Philosophy First Test Study Guide PDF

Study Guide Philosophy November 2024 Grade 10 Lesson 1 - What is Philosophy 1. What is Philosophy? Love for wisdom The pursuit of truth 2. Branches of Philosophy Epistemology - explores what it means to know something and when a person can be said to have knowledge Metaphysics - asks what r...

Study Guide Philosophy November 2024 Grade 10 Lesson 1 - What is Philosophy 1. What is Philosophy? Love for wisdom The pursuit of truth 2. Branches of Philosophy Epistemology - explores what it means to know something and when a person can be said to have knowledge Metaphysics - asks what reality is, What is real? Ontology - the philosophical study of being Logic - reasoning and argumentation, it helps us to understand how we can move from one conclusion to another. Axiology – studies the nature of values - Ethics - about right and wrong - Aesthetics - study of beauty, the nature of beauty, and the nature of art Social/Political Philosophy - questions about the legitimacy of social power, human rights and the necessity for people to be governed Lesson 2 - Logic 1. Logical and Thinking Intuitive thinking - when at once and in whole one sees the solution of a problem about which he has thought for a long period Critical thinking - а higher-order thinking than simply the ability to recall information (question, analyse, interpret, evaluate and make a judgement about what you read, hear, say, or write) Rational thinking - the ability to think with reason ( Thoughts are connected to one another in a consistent way - their flow is being controlled and estimated as well as their mutual dependence ) 2. Science of Logic - reasoning and argumentation - how to search for the truth - the rules of thinking and pure forms - the forms, laws and rules of abstract thinking ***Logic is the science for the right and correct arguments. 3. Laws of Logic Law of Identity - each thought in the process of reasoning should be equivalent to itself (each thing is identical with itself) Law of Excluded Third - from two contradictory propositions the one is true, the other false, and the third true proposition is impossible (for any given proposition, either that proposition is true or its negation is true) Law of Sufficient Reason - each thought should be accepted as true only if there is sufficient reason (if it is well-founded) Law of Noncontradiction - a proposition and its negotiation cannot be true in one and the same time Lesson 3 - Definitions 1. Types of Definitions Argumentative - have a clear ideological bias behind them (trying to get you to feel a certain way or make a certain moral judgement about the thing being defined) Stipulative - either define a new word or define a familiar word in an unnatural way for the purpose of an argument or theory Descriptive - standard dictionary definitions, they attempt to describe the way a word is actually used Neutral -at least attempts at trying to define a word or phrase or concept without biassing the reader toward one or another stance toward the thing being defined. 2. Rules of Valid Definition Rule 1 - The definition should not be tautological (the word being defined should not be in the definition) Rule 2 - The definition should not be negative if it can be positive Rule 3 - The definition should be clear Rule 4 - The definition should be proportionate or there should be equivalence between what is being defined and its definition Lesson 4 - Propositions and Truth Tables 1. Propositions The main form of thinking affirming or denying the existence of objects and phenomena, their property or their connection and relation (either true or false) - Premise - a proposition in an argument 2. Types of Propositions Simple S-P - Snow is white. - Subject -> Premonition about it Compound - main form of thinking affirming or denying the existence of objects and phenomena, their property or their connection and relation - A few simple propositions Conjunction (AND) - two propositions joined by the connective “and” - p˄q - Ex: 9 is disable by 3 and 4 is an odd number Disjunction (OR) - two propositions joined by the connective “or” - p˅q - Strong disjunction (ex. “It is a day or it is a night.”) - Weak disjunction- Behaves as and/or (ex. “It’s red or green” but it’s blue) Conditional/Implication (IF…THEN) - two propositions joined by the connective “if…., then …” - p→q - antecedent - the “if” part represent the cause - consequent - the “then” part represents the effect - ex. "If the rug is dirty, then the rug should be vacuumed." Equivalence/Biconditional (三) - two propositions joined by the connective phrase “if and only if” - p 三 q ((p→q)˄(p→q)) - ex. “Two lines are parallel if and only if they have the same slope.” Lesson 5 - Arguments 1. What Is an Argument? Argument - communication in which the speaker is trying to persuade their audience to believe, feel or do something by giving reasons Fight vs Description - fights - the people are taking things personally and getting antagonistic, instead of focusing on giving reasons - descriptions - give information and definitions for their argument 2. Modes of Reasoning (argument) Induction - Bottom-Top - from the specific to the general - ex. “I have not see a fox the whole day, hence, there are no foxes in the area.” Abduction - offers the best explanation given the premises - ex. “Usually, my partner gets home from work at around 6. It’s now 7 o’clock, so she must be stuck in bad traffic.” - Bottom-Top Deduction - Top-Botton - from the general to the specific - ex. All men are mortal. Socrates is a man. Therefore, Socrates is mortal. 