Kant
- Rationality: Are humans fundamentally rational? Does our rationality, as Aristotle claimed, separate us from the other animals? What examples can you offer that demonstrates that at least some animals are rational (not instinctive!)
- Morality: Is Kant right that we should act out of the Categorical Imperative rather than a Hypothetical Imperative? You might want to watch this video by Harvard philosopher, Michael Sandel, for further explanation of the difference in imperatives. You might want to consider an example:
- Courtney's working for someone who needed to attend a funeral
- Truth-telling: must one always keep a promise? Explain.
- Religion & God: Is Kant right that knowledge about the existence of God is beyond the limits of our knowledge? Is it rational to believe in God and/or hope for the future?
Marx
(me at Highgate Cemetery at Marx's grave)
- Work: Was Marx right that work is fundamental to our human nature and essential to personal identity? What happens to people who cannot work or cannot make a living?
- Capitalism: Does capitalism necessarily alienate us from our work, ourselves, our colleagues, and/or our families? Are there improvements in modern capitalism that sufficiently respond to Marx's critiques of alienation, as well as concerns regarding safety and exploitation?
- Religion: Was Marx right that "religion is the opiate of the people"? Do you think that religion encourages people to undervalue their actual lives? Is religion just a symptom of human alienation?
- Human nature: Are we essentially social creatures? What follows from that? How should we best structure society if that is the case?
Kant - Morality:
ReplyDeleteI personally believe that Kant is right in saying that we should act out of the Categorical Imperative rather than a Hypothetical Imperative. I think that Categorical Imperative is more universal, in the sense that everyone can follow Categorical Imperative, regardless of external (rewards) or internal (religion) motivations. According to Kant, it is our desires that ultimately drive the Hypothetical Imperative. We should do what is right, not because of fear of punishment or the hope of a reward in the future, but simply because it is the right thing to do. It's like Dr. Cate said in class, that we should treat people "always as an end in itself, and never merely as a means". I took this as everyone around us are humans that are deserving of the same respect and humanity as we want, and therefore, we should not use people and belittle their worth to be a step stool to reach a desired outcome, such as a future reward. We should not "take advantage" of people as a means to get what we desire.
Marx - Religion: I have never heard "religion is the opiate of the masses" before, so I was genuinely intrigued by it. Generally speaking, I do agree that religion, to some extent, is like an opiate. It does bring relief and comfort to those experiencing hardship, where all they need is something to hold on to, as to provide hope for the light at the end of the tunnel. But I also think that religion is so much more than that. Those that are religious do not turn to God or a god simply when they are struggling and hope that God answers their prayers for solace, but also when they are happy or thankful. It's a major part of people's lives, even when there is nothing wrong going on. In terms of what Marx thought of society, if there was no suffering socially or economically, I think Marx believes that no one would have to follow or practice a religion, because there would be no need to be comforted. But couldn't religion still be apart of people's lives?
I agree with you that religion brings hope to people who are in times of hardship.. They are able to cope better thinking that a higher power will help them in time of need. It also gives people a sense of belonging to something of importance.
DeleteI agree that in every relationship and forming new ones that people try to understand how it could help them, either now or in the long run. I think relationships should develop without that bias to play a role in order to create real friendships that are true. Never treat it as a means. I also agree with you that religion is something to hold onto in times of hardship and adversity. I believe it is something that we can easily fall back on for hope and guidance. I don't know if it is necessarily okay to treat religion as a crutch only in times of hardship or if we really should give adequate amount of time to think about religion when things are going great.
DeleteReligion & God: Is Kant right that knowledge about the existence of God is beyond the limits of our knowledge? Is it rational to believe in God and/or hope for the future?
ReplyDeleteI believe that yes, Kant was right and that the existence of God is beyond our knowledge. No one knows for sure if there is a God or not. There are stories people have told and the Bible itself that help aid in "hoping" there is a God. I think that with the idea of God, there is hope for many people. Something for people to believe in and strive for. Even with not knowing, I don't see it being irrational for people to believe and have a religion. It is rational for people to take something, an object or idea and agree with it. It is in our human nature to do this. Just because people believe in God or gods, doesn't make it irrational, it just makes us human.
Work: Was Marx right that work is fundamental to our human nature and essential to personal identity? What happens to people who cannot work or cannot make a living?
I think that Marx has a point that work does help to create a persons identity. Work is essential in life. People must make money to live. It is what you do with that money that determines your identity. Are you going to use that money for evil? To buy a gun to kill people? Or are you going to use the money for good? To donate to a charity, for people in need? People that cannot work or cannot make a living create an identity in themselves. Work = Money. Without money, people have to learn how to survive. They must do things that a working individual probably does not do or even think about on a regular basis. Thus creating their own identity.
