Epistemology Essay Examples - Free Research Paper Topics on StudyDriver.com

Philosophy of Self : Exploration

Philosophy of Self In studying the topic of individualism and self-identity, we must ask ourselves which of the philosophies of self are most relevant today? After reading and analyzing the short story, The Masque of the Red Death I became fascinated with the human condition. Thanks to the insight and supporting nature of my English teacher I found a new passion for learning about philosophy. In order to encompass this message, I found a quote by the great Manly P. […]

Discuss in Light of his Treatment of Identity

What is freedom? How is it exercised? Do we have it? If such questions were asked to people around the world, then the responses would vary. However, one commonality between the answers would be that the concept of freedom includes that one consciously acts on a decision made. Two philosophers, both considered to be compatibilist, will agree that determinism is true and the freedom of spontaneity exists, but the biggest difference between both understandings of freedom is what is needed […]

Human Nature Remains Unchanged

Socrates declared in order to live a good life it is a necessity ‘to know one self’. To have knowledge of who we are. But, what is the ‘self’? Before we can answer that question, first we must ask, what is knowledge? Knowledge is an irrefutable truth proven by evidence. As knowledge is absolute, belief is not. A belief can be irrational, knowledge cannot. You can have a false belief, but not false knowledge. Philosophers of the enlightenment age often […]

Theory of the Uunconscious

Freud’s, theory of the unconscious challenged different parts of Locke’s, Butler’s, and Hume’s theories of personal identity. Although Freud was pretty straightforward with his arguments towards his thinking of personal identity, the three philosophers come up with their own theories which are challenging to some ideas Freud brought up during his theory. First, Freud believed that the unconscious mind was a force of feelings and thoughts. He believed that the unconscious mind came from memories that was caused from the […]

Dualism, the Identity Theory

Dualism is the view that the mind and the body are fundamentally distinct entities. There are two main types of dualism, substance and property Dualism. Both types of Dualism are formed from the mind-body problem, which is, what is the relation between our mental lives and the physical aspects of our brains and bodies? Substance or Cartesian Dualism views the mind and body as distinct substances and is the view Descartes (318). Property Dualism, argued for by Jackson, believes mental […]

Who we are and what Makes Us and what Makes who we are

Do we really know who we are? Science has given us some scenarios to consider that seem far out and not possible. However, the issue of who we are is not that clear. characteristics of personality as well as its qualities play an important role in uncovering the essence of the philosophical relationship between the human being and the universe. They simultaneously help to understand why the human world is so different from the natural world and why it remains […]

Food Paths Project

Overall, the Food Paths Project allowed me to map out the path of a chicken salad from production to consumption. I was also able to identify the factors that influence this process and analyze the implications of it. More so, through the work on the Food Paths Project I was able to develop a better depth of knowledge on the Effective Communication, Critical Thinking and Ethical Reasoning learning outcomes. The multiple strategies utilized in the process of doing this project […]

Philosophical Review: David Hume

Introduction David Hume (1711–1776) was a Scottish philosopher well-known for his empirical, skeptical and naturalist system of views. Hume’s empiricism is characterized by theory of impressions and ideas. In his central work, “A Treatise of Human Nature,” he outlines the way ideas are acquired. The philosopher asserts that insights are gained from experience, whereby experience may be understood to mean consciousness and reflective understanding of the mind (Dicker 5). From this basic definition, Hume formulates his numerous propositions. Epistemology In […]

Difference between So-Called ‘Hard’ and ‘oft’ Determinism

Explain the difference between so-called ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ (a.k.a. compatibilist) determinism.Present an argument in favor of hard determinism. Explain- Compatibilism refers to the assertion that determinism is compatible with freedom in which people can be held morally responsible when making their own choices. There are different types of determinism which allows for different assertions of compatibilism. The difference between ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ determinism is that ‘hard’ determinism is incompatibilist determinism, and ‘soft’ determinism is compatibilist determinism. This means that ‘soft’ […]

The Power of Knowledge in the Giver

In The Giver, the author Lois Lowry illustrates that the most powerful way for a government to control or manipulate its people is by censoring their knowledge which eliminates their ability to question ideas or make their own choices surrounding the information is hidden from them. Restricting information takes away the power for people to make choices surrounding the knowledge that is taken away from them. After the Giver showed Jonas memories of colors, Jonas realizes, “‘But now that I […]