3. Types of Arguments Inductive Arguments - using specific observations, such as observed patterns, to make a general conclusion - strong or weak - Cogent argument: strong + true premises (if all the premises are true, the conclusion is more likely to be true) - ex. “I have not see a fox the whole day, hence, there are no foxes in the area.” Abductive Arguments - what we infer is not necessarily true or conclusive - allows for uncertain conclusions - more of a guess ( lack of completeness, either in the evidence, or in the explanation, or both) Deductive Arguments - validity - depends on the logical connection between the premises and the conclusion  - if the logical connection between premises and conclusion is strong, then the argument is valid - soundness = validity + true premises - ex. Professors are well educated. Dr. G. is a professor. Therefore, Dr. G. is well educated. Lesson 6 - Deductive Arguments 1. Categorical Syllogism It consists of three parts: - Major premise: All humans are mortal. - Minor premise: All Greeks are humans. - Conclusion: All Greeks are mortal. major term - the predicate of the conclusion minor term - the subject of the conclusion middle term - one term in common with each other  2. Conditional Syllogism Name Modus ponens Modus tollens Hypothetical Disjunctive Proper form A->B A->B A->B AVB A ↽A B->C ↽A or ↽B ∴B ∴↽B ∴A->C ∴B or ∴A Symbols ∴ - therefore ↽ - denying V - this or that Formal fallacy! ↽A/B C->A Modus Ponens - the first premise expresses an if–then relationship: If the antecedent is true, then the consequent must also be true - ex. If it rains, the ground is wet. It is raining. Therefore, the ground is wet. - Fallacy: Affirming the consequent - from the true value of the consequent is derived the true value of the antecedent Modus Tollens - a mode of reasoning from a hypothetical proposition according to which if the consequent be denied the antecedent is denied - ex. If it rains, the ground is wet. The ground is not wet. Therefore, it is not raining. - Fallacy: Denying the antecedent - from the false value of the antecedent is derived the false value of the consequent Hypothetical Syllogism - a syllogism (argument) with two premises that are implications - there the consequent of the first premise becomes the antecedent in the second premise - ex. If it rains, the ground is wet. If the ground is wet, the soil is muddy. Therefore, if it rains the soil is muddy. Disjunctive Syllogism - an inference with two premises and one of them is disjunction - ex. I will choose soup or I will choose salad. I will not choose soup. Therefore, I will choose salad. ***To determine if an argument is valid: a) Define the P1 as a proposition b) What happens in P2? c) Is there a correct form/structure? d) Decide valid/invalid Lesson 7 - Informal fallacies Ad Hominem - attacking the ‘human’ instead of the argument Slippery Slope - small first step would lead to big chain of inevitable (negative) events Appeal to Authority - an ‘expert’ (qualified or not) claimed it’s true, therefore it must be true Straw Man - distorted or oversimplified caricature of your opponent’s argument Hasty Generalisation - general conclusion from a tiny sample Red Herring - irrelevant materials are introduced as a distraction Ad Populum - appeal to common practice Informal Explanation Example Fallacy Ad Hominem Attacking the person instead of the "Anyone that says we should build the argument. Ground Zero Mosque is an American-hating liberal." Slippery slope Assuming a relatively small first step “If we legalize marijuana, more people will will inevitably lead to a chain of related start using crack and heroin. Then we'd have (negative) events. to legalize those too.” Appeal to Claiming something is true because an “Over 400 prominent scientists and engineers authority 'expert', whether qualified or not, says it dispute global warming.” is. Straw man Creating a distorted or simplified “You say Israel should stop building caricature of your opponent's settlements on the West Bank in violation of argument, and then arguing against treaty. So you're saying Israel doesn't have that. the right to be a nation? ” Hasty Drawing a general conclusion from a "I just got cut off by the woman driver in generalization tiny sample. front. Women drivers!" Red herring Introducing irrelevant material to the “The Senator needn’t account for argument to distract and lead irregularities in his expenses. After all, there towards a different conclusion. are other senators who have done far worse things.” Ad populum - Claiming something is true because it's Everyone at this company takes home a few Appeal to commonly practiced. office supplies for themselves, so you do it as Common well. Practice “This bank has some problems with corruption. But there's nothing going on here that doesn't go on in all the other banks.”