I agree with you and Kant that the existence of God is beyond our knowledge because we really don't know for sure if there is a God but like you mentioned it's not irrational to still believe in him because there is the Bible that can help us. Just the belief in God can also provide hope for us too
DeleteI agree with Kant's view on God. I don't think we will ever know if there is a god and no evidence will ever be revealed. Its all up to faith from where I see it. Unless future research into black holes and the secrets they hide could be presented, of which could be extremely interesting...just food for thought.
DeleteKant:Rationality
ReplyDeleteAre humans fundamentally rational? Does our rationality, as Aristotle claimed, separate us from the other animals? What examples can you offer that demonstrates that at least some animals are rational (not instinctive!)
- I do think that humans are fundamentally rational. When we are first born, I don't think we have much capability to make logical decisions in our life yet. Once we gain some experience and learn as we get older we are capable of making logical decisions for ourselves, therefore humans are fundamentally rational. I agree with Aristotle that we our rationality does separate us from other animals. An example of an animal showing rationality would be the gorilla named, Koko, who can do sign language.
Marx:Work
Was Marx right that work is fundamental to our human nature and essential to personal identity? What happens to people who cannot work or cannot make a living?
- I think Marx is right that work is fundamental to our human nature and essential to personal identity. We need work to live and survive as people because without work there isn't money to help provide for our needs. It is also essential to personal identity because work can show one's work ethic and it can show the work put in to getting to their career position. When people are unable to work their idenity changes in a way because when someone once had a job and then got laid off for instance it changes their identity because they aren't the working person that they once were and now they have to find other ways to survive and make a living.
Julie,
DeleteI like how you incorporated if someone gets laid off work it changes their identity. I think it effects them because they are not able to provide for their family as they did while they were working. I think it creates a feeling of depression and anxiety for their future. But as humans we try to cope by finding another job so that we are able to provide again.
Julie, I agree with you in the fact that work can change a person's personality if they are laid off. I have experienced this with my father and I have seen his personality changes. He felt like less of a father because he was unable to provide for his family. He now has a job again, which has been validating his role as a father and provider.
DeleteKant: Is Kant right that knowledge about the existence of god is beyond the limits of our knowledge? Is it rational to believe in god and or hope for the future?
ReplyDeleteI think that Kant is right that knowledge about the existence of god is beyond the limits of our knowledge. I don't think people could handle actually knowing if there were a god or not. No one really knows if there is a god or not and I think that Is for the best. For example what if people knew there definitely was not a god, would there be more people who didn't follow morals or were just bad people because they knew they wouldn't go to hell? On the other hand what if people actually knew there was a god would everyone be a good person and throw off the balance of the world? Not saying that would be a bad thing, just different. I think it is best that God stays beyond our limits of knowledge. I do however believe that it is rational to believe in God and have hope for the future. I think that believing in something you do not know for sure, is reasonable because sometimes it gives people a reason to live, the hope that there is a god pushes people to be the best they can be, well most people.
Marx: Are we essentially social creatures? What follows from that? How should we best structure society if that is the case?
We are essentially social creatures, people need social interaction to live a happy healthy life. All throughout life people need that sense of belonging and finding friends they can confide in, it is just healthy. That being said being social creatures can follow in good and bad aspects. For people who can find their place and fit in and have good friends social life can be great. However for the people that do not fit in, there stems problems, such as bullying and depression. We should structure society as more accepting then it is, so there is not so much negativity socially and more positivity.
I agree with your view on humans being social creatures. We definitely need social interaction in our lives. I also agree with your saying that it can be bad and good. Especially in todays world, social life can be rather difficult and there are a difference in norms and how to "fit in". We definitely need a more accepting society.
DeleteI totally agree with your view on Kant's view of religion. When I answered that question I was wondering the same about if people definitely didn't know there was a God. I also agree its just best that we as man kind do not know for sure if there is or not. It gives people hope and a reason to live as better people.
DeleteWork: Was Marx right that work is fundamental to our human nature and essential to personal identity? What happens to people who cannot work or cannot make a living?
