Philosophy Essays Examples For College & High School Students in PDF

10142 total results

The Difference between the Ethical Principles of Deontological and Teleological Thinkers (871 words, 3 pages)

The basic difference between deontological thinking or ethics and teleological thinking or ethics is whether the code of ethics thats being discussed is based on rules and principles of some kind, which would make it deontological, or whether the ethics are based on the outcomes of the decision, which would ... Read More

Different View on When Lying Is Acceptable (975 words, 3 pages)

When is Lying OK?Lying is an issue that has been debated on for a long time. Some people believe lying is always acceptable. In contrast, some believe lying is always unethical. Others believe lying can be justified. Keeping all others opinions in mind, I think lying wrong most of the ... Read More

An Analysis of the Philosopher Rene Descartes’ Argument on the Existence of God (1419 words, 5 pages)

If there was one philosopher whose name could be taken as a synonym for the Enlightenment, Rene Descartes would have a strong case for being the one. His contributions to Western Civilization are vast and impressive, contributions in fields ranging from mathematics to physics to philosophy. His crowning achievements, however, ... Read More

An Analysis of John Locke’s Approach to Epistemology (783 words, 3 pages)

Epistemology is a debate which roots to ancient Greece. One side of the debate was the rationalists who argued that we learn about the world through our mind and what is already in it (a-priori). The other side of the debate is the empiricists who argued that we learn about ... Read More

Ayn Rand’s Philosophy on Society, Conformity and the Necessity of Reason (977 words, 3 pages)

Fuck.That four-letter word undoubtedly caught your attention as your eyes involuntarily widened. I even tensed as I typed that word--afraid of the disapproval I would receive from you, the reader. But wouldnt the concepts behind The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand support the argument that just because society has dubbed something ... Read More

An Analysis of the Definition of Free Will According to Hard Determinism (953 words, 4 pages)

A man can do what he wants, but not want what he wants.Arthur SchopenhauerWe definitely do what we intend and what we want to do (excluding reflexes) but would we be foolish to think that we can control those intentions? Yes, says the hard determinist. Hard determinism is branch of ... Read More

The Factor X: What It Means to Be Human (770 words, 3 pages)

Dont over think it! Humanity has a funny way of defining what being human means. If asked the simple question, what does being human mean? Many people will most likely answer the question with a deep response. Common answers to this question would be to make mistakes, find the value ... Read More

An Analysis of Richard Wolin’s Book on Philosophy ”The Seduction of Unreason: The Intellectual Romance with Fascism from Nietzsche to Postmodernism” (1793 words, 6 pages)

The Seduction of UnreasonThe Seduction of Unreason, by Richard Wolin is a singular book, one which taught me a great deal about the causal relationships between a philosophers personal life and their academic waverings. Beyond this, Wolins book also helped to show me the startling likeness between the Counter-Enlightenment Era ... Read More

A Personal Narrative About a Personal Philosophy of the Metaphysics of Quality (1676 words, 8 pages)

When I arrived at the THINK TANK, writing was a very fluid process for me. I had no formats, tricks, outlining strategies, or diagrams to help me write. This is obviously not applicable to students, and makes for a pretty terrible tutoring strategy. The THINK TANK got me thinking, though. ... Read More

An Essay on Philosophy: A Relic of the Past (1837 words, 6 pages)

The Oracle at Delphi was renowned since before the time of Socrates for her divine connection to the god Apollo who was, among other things, the god of prophecy. It is for this reason, that when she was asked if there lived a man wiser than Socrates, and she replied ... Read More

The Difference Between Selfishness and Corruption as Discussed in the Book “Mother Theresa: A Biography” by Meg Greene (2362 words, 7 pages)

The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed -- for lack of a better word -- is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms -- greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge ... Read More

A Personal Essay on Sam Harris and His View on Free Will (498 words, 2 pages)

Sam Harris has changed a lot over the past couple of years to the point where his podcast doesnt make my blood boil anymore. I think his most consistently reasonable position has been his view on free will--it almost seems as though neuroscientists should stick to neuroscience and not exegesis. ... Read More

The Flaws of the Voting System and the Role of Society in the Reforms, According to Henry Thoreau (1072 words, 4 pages)

Thoreau believes that the flaw of a system that relies on voting is that the final decision will never be suitable for every man in society, and as a result nothing will be achieved. Although a man may think he is right when he votes for something, this vote confirms ... Read More

Existential Crisis and Its Possible Effects on Society (852 words, 3 pages)

Is existential crisis harmful or not? 'Existence precedes essence' as Sartre defines existentialism (1946). He means that existence shows our choices and we create our own personality, our own existence. In the eyes of society's members existence is a term to be avoided. To picture the position simply, Sartre gives ... Read More

An Analysis of John Locke’s Conception of the Mind and Ideas in His Essay Concerning Human Understanding (753 words, 4 pages)

John Lockes conception of the mind and ideas in his Essay Concerning Human Understanding represented a continuing sea change from the pre-Enlightenment philosophy. In opposition to both the Scholastics and to Descartes, John Locke envisioned a mind that consisted solely of physical motions of the brain, and a world that ... Read More

An Analysis of Individuality in Ralph Waldo Emerson’s The Over-Soul (863 words, 3 pages)

