Obstacles to Reasoning Well - Unit 2 Flashcards
(27 cards)
Athens
- City of ‘reason’, contrasted with city of ‘faith’ like Jerusalem
- School of Athens by Raphael symbolizes history of reason
Tertullian
Tertullian talked about reason (Athens) vs. faith (Jerusalem) as two ways of thinking, not about actual places
Socrates
- Most influential figure when it comes to ‘reason’
- Believed in religious faith
- Designed argument for existence of God
- Socrates taught Plato, who taught Aristotle—key figures in Greek philosophy
- His method of questioning helps us escape dogmatism and learn better
Dogmatism
- The expression of an opinion or belief as if it were a fact
- Being overly confident in your opinion comes off as arrogant
Socrates Life
- War hero
- Questioning and challenging conventional wisdom
- “Athenian Gadfly”
- Religious
- Wrote nothing
- Pursued wisdom through conversation and open-mindedness
- “Follows the argument wherever it may lead”
Gadfly
Buzz around and annoy people
Socrates Divine Mission
To help people discover their own ignorance as a first step to wisdom
Oracle
- Ancient define oracle at Delphi
- Oracle would channel divine wisdom to visitors
Socrates 1st Reply Re Quote
- PUZZLEMENT AND DISBELEIF
- Initially says he’s ignorant and doesn’t know anything
Oracle Quote
“Socrates is the wisest of men (humans)”
Socrates 2nd Reply Re Quote
- “I and the politician are both ignorant, but I know that I am ignorant”
- The politician falsely believes he knows things he doesn’t
- Socrates’ awareness of his ignorance makes him wiser
The Socratic Pyramid
- 4 stages (Blind Ignorance, Enlightened Ignorance, Wisdom, Excellence)
1st Stage of Pyramid
- Bulk of human population
- The problem with blind ignorance is not knowing you’re ignorant, which blocks proper learning
2nd Stage of Pyramid
- Climbing the pyramid leads to enlightened ignorance (realizing you don’t know)
- Socrates achieved this, while most people are stuck thinking they know but don’t
- Enlightened ignorance is not the end—true wisdom is realizing what you do know
- This journey leads to human excellence
3rd Stage of Pyramid
- Wisdom is knowledge plus awareness of what matters
- It’s not just knowing facts but knowing the right things
- Wisdom helps us understand how to live well, unlike unimportant knowledge
Method of Elenchus
- Socrates’ Elenchus Method involves questioning people about their beliefs
- His questions reveal contradictions in their views
- This leads them to realize their own ignorance and gain self-knowledge
- Socrates guides them to discover this, rather than directly telling them
Blind to Enlightened Ignorance
- Believing without evidence is guessing, not knowing
- Through Socratic dialogue, we realize our ignorance to move up the ladder
How Did We Arrive at Such Ignorance in the First Place?
- We accept common beliefs as true without questioning them
- Socratic questioning reveals our confusion and lack of true knowledge
- Recognizing ignorance is the first step to understanding
Illustrating Elenchus: Hot-Dog Eating
- Common Belief: enjoying a hot-dog isn’t morally problematic
- The underlying issue is the animal cruelty that goes behind it
Ignorant
Having no knowledge or understanding of a certain thing
A Common Belief
- “X” denotes the property of serious wrong doings
- He might ask, “Why is dog fighting morally wrong?”
- The answer often leads to recognizing unjustified animal pain and cruelty
Illustrating Elenchus: Dog-Fighting
- Common Belief: supporting or benefiting from dog fighting is wrong
Dog Fighting + Hot-Dog Eating Correlation
- Both cases involve animal cruelty, but only one is seen as morally wrong
- Socrates shows that the reasoning against dog fighting (Case A) also applies to factory farming for hot dogs (Case B)
- Case B is worse since all animals die, yet it’s seen as “justified.
- People overlook Case B’s cruelty because it’s hidden
Socratic Injury
Is it inconsistent to think dogfighting is wrong for causing animal suffering, but eating hot dogs—also causing animal suffering—is okay?