ReplyDeleteYes I believe that Marx is right when he says that work is fundamental to our human nature because we spend the majority of our lives at a job trying to make money in order to survive. We have to have money in order to survive in life- for food, water, and shelter. Typically, we choose a career that we are passionate about and people like to be identified by that career position. For example, a doctor likes to be called "Dr." and have "MD" after their name. In my opinion, no one likes spending 40+ hours a week at work but they like to be rewarded by money or self gratification from helping others and things like that. I believe our jobs help shape us into the people that we are based on the environment we work in. Our job helps mold our skill set for life and we keep these lessons/skills we learn for the rest of our lives. For instance, a surgeon must possess patience and work well under pressure. When people no longer work I think that it is hard for them to cope, they have an identity crisis because they are so used to being defined by their work because it plays such a huge role in our lives. I do think that there are many things that contribute to a persons self identity, but I do agree with Marx that work is essential to our self. We are not just our work though, at some point in our lives we quit working and we still have other identities that make us, us.
I really like your take on work in Marx eyes. I agree with what you are saying, work is essential to humans. I really like the examples that you give, they really explain work well. I love the doctor example because I want to be a doctor and it really made me think about the career in a different way.
DeleteKant
ReplyDelete• Rationality: Are humans fundamentally rational? Does our rationality, as Aristotle claimed, separate us from the other animals? What examples can you offer that demonstrates that at least some animals are rational (not instinctive!)
I think fundamentally as humans we are able to correlate our senses with our mind to make rational decisions. Being rational by definition says to base on or in accordance with reason or logic, or to think sensibly or logically. Kant transcendental idealism theory which states that material objects exist independently of out thought and perception, suggest that we are a different species of animal that is capable of using our senses to have input in our brains and process the information by using logic. I think our rationality as humans is different than other species. I think humans have the highest rational capacity created. As humans we are able to judge, categorize, and think about emotions. We complete task such as going to work which other animals are unable to do. I think that other animals are incapable of rationalizing like humans. I think they have a lower capacity to rationalize. One example is monkey’s ability to learn languages. This example also depends on if you believe learning is rational. Or an example of an animal not being rational is beliefs. Animals are not capable of thinking of a higher power or having beliefs. The thought of an animal such as a turtle going to church is weird. Overall I do not feel animals other than humans have the ability to rationalize like humans but I think they have the ability to learn to be rational.
Marx
• Work: Was Marx right that work is fundamental to our human nature and essential to personal identity? What happens to people who cannot work or cannot make a living?
I think that Marx was correct, when he said work is fundamental to our human nature and essential to personal identity. Working is part of being human, for women as well as some men, taking care of their offspring is work. Infants depend on being fed, clothed, and bathed as part of their survival, all of these task are work. As parents we provide for our children and we often do by working a job, which provides income to accomplish these needs. I also think work is essential to personal identity because we get satisfaction from a paycheck. We are able to buy goods and services which gives us a value of self- worth. Self- worth is then essential to how we are able to cope mentally with are surroundings. If people are not able to work it is in our nature as humans to provide for them, hence we have a disability program, and charities that also contribute to the under privileged. It is our nature to take care of each other and provide for those who are unable to provide for themselves.
Kant
ReplyDelete-Rationality: I do believe that humans are fundamentally rational. Humans go through a process of thinking that breaks down a situation before acting on it. Also use a thought process that allows us to figure out how to do things, grow in life, and many other aspects. I do believe in some aspects that our rationality separates us from some animals. For example apes show us that they may have some rational thought by the ape that learned sign language or the apes that have used rational thought to build things to obtain food and etc. Also another example that displays some animals have rational thought is with dolphins that have been shown to protect humans from other animals, which is rational thought because they were not trained or instinctively prepared for that situation.
Marx
-religion: I do think Marx was somewhat right with his statement. I feel some people do use religion as a comfort blanket, in a way that they use it so they do not have to face hard times alone. I do not think religion is a cause that makes people undervalue their lives. I do feel that if religion is wrongly used that it becomes something that allows people to ignore life problems be hiding behind religion. Though id religion is used correctly that is can be a helping hand in tough problems that helps you get through them by not facing them alone. I do not feel it is a symptom of human alienation, it is just something that can be used to help or not help.
Kant
ReplyDelete• Rationality: Are humans fundamentally rational? Does our rationality, as Aristotle claimed, separate us from the other animals? What examples can you offer that demonstrates that at least some animals are rational (not instinctive!)
I believe that humans are fundamentally rational. Rational means that it is based on or accordance with reason or logic. Humans process what they are going through before that act upon it. It may be a quick decision, or a long decision. Our rational thinking allows us to evolve and figure out how to process life as it hits us. I do believe that our rationality somewhat differentiates us from other animals. However, in class we used an example of the ape and the dolphin. The ape was able to learn sign language and use rational thinking to get things that it wants, such as food. The dolphins also use rational thinking to help protect us from other animals, such as sharks. This is rational by both animals because they were not trained for the situation.
• Work: Was Marx right that work is fundamental to our human nature and essential to personal identity? What happens to people who cannot work or cannot make a living?