In Ralph Waldo Emersons The Over-Soul, Emerson discusses the reward of individuality, in which he writes, But the soul that ascends to worship the great God is plain and true has no rose-color, no fine friends, no chivalry, no adventures does not want admiration dwells in the hour that now ... Read More

Society Moves Too Quickly and Is Too Busy According to Henry David Thoreau (508 words, 2 pages)

According to Henry David Thoreau, society moves too quickly and is too busy. The speaker of the story identifies himself as one who enjoys the more simple things in life, such as nature. He feels that general civilization does not take the time to slow down and enjoy life. This ... Read More

The Idea of Family Business in The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx (714 words, 3 pages)

In The Communist Manifesto, the most prominent way that bourgeois capitalism and effects his society is the way that the bourgeois has lost its familial connection quality. Marx states, The bourgeoisie has torn away from the family its sentimental veil, and has reduced the family relation to the mere money ... Read More

An Analysis of Socrates’ Use of Rhetorical Devices Such as Pathos, Logos, and Ethos in Apology by Plato (982 words, 2 pages)

Convincing the Men of AthensApology, written by Plato in 360 BC, describes the trial of Platos teacher, Socrates. In an attempt to prove his innocence, Socrates, a teacher and philosopher accused of Atheism and corrupting the minds of the Athenian youth, uses rhetorical devices such as pathos, logos, and ethos.In ... Read More

The Many Aspects That Define What It Means to Be a Human Being (2165 words, 7 pages)

What It Means To Be HumanThere are many different aspects that define what it means to be a human being. These aspects can pertain to the consciousness, physicality, or intelligence of the species. People have many differences no matter what race, ethnicity, or culture they are accustomed to. However, when ... Read More

An Argument That Logical Truth Is the Truth of Language, Thoughts and Ideas (866 words, 4 pages)

Logical Truth the Truth of Language, Thoughts, and IdeasIn this paper, I will argue that logical truth is the truth of language, thoughts, and ideas, which allows us to collectively arrive at the ontological truth. This is my interpretation of the quote, the whole purpose of reasoning, logic, is to ... Read More

James Scully’s and Louis Althusser’s Definition of Ideology (641 words, 3 pages)

To speak of ideology, we speak of the very thing that is responsible for nearly every human action and reaction. In common discourse, the term ideology is characterized by just having a belief in an idea. I have always believed that ideology should be a positive extension of ones ideas, ... Read More

An Examination of the Value of Our Moral Judgement in Nietzsche’s “The Genealogy of Morals” (332 words, 1 pages)

The Genealogy of Morals by Friedrich Nietzsche examine the value of our moral judgments based on a method of genealogy which investigates the origins and meanings of different moral concepts. The first essay, Good and Evil, Good and Bad compares master morality and slave morality. Master morality was made by ... Read More

An Analysis of Thomas Nagel’s Evaluation of Our Moral Goodness or Moral Badness (291 words, 1 pages)

Thomas Nagel looks at whether our moral goodness or moral badness is based on luck which is out of our control. Moral goodness or badness has to do with the way we are (inclinations, capacities, personalities, and character traits). We dont have control over our personality traits which is due ... Read More

An Analysis of Socrates’ Argument That Physical Characteristic You Display Can Affect Who You Are (1193 words, 3 pages)

Who am I? Socrates once said that the unexamined life is not worth living. You have to figure out who you are by finding the principles that lie within you. Once you find those principles, you have to live your life by those principles. Before I took this class I ... Read More

Thomas Nagel’s Examination of Death in the Essay “Death” (364 words, 1 pages)

In the essay Death Thomas Nagel examines death and whether it is a bad thing. Nagel makes two different proposals. The first one being that death takes away the only thing we have, life. This makes death bad because it is the greatest loss one can have. In this first ... Read More

The Early Life and Times of Ancient Greek Philosopher (1157 words, 4 pages)

An Ancient Greek philosopher, Aristotle was born in 384 B.C. on the northern coast in a town called Stagira. His father, Nicomachus, was a court physician to the Macedonian king Amyntas II. Even though his father died when he was young, Aristotle kept close contact with the Macedonian court. After ... Read More

A Discussion on the Great Debate in Philosopher over What “Self” Is (1890 words, 7 pages)

SelfThere has been a great debate in philosophy over what self is. A good definition could be the inner desires, thoughts, ideas and nature in general of an individual that allows us to be different from others. Our self-identity is the way we characterize ourselves as individuals. When we are ... Read More

An Analysis of Descartes’s Philosophy, Cognito Ergo Sum (371 words, 1 pages)

Traditional metaphysics (philosophy term meaning belief system aboutreality, particularly what's beyond physics) leads us to believe that themind is the most basic facet of a person. Those with some philosophicalbackground will remember Descartes' "Cogito Ergo Sum"-I think therefore Iam-and his subsequent declaration that mind and body are split and thatmind ... Read More

A Review of Searle’s Investigation of the Philosophy of Mind in His Book Mind (286 words, 1 pages)

Searles book Mind is an introductory investigation of the philosophy of mind. He points out that the reason he wrote the book is that he feels that his colleagues are trapped in a set of mistaken problemsmost of which originate with Descartes or the philosophy of language (or the failures ... Read More

Philosophy Essay Examples