Book Summary : Doctor Oliver Sacks

Within, The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, doctor Oliver Sacks tells his experiences conducting a series of case studies and producing critiques for the medical community. Sacks states, “Neurology’s favorite word is ‘deficit’, denoting an impairment or incapacity of neurological function: loss of speech, loss of language, loss of memory, loss of vision, loss of dexterity, loss of identity and myriad other lacks and losses of specific functions (or faculties)” (3). Sacks feels that the medical community, […]

Definition and Meaning of Woman

The definition of what a woman truly is has been debated by philosophers for quite some time. In hindsight, the definition would appear to be quite simple, but in reality, it has millions of different interpretations. Not to mention the abundance of reasoning behind why each definition is different. The human experience and what the body is capable of is undeniably the most crucial part of these philosophers’ definitions. Simone de Beauvoir’s idea of “what is a woman?” is complex. […]

Extrinsic Vs Intrinsic Theories of Motivation

Every organization has a main objective. Most profit-making organizations have one main objective, which is, to minimize costs and maximize profits. To achieve this objective, they hire employees to work hard in different roles, but all geared towards the achievement of the organizational objective. Employees, however, come in with their own personal objectives and goals. A good manager or leader should be able to match the two objectives, that is, the organizational objective to the employees’ objectives. Amongst other things, […]

Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation

In brain science, inspiration is characterized as, “a need or want that stimulates and coordinates conduct” (Myers and Dewall, 2016). Inspirations are gotten from a combination of nature and support and they figure out what we decide to do and how we decide to do them. Clinicians have introduced a wide range of variables that impact inspiration and ideas of inspiration. Inspiration is an exceptionally material idea to our day to day routines. There is one region where inspiration plays […]

External Reinforcement and Intrinsic Motivation

An educational theorist, Albert Bandura studied the Social Learning Theory which agrees with the Behaviorist theory, although Bandura’s theory consists of two more aspects. The two aspects Bandura includes are, behavior is learned through the process of observation and negotiating processes happen between responses and stimuli (Mcleod 2016). Intrinsic motivation corresponding with internal rewards is defined as behaviors that are compelled by those internal rewards (Cherry 2018). External reinforcement typically coincides with extrinsic motivation. External reinforcement is defined as a […]

Choosing Creationism or Evolution

Can science and religion cope with one another? Creationism vs Evolution is not a battle of science vs the Bible, but it is a battle of God’s word vs man’s word. In the creation vs evolution debate and controversy over scriptural authority, a great part of the debate may move toward becoming more clear if writers would cautiously give perusers exact meanings of vocabulary. What is evolution? The definition of evolution is the change in the characteristics of a species […]

Importance of Sleep for Children

A growing problem of sleep deprivation among children and adolescents has made way for an ever-growing issue for debate in the world of psychology. With continuous distractions and responsibilities at home, school, and any extracurricular activities, children and adolescents are becoming more and more sleep deprived, which ultimately hurts them in the long run. Especially nowadays, it is so easy for students to interact with one another without actually being in each other’s presence. Video games and electronic entertainment are […]

Naturalism in to Build a Fire

Both stories were very descriptive when it comes to nature and how they got through there battle with nature. Naturalism really sticks out in both of these stories because unlike realism where they share the difficulties living in a more political, social, and they way of life they grew up in; Naturalism gives a uncomfortable nature like feeling. Naturalism is more difficult when it comes to feelings and getting out of a situation because you have no control over it. […]

Man Vs. Nature in “To Build a Fire”

In the early 18th century, as researchers, scientists and curious minds were exploring the world, new ideas and beliefs were forming. The evolutionary theory of Darwinism, developed by Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace, is primarily focused around the idea of “survival of the fittest”. The core idea is that all species, from the smallest barnacle or beetle, to birds and monkeys (and as we now know, humans) develop through small, uncontrollable variations that either increase or decrease the individual’s capability […]

