“Discourse on Metaphysics”

2020 ◽  
pp. 56-79
Author(s):  
Lloyd Strickland
Keyword(s):  
Viable Alternative ◽  
Philosophical Work ◽  
Middle Period ◽  
Final Causes ◽  
The Relationship

The “Discourse on Metaphysics” is widely considered to be Leibniz’s most important philosophical work from his so-called “middle period”. Written early in 1686, when Leibniz was 39 years old, it consolidates a number of philosophical ideas that he had developed and sketched out in the years beforehand in a host of short private essays, fragments, and letters. This chapter guides the reader through the key themes of the “Discourse”, such as God’s choice of the best, the nature of substance, final causes, and the relationship between soul and body. The essay concludes with a consideration of what prompted Leibniz to write the “Discourse”; I suggest that the “Discourse” is likely to have been conceived as an attempt to reach supporters of Descartes and Malebranche, not only to challenge key tenets of their respective philosophies but also to present a viable alternative.

scholarly journals Autonomy, Rationality, and Contemporary Bioethics

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Pugh
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Informed Consent ◽  
Personal Autonomy ◽  
Rational Beliefs ◽  
Philosophical Work ◽  
Decision Making Capacity ◽  
Important Relationship ◽  
Legal Judgments ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
New Framework

Personal autonomy is often lauded as a key value in contemporary Western bioethics, and the claim that there is an important relationship between autonomy and rationality is often treated as an uncontroversial claim in this sphere. Yet, there is also considerable disagreement about how we should cash out the relationship between rationality and autonomy. In particular, it is unclear whether a rationalist view of autonomy can be compatible with legal judgments that enshrine a patient’s right to refuse medical treatment, regardless of whether ‘… the reasons for making the choice are rational, irrational, unknown or even non-existent’. This book brings recent philosophical work on the nature of rationality to bear on the question of how we should understand autonomy in contemporary bioethics. In doing so, the author develops a new framework for thinking about the concept, one that is grounded in an understanding of the different roles that rational beliefs and rational desires have to play in personal autonomy. Furthermore, the account outlined here allows for a deeper understanding of different forms of controlling influence, and the relationship between our freedom to act, and our capacity to decide autonomously. The author contrasts his rationalist account with other prominent accounts of autonomy in bioethics, and outlines the revisionary implications it has for various practical questions in bioethics in which autonomy is a salient concern, including questions about the nature of informed consent and decision-making capacity.

Keeping It Implicit: A Defense of Foucault's Archaeology of Knowledge

2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 653-673 ◽  
Author(s):  
TUOMO TIISALA
Keyword(s):  
Discursive Practice ◽  
Discursive Practices ◽  
General Requirement ◽  
Philosophical Work ◽  
Normative Structure ◽  
Archaeological Project ◽  
Archaeology Of Knowledge ◽  
The Relationship

ABSTRACT:This paper defends Michel Foucault's notion of archaeology of knowledge against the influential and putatively devastating criticism by Dreyfus and Rabinow that Foucault's archaeological project is based on an incoherent conception of the rules of the discursive practices it purports to study. I argue first that Foucault's considered view of these rules as simultaneously implicit and historically efficacious corresponds to a general requirement for the normative structure of a discursive practice. Then I argue that Foucault is entitled to that view despite the charges to the contrary by Dreyfus and Rabinow. I also explain in detail how the argument by Dreyfus and Rabinow arises from a misunderstanding of Foucault's archaeological project as transcendental inquiry, while archaeology of knowledge is, in fact, a diagnostic project. The result is a novel understanding of the notion of archaeology of knowledge that enables a reassessment of Foucault's philosophical work in connection with current debates regarding the relationship between reflection and practice in the structure of thought.

scholarly journals FILO OF ALEXANDRIA: DISCUSSION TOWARD THE LOGOS IN THE PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (34) ◽  
Author(s):  
A.K EROKHIN ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Educational Activity ◽  
Greek Philosophy ◽  
Philosophical Work ◽  
Philo Of Alexandria ◽  
Object Of Study ◽  
Infinite Power ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Creative Teacher ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Ideal

The article considers the influence of Greek philosophy on the ideas of the formation of the Hellenistic philosopher Philo of Alexandria. The object of study was the philosophical work of Philo. This study aimed to discover the ambiguity of the term logos as a central concept that defines in Philo's philosophy the relationship between God (the ideal creative teacher) and the world. In the works of Philo, the Logos appears as the highest, sub-divine, infinite power of the mind, which has no signs, but at the same time is identified with God. The transcendental nature of the Logos, embodied in the image of God's mind, in its paradoxical nature closely corresponds to holiness and higher wisdom. The research methodology is based on an interpretation that allows us to define the allegory and, therefore, the real meaning of Philo's philosophy, the central part of which is the philosophical reflection of the Holy Scriptures as the main source of education and the concept of Scripture, undergoing specific and simultaneously incomparable modifications. To identify these meanings, methods of systematization and hermeneutics are used. The result of the study is expressed in identifying various forms of embodiment and educational activity and the Logos.

