1. Modern Philosophy
Part One

2. Historical & Conceptual Background of the Modern Era
Renaissance Humanism
Renaissance
Humanism
Rebirth of Interest in Greek & Roman Literature
Technology
Other Trends
Protestant Reformation
The Church
Martin Luther ( )
Social & Political Changes
Religion
Commerce

3. Background The Rise of Modern Science Implications of the New Science
Copernican Revolution
Nicolaus Copernicus ( )
Galileo ( )
Implications of the New Science
Galileo
Primary Qualities
Secondary Qualities
Mechanical Explanations Replace Teleological Explanations
Elimination of Final Causes & Good

4. background A New Approach to Philosophy Sweeping Away the Past
The Search for a Perfect Philosophical Method
Rationalism
Empiricism

5. Argument Basics Argument Concepts Defined
General Assessment: Reasoning
General Assessment: Are the Premises True?

6. Deductive Arguments Introduction to Deductive Arguments
Defined
Use
Assessment
Valid/Invalid, Sound/Unsound
Some Common Valid Deductive Arguments
Reductio Ad Adsurdum
Form #1/Form #2
Example

7. Inductive Arguments Introduction to Inductive Arguments Defined
Assessment
Strong & Weak Arguments

8. Analogical Argument Introduction Form Definition Uses Informal
Strict Form
Premise 1: X has properties P, Q, and R.
Premise 2: Y has properties P, Q, and R.
Premise 3: X has property Z as well.
Conclusion: Y has property Z.

9. Analogical Argument Assessment The strength of the argument depends on
The number of properties X & Y have in common.
The relevance of the shared properties to Z.
Whether X & Y have relevant dissimilarities.
Example

10. Argument from/by Example
Introduction
Defined
Form
Informal
Premise 1: Example 1 is an example that supports claim P.
Premise 2: Example 2 is an example that supports claim P.
Premise n: Example n is an example that supports claim C.
Conclusion: Claim P is true.

11. Argument from/by Example
Standards of Assessment
Standards
The more examples, the stronger the argument.
The examples must be relevant.
The examples must be specific & clearly identified.
Counter-examples must be considered.

12. Argument from Authority
Introduction
Defined
Use
Form
Premise 1: Person A is an authority on subject S.
Premises 2: Person A makes claim C about subject S.
Premises 3: Therefore, C is true.

13. Argument from Authority
Assessment
Standards
The person has sufficient expertise in the subject.
The claim is within the expert’s area of expertise.
There is an adequate degree of agreement among experts.
The expert is not significantly biased.
The area of expertise is a legitimate area or discipline.
The authority must be properly cited.

14. Thomas hobbes (1588-1679) background
Personal Information
Influence: Galileo’s Works
Influence: Euclidean Geometry
Influence: English Civil War
The Leviathan (1651)
Physics & Philosophy
Goal & Method
Empiricism
Metaphysical Materialism
God
Ontology

15. Thomas hobbes physics & Philosophy
Types of Philosophy
First Philosophy
Special Sciences
Political Science
Epistemology & Psychology
Thoughts
Sensations
Imagination & Memory
Association
Language
Humans
Nominalism & Reasoning

16. Thomas hobbes Metaphysics Ethics Determinism Human Behavior
Voluntary Motions
Hobbes account of Deliberation
Ethics
Morality & Materialism

17. Thomas Hobbes physics & politics
View of Politics
Experience
Conclusions Drawn From Experience
Method
The State of Nature
State of Nature
Egoism
Natural Laws
The Laws
The Sovereign

18. Thomas hobbes Physics & politics
Social Contract
The Contract
The Sovereign
Rights & Morality
Reaction

19. Thomas hobbes impact & problems
Perception
Consciousness
Freedom, Purpose & Values

20. Rene Descartes (1596-1650) background
Life & Works
Life
Works
Agenda
Motivation
Travel
Inward Focus
Goals

21. Rene descartes method Methodology Mathematics Intuition Deduction
The Meditations on First Philosophy

22. Rene descartes First Meditation
First Part
Start & Goal
Method
Doubting the Senses
Senses
Dream Problem
Painter Analogy
Math: Skeptical Pause
God & The Demon
God
The Demon

23. Rene Descartes Second Meditation
Skepticism & Certainty
Method
Skepticism
The Foundation of Certainty: I am, I exist
The Self
Goal
Rejected: The Body as Self
A Thing That Thinks
Rejected
Human Body
Air, Wind, Fire, Vapor, or Breath

24. Rene Descartes Second Meditation
Knowledge of His Existence is not via the Imagination
Certainty
The Wax Example
The Wax
How the Wax is Known
Language & Errors
Perception & Inference
The Wax Proves He Exists
Conclusion

25. Rene Descartes third meditation
Truth & God
Standard of Truth: Clear & Distinct
External Things
God & Deception
Does God Exist?
Is God a Deceiver?
Ideas
Division of Thoughts
Ideas& Truth
Source of Ideas
Ideas of External Objects

26. Rene Descartes third meditation
External Objects: Instructed by Nature
External Objects: Ideas do not Depend on His Will
External Objects: Resemblance
Ideas, Reality & Causes
Ideas & Reality
Objective Reality
Principle: The cause must contain at least as much reality as the effect.
Formal Reality
Eminent Containment
Causes of Ideas
Regress Argument for Archetypes

27. Rene Descartes third meditation
Method: Trying to find an idea he cannot be the cause of.
He could be the cause of his ideas of secondary qualities.
He could be the cause of his ideas of primary qualities.
God
Substance & Infinity Argument
Infinity, God and Comprehension
Descartes considers he might be the cause.
Why Descartes cannot be the cause.

28. Rene Descartes third meditation
More on God
Goal
He is lacking, so he cannot be the author of his own being.
Infinite Parts Argument
Regress Argument
Several Causes
Parents
Idea of God
God is not a deceiver/

29. Rene Descartes Fourth meditation
God & Reason
God is not a deceiver.
Reason
The Cartesian Circle
The Possibility of Error
Points of Certainty

30. Rene Descartes Fifth meditation
Third Proof of God
The Proof
Unique to God

31. Rene Descartes Sixth meditation
The External World
The Problem
Descartes as the cause.
God as the cause.
External objects cause the ideas.
Illusions
Nature of Objects

32. Rene Descartes Cartesian dualism
Substance
Two Substances: Mental & Physical
Meditations: Doubt
Meditations: Different
Humans & Animals
The Cartesian Compromise
Reconciliation
The Dualist Solution: The Body
The Dualist Solution: The Mind

33. Rene Descartes Cartesian dualism
Interactionism
Mind-Body Problem
Ship & Pilot Analogy
The Pineal Gland

34. Rene Descartes Problems & Impact
Natural Light
Principle & Doubt
Infinity
Contamination Problem
Interactionism: Arnold Geulincx ( )
Parallelism
Interactionism: Nicolas Malebranche ( )
Occasionalism
Blaise Pascal

35. Rene Descartes Problems & Impact
Certainty
Universal Science
Reconciling Science & Religion
Artificial Intelligence