Key Terms

Question 1

Philosophy

Answer 1

From the Greek word ‘phials’ and ‘Sofia’ meaning ‘love of wisdom. Philosophy is the study of the nature of reality, knowledge, or values, based on logical reasoning

Question 2

Metaphysics

Answer 2

The area of philosophy concerned specifically with the nature of reality.

Question 3

Ethics

Answer 3

The area of philosophy concerned with what it means to be good, or to do the right thing.

Question 4

Ad hominem

Answer 4

Short for all ‘argumentum ad hominem’ from the Latin ‘argument to the person’, which refers to the tendency to criticise the person giving the argument rather than the content of the argument itself. Philosophers try to avoid this sort of approach.

Question 5

Principle Of Charity

Answer 5

This refers to the attempt to find the strongest and most persuasive version of an argument.

Question 6

Straw Man argument

Answer 6

This is an argument which sets up a simplistic version of an opponent’s argument, in order to better refute it.

Question 7

The correspondence theory of truth

Answer 7

The philosophical idea that what makes something true is because it mirrors the way things are in reality. For example: ‘it is raining’ is true if and only it is actually raining in reality.

Question 8

Iff

Answer 8

The logical shorthand for ‘if and only if’

Question 9

Empiricism

Answer 9

The philosophical view that all human knowledge is ultimately founded on experience.

Question 10

Objective

Answer 10

A Word philosophers use to mean independent of a person. Facts are said to be ‘objective’ because they do not depend on the view of the person stating them.

Question 11

Subjective

Answer 11

Dependent on the person (E.G. Taste can be subjective because it depends on the judgement of the person tasting). The opposite of ‘objective’.

Question 12

Rhetoric / rhetorical

Answer 12

Language used in order to persuade.

Question 13

Hume’s law / Hume’s guillotine

Answer 13

The argument that ‘ought’ statements cannot be derived from ‘is’ statements (E.G. ‘it ought to be raining’ cannot be derived from ‘it is raining’).

Question 14

Scepticism

Answer 14

The habit of doubting the truth about existence of things (from the Greek skeptomai meaning to think about, to search, or to look for). The two moons of scepticism in ancient Greece were ‘Academic Scepticism’ and Pyrrhonian Scepticism’.

Question 15

Academic scepticism

Answer 15

The belief that knowledge of the world gained through the senses was unreliable as it could not be trusted.

Question 16

Pyrrhonian Scepticism

Answer 16

A radical sort of scepticism that doubted whether any claims about the world were possible.

Question 17

Epistemology

Answer 17

That area of philosophy concerned with what can be known, and how we know what we know

Question 18

Theology

Answer 18

The study of the nature of God; rational enquiry into religious questions.

Question 19

Natural theology

Answer 19

The idea that something about God’s nature and plan can be known through human experience of the world.

Question 20

Revealed theology

Answer 20

The idea that God can only be known in so far as He allows Himself to be known through Jesus Christ, and Scripture.

Question 21

Philosophical Argument

Answer 21

• A focus on ‘big’ or ‘Ultimate questions’ such as the nature of reality, how we can know what we know, why things mean what they do, etc.
• A commitment to truth, clarity, and accuracy.
• A willingness to explore arguments wherever they might lead.
• A suspicion of beliefs held through emotional commitment or vague personal preference rather than reasoned argument.
• A recognition that finding the right question maybe can be more important than finding any answer.

Question 22

Contradiction

Answer 22

Simply denying an opponent arguments without real substantiation. For example simply saying ‘no it’s not’

Question 23

The three types of fact

Answer 23

Historical - an event which occurred in the past

Scientific - a repeatable observation or measurement

Legal - information which is used by a lawyer to prove a case

Question 24

Propaganda

Answer 24

A word used often in warfare as governments use media and speech to convince the world of the righteousness and importance of their own causes.