I believe that Marx was correct that work is fundamental to our human nature and is essential to personal identity. Working is part of our human society, both for men and women. Work is what keeps life going and things to continue. A mother is someone who works, even if she does not get paid and works at home. The mother is responsible for her young. She feeds him, clothes him, bathes him, and teaches him. The infant looks up to the mother or father to take care of them. This is a job that requires dedicated time. I also think that work is essential to personal identity. Work is what defines us. Work gives us validation on who we are, with or without a pay check.
Elise, I really like the ending point you made about how "work gives us validation on who we are, with or without a paycheck". Regardless of if a person is getting paid, I think that if they are working in a position where someone looks up to them or relies on them, it is extremely rewarding to the person. But of course, there are certain situations in life (like providing for your family or paying off loans or buying food) that require receiving income and in that case, most people would do about any job in order to make ends meet. And in that case, I think the person's motive to work defines them (like if a parent worked two jobs that they didn't particularly enjoy, but were doing it to ensure there kids got fed everyday and had clothes to wear... this to me defines the parent as compassionate, hard-working, and sacrificial).
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteKant
ReplyDelete-Religion & God: Is Kant right that knowledge about the existence of God is beyond the limits of our knowledge? Is it rational to believe in God and/or hope for the future?
I believe that Kant is right in saying that the knowledge of God's existence is beyond the limits of our knowledge. We have no way to actually know what it is not able to be proven with science. Nobody can verify or deny the presence of God and it is way beyond our knowledge to be able to do so. If it cannot be proven then it can not be a scientific truth. I do believe though that it is rational to believe in God. Human beings are drawn to believing in something bigger than them. They are drawn to having an explanation for things that cannot be explained. This is where religion and God come into play. Even though God cannot be proved as a scientific truth, he can be a theological truth or saving truth. To those who have a specific religion, they have a saving belief. God would be an example of a saving truth. That is why I believe it is rational to believe in God. Even though humans cannot prove his existence, believing he is real is essential. That is where faith comes from. Faith is believing in God even though he cannot be scientifically proven.
Marx
-Was Marx right that "religion is the opiate of the people"? Do you think that religion encourages people to undervalue their actual lives? Is religion just a symptom of human alienation?
I believe in certain circumstances that religion can be "the opiate of the people." Religion is important to humans because it gives them something to believe in beyond the physical world. But if the religion is convincing people to commit crimes and murder and people are claiming that they are commiting vicious crimes because of religion, then its a problem. It is when people are too commited to a religion that it becomes an issue. That is when people begin to think that there religion makes them superior to others and makes them believe that they are different from everyone instead of thinking of people as equals. I don't believe that religion makes people undervalue their lives. Sometimes people do drastic things for religions such as suicide bombers. I don't think that they are undervaluing their life because to them and their religion, that is seen as dying with dignity and is a different belief. I believe that because of religion people feel self-worth and want to live better so that they can go to heaven or whatever the end is for other religions.
I completely agree with you that Kant is right in saying that Gods existence is beyond the limits of our knowledge. No one can prove the existence of God. I also think that we would not be able to handle mentally having the knowledge that God does or does not exist, I think it would be to much for a human to handle either way. I also agree with you in saying it is rational to believe in God. It keeps people going.
DeleteI also agree with you in saying that religion is important in that it gives humans something to believe in beyond the physical world. It is good to believe in something you cant see, it creates a since of magic and hope.
Kant:
ReplyDeleteRationality- Are humans fundamentally rational? Does our rationality, as Aristotle claimed, separate us from the other animals? What examples can you offer that demonstrates that at least some animals are rational (not instinctive!)
I believe that humans are fundamentally rational and that this is a factor that separates us from other animals. We might not be born with full logical ability but as we grow and develop so does our rational thought and logical processes. Our logical rational and thought builds through experience and education. One example I can think of where an animal can be rational is with monkeys who have successfully learned sign language.
Marx:
Work- Was Marx right that work is fundamental to our human nature and essential to personal identity? What happens to people who cannot work or cannot make a living?
I do believe that work is a fundamental aspect of human nature. Not only is money essential to live, but work and earning that money gives us a sense of personal identity. If we are passionate about or careers, we become our work. It helps to shape who we are and also how we provide for our family and the type of life we are able to give them. When someone can no longer work, they have to re define themselves in terms other than work. They have to find a new hobby or something to pass their time. They are no longer defined as a working person, an identity crisis often occurs.
