science etc seem past. Philoso... Read more
Can every philosophical word or term listed in peer-reviewed philosophy dictionaries be explained with a real-life example? If not, how can we know that it's not just BS?
A not-really-relevant aside:
Allen Stairs
August 27, 2015
(changed August 27, 2015)
Permalink
A not-really-relevant aside: most philosophers don't own philosophical dictionaries, but let that pass.
Here's a non-philosophical word: unicorn. It's easy to explain what it means, but there aren't any real-life examples. Whether a term can be clearly explained and... Read more
How much of the laws on the books today were written by philosophers of law? It seems to me that the overwhelming majority of laws were written by people with JDs ergo people with degrees in which philosophy of law was not an important subject during their education. If they had more training in the philosophy of law would law be More efficient and fairer?
Disclaimer: I'm neither a JD
Allen Stairs
August 27, 2015
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Disclaimer: I'm neither a JD nor a philosopher of law. But I don't think that will matter for the points I want to make.
My guess is that very few laws were written by people with training in philosophy of law, and not too many more by people with training in p... Read more
To escape all the dishonesty and inauthentic living in the world today, are you aware of any so called philosophers' retreats where anyone online interested in the subject get together for several days or weeks at the countryside or maybe a lodge in the woods?
Not as such, though perhaps
Allen Stairs
August 23, 2015
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Not as such, though perhaps not quite for the reason you might think.
The discipline of philosophy isn't a cure for "inauthentic living." In my experience, at least, philosophers are no more and no less prone to being "inauthentic" than anyone else. Philosopher ofte... Read more
Is atheism a valid philosophical stance to take, from an academic point of view? I've recently been collecting university-published books, including on the topics of religion and philosophy and I noticed a pattern that there were far more books and university fellows dedicated to christianity and other forms of theism. Does this mean atheism is merely a curiosity in academics or have I been buying the wrong books?
Atheism is, indeed, a
Charles Taliaferro
August 20, 2015
(changed August 20, 2015)
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Atheism is, indeed, a respectable philosophical stance. The Cambridge Companion to Atheism would provide a helpful overview, and for contemporary reflection on atheism you might check out the Oxford University Press book Philosophers Without God, edited by a panelis... Read more
Do any professional philosophers have admiration or use for Alan Watts? Even though I have a Masters in Philosophy, I never heard of him until recently. If professionals think of him as a mere entertainer, I suppose that is fair enough, but he is a pretty good explainer.
I doubt most professional
Charles Taliaferro
August 20, 2015
(changed August 20, 2015)
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I doubt most professional philosophers think of Alan Watts as "a mere entertainer," but that may partly because he is probably not widely known by professional philosophers. I have not seen his work discussed in philosophical texts (books, journals, conference p... Read more