Philosophy Actively Seeks Logical Clarity

 

Ludwig Wittgenstein, an Austrian-British philosopher, was one of the most influential thinkers of the 20th century. His work contributed to various movements in analytic and linguistic philosophy. He studied at Trinity College, Cambridge with Bertrand Russell. As colleagues, Russell and Wittgenstein developed their view called “logical atomism.”

Russell inspired Wittgenstein to consider the nature of thought itself. Russell was famous for statements like these:

“Thought is subversive and revolutionary, destructive and terrible. Thought is merciless to privilege, established institutions, and comfortable habit. Thought is great and swift and free.”

“Do not fear to be eccentric in opinion, for every opinion now accepted was once eccentric.”

Reaad more here: Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889 – 1951)

Aristotle's Prime Mover

 

Aristotle, marble portrait bust, Roman copy of a Greek original (c. 325 BC) in the Museo Nazionale Romano, Rome, Italy.

This is for all who love to explore Aristotle's cosmology and his understanding of the Divine. The Prime Mover is above all other movers. The notion of an immaterial High Deity was not uncommon among populations of the Ancient World. 

Excerpt:

In On The Heavens, Aristotle describes ether as the nearest element to the divine due to its perfect and eternal natural motion. Unlike the rectilinear motion of the sublunar elements, the natural motion of ether is circular.

Circular motion is continuous and eternal because a circle, unlike a line, has neither a beginning nor an end. Hence, everything in the supralunary region is eternal, changeless, ungenerated, and imperishable. For all these reasons, Aristotle considered the supralunary region more perfect than the sublunar domain.

The question yet to be answered is what causes the motion of the supralunary region? Given that every movement needs a mover and the Aristotelian cosmos is spatially finite, the series of movers-moved cannot indefinitely extend. As a result, all the series of motion must start with a first mover that is itself unmoved. The Prime Mover is the divine, metaphysical, and immaterial unmoved mover that is the original source of motion in the entire cosmos.

Aristotle argues, however, that the intricate motion of the celestial spheres cannot all be explained by the movement of the sphere of the fixed stars. Hence, in Metaphysics, he proposes that, in addition to the Prime Mover, there are multiple unmoved movers that cause each motion in the supralunary region that the motion of the fixed stars doesn’t account for. As Botteri and Casazza explain in The Astronomical System of Aristotle, these unmoved movers are finite in number, each associated with a celestial sphere. Like the Prime Mover, the unmoved movers are divine, metaphysical, and immaterial. However, they are subordinate to the Prime Mover because they are not responsible for the motion of the entire cosmos, but only partially responsible for the motion of the celestial spheres.

 

Read more here: What Is Aristotle’s Divine Blueprint for the Cosmos? | TheCollector

On the Lighter Side

 

Friedrich von Hayek: Free Market Advocate

 

Friedrich A. Hayek (1899–1992) was an important economist and political philosopher of the twentieth century. He is widely regarded as the principal intellectual force behind the triumph of global capitalism, an 'anti-Marx' who elucidated the theoretical foundations of the free market economy. His account of the role played by market prices in transmitting economic knowledge constituted a devastating critique of the socialist ideal of central economic planning, and his famous book The Road to Serfdom was a prophetic statement of the dangers which socialism posed to a free and open society. 

Hayek noted that complex social systems arise organically from the interactions of individuals rather than through design. He drew inspiration from Adam Smith's "invisible hand" idea that markets coordinate actions without a central plan. Anthropologists also have noted this principal when studying complex social structures.

Hayek's book The Road to Serfdom, published in 1944, warned against the dangers of collectivism and argued that centralized economic control could lead to totalitarianism.

Hayek also made significant contributions to fields as diverse as the philosophy of law, the theory of complex systems, and cognitive science. 

The essays in this volume, by an international team of contributors, provide a critical introduction to all aspects of Hayek's thought.

Related reading: Commanding Heights: Friedrich von Hayek 

Bible Literalists and the Controversy over Evolution

 

Selling literature at the 1925 trial of John Scopes in Dayton, Tennessee.

Dr. Alice C. Linsley

The world renown paleoanthropologist and human genome researcher, John Hawks has written a fascinating article about How evolution became a uniquely American controversy. 

I recommend it!

Related reading: How attacks on evolution in classrooms have shifted over the last 100 years; Facts About Evolution

5 Philosophers of Islamic Heritage

 

Avicenna 

In the medieval period, several Islamic philosophers developed ideas that became incredibly influential, both during their lifetime and in subsequent centuries. The article below considers the following philosophers:

Al-Kindi (c. 801-73)

Al-Farabi (872-950)

Avicenna (980-1037)

Al-Ghazali (1058-1111)

Averroes (1126-1198)

Marnie Binder explains: "Despite the important contributions of the figures in this list, the reputation of Islamic philosophy was primarily defined by the work of al-Ghazali. Still, much of the work among the philosophers of Europe during the Middle Ages was significantly impacted by the world of these philosophers of the Islamic world, such as through their translations of important ancient Greek texts into Arabic and eventually into Latin. Commentaries on Aristotle—as noted, considered the “First Teacher” and ultimate source of philosophy—such as those by Averroes especially, would prove to be critical in continuing the long conversation that is the history of philosophy. All of these thinkers made important contributions that subsequently shaped the history of philosophy, of which this article only scratches the surface." (Read more here: 5 Significant Islamic Philosophers of the Middle Ages | TheCollector)

Related reading: Philosophers' Corner: Getting Real About Medieval Philosophy

UK Prisoners Learn the Good Life from Aristotle

 

According to the Guardian, a small number of prisoners in the UK are given the opportunity to learn life skills from ancient Greek philosophers.

The teaching team, led by two classics professors from Durham University and supported by the prison education charity Novus, has so far completed courses in two men’s prisons, where inmates are serving long life-sentences -including life- for offences including serious violence and drugs to murder.

“Our course is designed to help prison learners use ancient philosophical wisdom to inform contemporary life,” Arlene Holmes-Henderson, a professor of classics education and public policy at Durham University told the Guardian.

Aristotle and his work on ethics and rhetoric are the main focus of the classical education in UK prisons. Prisoners seeking a new start in life can learn about communication, happiness, friendship, decision-making, and recreation. The topics are selected to provide them with that can help them achieve better lives in prison and when they are released.

The inmates appear to be thrilled to learn about classical philosophy. They wonder "Why didn’t we get this at school?"

Read more here: How Aristotle, Ancient Greek Philosophy Are Changing Inmates' Lives Inside UK Prisons - GreekReporter.com; Ethics Forum: Aristotle's Understanding of the Chief Good; Philosophers' Corner: Getting Acquainted with Aristotle