Kant – I believe that Kant is right in saying that the knowledge about the existence of God is beyond our limits of knowledge. I don’t think that people could cope with knowing the whole truth about the existence of a God or not, it would be too much to comprehend. But I think that it is still rational for people to believe in a God. It’s a way for people to remain hopeful in life and to live better morally and soundly. Although I believe regardless of what people believe in there should still be some type of moral standards to live by. Like if people found out hypothetically speaking that there wasn’t a God and would never be a higher being to answer to for our wrong doings then would most of man kind just start doing bad and have no morals or self conscious for doing bad things? Just something to think about.
ReplyDeleteMarx – I think Marx is right in saying that work is fundamental to our human nature and essential to our personal identity. I read somewhere that the average person spends over ten years of their lifetime, 90,360 hours, at work – and that’s just an average and estimating if you even get to retire at 65. When you spend that much of your life doing one thing in particular, it plays an important role in defining who you are. It influences the way we think, act, and feel on a daily basis, based on whether we like our job, whether we our making enough money to support ourselves and our families, whether it is rewarding to us, for millions of reasons! When a person can’t work it affects them in all these ways and more. Take for example, a person who is injured and can no longer provide for their family due to the injury because they can’t go to work, something like that results in feelings of helplessness because their family is dependent upon them.
Kant
ReplyDeleteRationality: I do think that we as humans are rational beings and that separates us from other animals as Aristotle taught. An example of an animal acting rationally rather than instinctively can be seen in a psychology experiment done on a chimpanzee. A treat was placed in a tube and the chimp had to get it out. The chimp ended up peeing in the tube to get the treat to float to the top. Here is a link to the article: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2001381/Chimps-solve-Aesops-fable-spitting-urinating-tube-tasty-peanut.html
Marx
Human Nature: I think Marx was right and we are essentially social creatures. Since we are social creatures I think that is how we formed a society. Families were made, leading to groups of families, like neighborhoods, leading to towns and cities and so on. From this we get the work place, everyone doing a task to help maintain and develop our social gathering places and lives.
Kant
ReplyDeleteRationality
I think that humans are fundamentally rational. I think that we are able to make rational decisions in our heads. I do not think that separates us from other animals because I think that some animals are able to make rational decisions that are not instinctive. For example when people are feeing sad sometimes their dogs will bring their own their favorite toy in order to make their owner feel better. I don’t think that the dog would do that on instinct. I don’t know what instinctive thing that would be. Also scientist have taught some monkeys sign language in order to communicate with them. That definitely requires rational thinking. It would not be instinctive for a monkey to learn a new language and be able to use it.
Religion in God- I think that Kant is right about that knowing the existence of God is beyond our limits of knowledge. There is no proof that God exists. No one can be 100% sure that he does exist. I think that it is rational for us to believe in God and hope for the future. I feel like most people need something to believe in.
Marx
Work- I do not think that work is fundamental to our human nature and essential to our personal identity. There is a lot of people who can’t work and that doesn’t mean they don’t have a personal identity anymore. There is also a lot of people who don’t like to work. That doesn’t mean that they don’t have a personal identity.
Kant
ReplyDeleteAre humans fundamentally rational? Does our rationality, as Aristotle claimed, separate us from the other animals? What examples can you offer that demonstrates that at least some animals are rational?
Answering the question if humans are fundamentally rational you could argue yes and no. What we understand as rational is living an everyday life the way it should be lived. If someone acting irrationally is noticed then i feel like the questioned is arose of what is actually "acting rational". For example, taking drugs such as heroin or meth tends to make a person act irrationally. A person whop doesn't take those kinds of drugs has a mind that acting properly because a independent variable acting on their brain is causing them not to. The rationality of humans do separate us from other animals because i feel like we are the only kind of "intelligent" species on the planet making us rationally different from others.An example of an animal acting rational would be the video on social media of the German- shepherd lying down on his/her owners newly buried grave grieving the loss of their owner.
Marx
Was Marx right that work is fundamental to our human nature and essential to personal identity? What happens to people who cannot work or cannot make a living?
Marx's complex explanation on the fundamentals of human nature and personal identity is relative to all of our society today. I believe that work is in everyone's nature. If we didnt have work then life would be boring and we would have nothing to live for. The character in which work creates ourselves makes us become better human beings and reminds us to not take things for granted. Its more of a realization that we have to look forward to living a better life of fun and happiness but in order to get there we must sacrifice and do whats right in the world. The identity we grow from it gives us a broad picture of who we want to become and sustain a good reputation within our work and outside of it. For the people that can not work or can't make a living, there are once that certainly are unable to but many take those options for granted and ride the coat tales of others. Those people are less fortunate than other therefore are the ones suffering day in and day out. That's when the reputation comes into play and people start to make irrational decisions taking into count of their future.