About Identity and Diversity

In John Locke’s “Of Identity and Diversity,” Locke makes the following claim: person X at time t2 is identical to person Y at time t1 if and only if person X at time t2 remembers what person Y at time t1 saw and did. In this paper, I will explain this claim and show how Locke uses it to develop his theory of personal identity. Then, I will show that Locke’s theory does not work because of 1) its failure […]

The Self and the Future

Personal identity is a special case of a more general topic, the survival (or, as philosophers often say, the persistence) of objects over time. Bernard Williams insists that bodily continuity is always a necessary criterion of personal identity. His essay “The Self and the Future” discusses the two cases of a thought experiment which lead the readers to intuit two distinct conclusions on the preservation of the personal identity. The methodological similarities between these two instances are significantly notable. Upon […]

John Locke’s Theory of Personal Identity

He believed that you are the same person for whatever time span your memories could go back. Without analyzation the theory may appear to seem plausible, but I will dismiss this by exploiting his lacking thoughts by using Thomas Reid’s … to support my claim. Before determining what criteria would be used to answer if an individual was the same over time, Locke explored other choices. He initially hoped to check whether sameness of body could be a good criterion […]

Problem of Personal Identity

There are numerous views on what it means to have an individual’s identity and what exactly “makes you the person you are.” Personal identity has been a major topic in philosophy ever since the beginning, and the most considerable thinkers have had something to say about it. John Perry discusses four different theories of personal identity: body theory, soul theory, memory theory, and brain theory. The psychological theory in my opinion makes the most sense when trying to understand the […]

What Makes up Personal Identity?

What makes up personal identity? This question was first posed within Dan Dennett’s, “Where am I?” When it comes to personal identity there are two things people fixate on, which is the brain and body. We see that many philosophers engage in this argument of whether the brain or body makes you a person. Till this day, there isn’t a right or direct answer to this question, and this is why a plethora of philosophers speak out about their opinions […]

Philosophical World Utopia Debate

The year is 2030. The UN has made one of the biggest decisions of its history. Even though not everyone agrees, and it will be very hard to come to a conclusion, they believe it is time to try our hand at forming a utopian world government. The UN has resurrected a cast of living and deceased philosophers from across world history. The UN has not allowed nations a say in this decision. Therefore, it is up to the smartest […]

Realism in “To Build a Fire” by Jack London

Realist literature is considered as literary realism. It is a part of realist art movement to present things in their native or original form. There is no place for elaboration and Imagination. Realism was started so that people can know the reality of actual world. On the other hand, naturalism literature considered as a type of extreme realism. It emphasizes on the roles of family in a person life. It also tries to explain the social values in their raw […]

Rresentation of Realism and Naturalism in “To Build a Fire”

Realism describes essential cultural changes. Realism can be on aspect of realist art movement to show things in native or original form. Realism was begun to stimulate people so that they can know the reality of the actual world. On the other hand, naturalism literature represented as a type of extreme realism. It highlights the roles of family in a person life. It also exhibits the social values in their raw forms and describes the environmental condition which has a […]

My Theory of Personal Identity

Are you the same person overtime? Am I the same person overtime? Is infant Sabrena Ford the same as sixteen year old Sabrena Ford who, later, is still the same as 32 year old, married, Sabrena Edwards? What makes Sabrena the same Sabrena overtime? What has remained constant within Sabrena that defines her as a person is her soul. The Soul Theory can be defined under the Ego Theory which states: A persons continued existence cannot be explained except as […]

Philosophy of Mind in being John Malkevich

At some point in our lives, we have wondered or even wished to be someone else due to multiple reasons to include wealth, fame, physical appearances, physical or mental abilities. The theme of this movies, ‘Being John Malkovich’ investigates cases of individual identity and the presence of a conscious mind. In this paper, I will discuss some of the topics of this movie in comparison to some of the philosopher’s theories we have studied. This movie, if it were real, […]

Questions and Reflections in Meditation

Descartes writes let us reflect that possibly neither our hands nor our whole body are such as they appear to us to be in his first meditation. If we can sense our hands and body with all of our senses, however, are they still deceived? By this I mean that if we can use all of our senses (see, touch, smell, taste, sometimes hear) to understand our bodies and hands, can we believe our senses are true then? b. Descartes […]

Epistemology Essays