The ‘Allegory Of The Cave’ is a theory put forward by Plato, concerning human perception. Plato claimed that knowledge gained through the senses is no more than opinion and that, in order to have real knowledge, we must gain it through philosophical reasoning. ‘The Allegory of the Cave’ by Plato In the Allegory of the … Read more
We all know what philosophy is by definition; it’s a set of ideas that undergird a society or way of life. In the case of contemporary Western society, it might be liberalism, capitalism, feminism, etc. However, few people ever ponder over the question: “What are the branches of philosophy?” But that’s not to say there … Read more
Welcome to my introduction to world religions. If you are moving forward with Religious Studies or Philosophy of Religion at A-Level or university, having a basic understanding to the 6 main world religions is essential. Judaism Judaism was the first to teach the idea of monotheism. They believe in one G-d who not only created … Read more
This week, many of you have been asking me the difference between Act and Rule Utilitarianism. These are the two main types of utilitarianism that you need to be aware of in ethics. But first of all, what is Utilitarianism? What is Utilitarianism? Utilitarianism comes from the branch of ethics concerned with doing what is … Read more
Hume remains the key critique of the design argument or teleological argument for God. His critique of the design argument can be summarised in the following points… Hume’s objections to the Teleological Argument for God a) The disproportion of the parts to the whole. If an intelligent purpose is found within the world, is it … Read more
The teleological argument for the existence of God (also known as the Design argument) moves from the world which shows evidence of intelligible order to divine intelligence as the source of that order. The idea in some form goes back to the ancient world. Plato, for example, in ancient Greece, argued that the universe does … Read more
Happy New year, Philosophers. I know it’s always tough getting back into the swing of studying after a fortnight of Christmas drinks! We are kicking off the new year with a blog on Anthony Flew: God and Philosophy. Antony Flew’s position is summarised in his book God and Philosophy i) There is a crucial ambiguity … Read more
Introduction to Marxist Theory on Poverty Reasons for Poverty Reasons for poverty and social exclusion can come from a variety of theoretical approaches including anti-racist, postmodern and religious approaches. In this article, I am going to analyse the key sociological perspective of Marxism and the Marxist Theory of poverty based on class. Marxist Theory of … Read more
The four noble truths and eightfold path of Buddhism are crucial aspects of Buddhist philosophy and key teachings of the Buddha. Siddhartha Gotama Buddha – the Story of the Buddha leaving the Palace The Buddha, the founder of the Buddhist religion was called Prince Siddhartha Gotama. Siddhartha Gotama was sheltered from the suffering of the world … Read more
The Swiss psychologist, Jean Piaget (1896-1980) researched childhood experiences in general and produced a structure for developmental thinking which he hoped would enable us to understand more fully the processes of thinking, which children and adolescents use in their selection, search, manipulation and organisation of their experiences. Ronald Goldman Applied Piaget’s General Structure In the … Read more