Free «Philosophy 2» Essay

1. One should analyze the question of the boat in the terms of the four Aristotle’s causes. After the boat was repainted, it remains the same boat. The formal cause that is about the design remains the same. The final cause of the boat, meaning the end of the purpose, is the same. The efficient cause, meaning methods to repaint the boat, remains the same. Finally, material cause, meaning the matter from what the boat is built, is the same. Thus, it is the same boat. The same can be said about the boat after the whole in it. Even after the boat was broken into a thousand pieces and put back together, it is the same boat. None of the causes change and even matter is the same.

2. Race and gender affect my personal identity to a certain degree. My race does not have an influence on my personality because it has nothing to do with my essence of life. Nevertheless, it determines the attitude of other people. They can be prejudiced against me because of my race. Their judgments can have an impact on my self-esteem and self-acceptance. However, my race cannot determine my personal identity while my gender can. It shapes my behavior patterns and dispositions to the certain things. It defines social expectations that can have a strong impact on the formation of my personal identity.

3. For me, God is something supreme and final. He possesses all possible features in their absolute measure. There is nothing in the world He would not be able to do or become. He has the fundamental power in all reality. He is the creator of the world, and He dwells everywhere. God is the ultimate reality because before the creation nothing existed except Him. God is eternal and omnipotent. Even when the world ends some day, God will still exist. Whatsoever, God is incomprehensible because people cannot explain what God is until nowadays.

4. 10 * 10=100. This statement is true because it is easy to warrant. This is a universal truth. Unbiased people can verify easily that it is truth. “You are typing on a computer.” This statement is true if it reflects the reality. If I am really typing on the computer at the time of this speech, it is true. If I were to hit you with a chair, what type of truth would make the following statement true, “I hit you with a weapon!” This statement is true for me when I consider a chair to be a weapon. If you do not consider a chair to be a weapon, it is not true. Example of correspondence: “The sun is shining” (when the sun is shining). Example of coherence: “The pen hit the ground” is true when I heard the sound of falling and saw it is missing from my table. Example of pragmatic: “Earning money is important” because it is beneficial.

5. Kant is correct because human actions cannot be determined only by pleasure. Chase for pleasure makes the human life immoral because different pleasures have different moral value. Even when a person feels happy because of something, it does not make him or her good. Thus, pleasures and good things differ in their nature. Human beings are not governed only by their senses. They have some rules and principles that they obey.

6. The war in Iraq was not just since the criteria of a just war were not followed. Last resort criterion was not followed because the United States attacked Iraqis on the base of false data. The legitimate authority criterion was not followed because private parties instead of government undertook the conduct of Iraq war. There was not any real threat to the world because of the Iraq WMD, so the just cause was not followed. The intentions were not right since instead of peace Americans targeted oil sources. There was not realistic hope of success because the wars against terror can be long. When confronted with an injustice, my responsibility is to fight injustice for the betterment of the society and the world.