For my Introduction to Philosophy course, an optional question on the final exam was: In your judgment, what is the most dangerous book we read this semester? First give a clear and sympathetic presentation of the book’s most important themes, and then explain why you think the book is dangerous. We read six major works […]
The most dangerous philosophy book (Fall 2010 edition) Read More »
A collection of posts relevant to my courses this semester: Before Philosophy: Homer’s world Why does philosophy begin with Thales? Philosophy begins: Thales’ revolution Socrates’ two bad arguments for not escaping Quotations from Apology and Crito on reason and character Who is the real father of modern philosophy? [Descartes versus Bacon] Education: Locke versus Kant
Past posts for the new semester Read More »
For my Introduction to Philosophy course, the final question on the final exam was: In your judgment, what is the most dangerous book we read this semester? Present the book’s most important themes and explain why you think it is dangerous. We read five major authors in the course: Plato’s Apology and Crito, Ayn Rand’s
What is the most dangerous philosophy book? Read More »
In raising the question of why philosophy begins with Thales, we first looked at Homer, the great shaper of the Greek mind before the philosophical and scientific revolution: Before philosophy: Homer’s world. In that post, I abstracted five statements from The Iliad: H1. Supernatural causation is part of the explanation for natural events. H2. Supernatural
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