All the Way up to Test 1 Flashcards
(35 cards)
Where and When did Socrates live?
Lived in Classical Athens
During the 4th or 6th century BC
Polis and Oikos
Polis: public spaces where political decision were made
Oikos: the home; where women, children and slaves were
How do we know what we know about Socrates?
Mostly from Plato
From 2 plays:
1) Aristophanes: The Clouds
2) Xenophon
Why was Socrates on Trial?
He was accused of being a busybody.
What were the “Old Charges”?
1) Inquiring as to what was above the sky and below the earth / Where did the earth come from?
2) For turning the weaker argument into the stronger one.
3) For hanging out in the agoras and challenging others knowledge
What were the “New Charges”?
The Real Charge: Corrupting the Youth
1) For disobeying the gods and introducing new spiritual beings
2) Saying that the poets lied about the gods and questioned traditional Greek beliefs
Who were the “Sophists”?
The Sophists were professional educators. They were very popular among the Greeks because everyone wanted to have distinguished positions and in order to do so one had to learn how to speak and develop critical thinking skills.
Explain the “Gadfly Analogy.”
Socrates: The Gadfly
Athens: The Horse
Socrates uses this analogy to explain how he aroused the Athenian citizens, introducing new ideas and challenging them, like a fly arouses a horse from slumber
How did Socrates play the role of a social critic?
1) By asking questions about society.
2) Demanding reasons and examining the adequacy of those reasons.
What are the two major parts of an argument?
1) Premises
2) Conclusion
What makes an argument valid?
If the premises follows the conclusion.
Soundness: If the premises are true and the argument is valid.
What is a fallacy?
A LOGICALLY incorrect argument.
What is ad hominum?
Attacking someone’s character instead of their ideas.
What is false dichotomy?
Black or White thinking. Either this or that and not noticing other possibilities.
What are deductive arguments?
The conclusion necessarily follows, making explicit what is already known, can achieve certainty.
Ex. Mathematics or computer programs
What are Inductive Arguments?
A PATTERN OF EVENTS to make predictions
Forms generalizations.
What are the four methods of inquiry?
1) Tenacity
2) Authority
3) Intuition
4) Science
Tenacity
Always believed to be true, so it must be true.
Authority
Believed to be true because a distinguished person said so or believes it himself.
Intuition
“Self-evident” or obvious truths. Does not need to be tested.
Science
The “Self-Correcting” Method.
Tested repeatedly by all men through experimentation.
Scrutinized by others (mutual criticism).
Is self-correcting.
What is falsification?
Trying to prove something false in order to conclude that is is true.
What is epistemology?
Theory of knowledge.
Knowledge: 2 kinds of justifications:
a priori: independent of and before experience
a posteriori: based on and after experience