Between Mind and Brain:Final and Efficient Causation in Relation to Neuroplasticity

2012 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 194-208
Author(s):  
Derrick L. Hassert
Keyword(s):  
Mentally Ill ◽  
Behavioral Interventions ◽  
Rational Behavior ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Efficient Causation ◽  
Final Causes ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Behavior And Cognition

Reductionism is usually taken for granted in many areas of science, neuroscience and psychology being no exceptions. It is often assumed as scientific orthodoxy that human behavior can be reduced to “what the brain does” without recourse to a consideration of cognition. Although many philosophers and ethicists may seek to reduce or eliminate the concept of mind, other philosophers and ethicists have continually pointed out the logical inconsistencies of such an approach. Via a discussion of efficient and final causes in Aristotelian philosophy, I seek to argue that the understanding of human beings as rational and social creatures has guided and should continue to guide our approach to the care and treatment of the mentally ill. Observations concerning rational behavior and cognition, by necessity, have provided the benchmarks by which clinicians evaluate the effectiveness of somatic/pharmacological or psychological/ behavioral interventions: Eliminative reductionism is inappropriate in this area. In approaching issues pertaining to the relationship between human cognitive functioning and neural functioning, the distinction between capacity and vehicle will be used. However, the fact that mental and behavioral functioning can alter neuronal functioning (and vice versa) necessitates that those working with the mentally ill need to know both the efficient causes—the vehicles of certain capacities—and the role of the capacities themselves and how they relate to possible final causes in giving explanations for behavior. These issues become more significant when considering the ethics of treatment choice for those with mental disorders.

THE INFLUENCE OF THE NUMBER OF BREAST FEEDINGS ON MILK PRODUCTION

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1961 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 314-317
Author(s):  
G. E. Egli ◽  
N. S. Egli ◽  
Michael Newton
Keyword(s):  
Milk Production ◽  
Post Partum ◽  
Control Level ◽  
Early Lactation ◽  
Milk Supply ◽  
Nursing Time ◽  
Research Support ◽  
Middle Period ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship

Previous research on the relationship of the number of feedings of milk production was reviewed. Studies on animals and on women in early lactation and late lactation indicate that milk production increases when numbers of feedings are increased. The present study concentrated on the middle period of lactation. The number of feedings was altered experimentally, and the resulting changes in milk production were observed. The subjects for the experiment were a breast feeding mother and baby 5½ months post-partum. When the number of feedings and the total nursing time were decreased, significantly less milk was obtained by the baby. When the number of feedings and the total nursing time were again increased experimentally the amount of milk obtained by the baby did not change for 48 hours, but then rose to the control level observed at the beginning of the study. The findings of this research support the previous observations in the field. Mothers who wish to increase their milk supply should be urged to feed their infants two or three extra times each day.

Managing the Information Technology

2009 ◽  
pp. 192-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huei-Chen Hsu
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Virtual Teams ◽  
Virtual Work ◽  
Viable Alternative ◽  
Knowledge Development ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Types Of Knowledge ◽  
Different Types ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Relationship

The main points of this chapter are probing for the combination of information technology and virtual work, and how to change the distribution of different types of knowledge across individuals, teams, and even the organization. The discussion in the chapter will assess the dynamics between the individual, the organization, and information technology in the context of teams that vary in their virtualness. Information technology can make convenient spread of knowledge across the organization; even the point of making virtual teams a viable alternative to face-to-face work. However, unless managed, information technology may destabilize the relationship between organizations and their employees when it comes to the transform of knowledge. Therefore, this chapter advances theory and informs practice by illustrating the dynamics of knowledge development and transfer in more and less virtual teams.

Managing the Information Technology

2010 ◽  
pp. 1643-1662
Author(s):  
Huei-Chen Hsu
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Virtual Teams ◽  
Virtual Work ◽  
Viable Alternative ◽  
Knowledge Development ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Types Of Knowledge ◽  
Different Types ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Relationship

The main points of this chapter are probing for the combination of information technology and virtual work, and how to change the distribution of different types of knowledge across individuals, teams, and even the organization. The discussion in the chapter will assess the dynamics between the individual, the organization, and information technology in the context of teams that vary in their virtualness. Information technology can make convenient spread of knowledge across the organization; even the point of making virtual teams a viable alternative to face-to-face work. However, unless managed, information technology may destabilize the relationship between organizations and their employees when it comes to the transform of knowledge. Therefore, this chapter advances theory and informs practice by illustrating the dynamics of knowledge development and transfer in more and less virtual teams.

scholarly journals Notes on Avicenna's Concept of Thingness (šay'iyya)

2000 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-221 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Wisnovsky
Keyword(s):  
Final Cause ◽  
Efficient Cause ◽  
Final Causes ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Way

Did classical kalām debates about how thing (šay') and existent (maw[gcaron]ūd) relate to each other pave the way for Avicenna's distinction between essence (māhiyya) and existence (wu[gcaron]ūd)? There are some indications that the concept of thingness (šay'iyya) may have played a bridging role between the mutakallimūn's discussions and those of Avicenna. Nevertheless, Avicenna's appeals to thingness occur most densely in passages devoted to analyzing the relationship between efficient and final causes, an entirely Aristotelian topic. A philological question arises: should these passages be emended to read causality (sababiyya) in place of thingness (šay'iyya)? I argue that the balance of evidence compels us to retain thingness. For Avicenna, thingness is the respect in which the final cause is prior to the efficient cause (as well as to the formal and material causes); existence, by contrast, is the respect in which the efficient cause is prior to the final cause. In fact, over the course of Avicenna's career a progression from the kalām problematic of šay' v. maw[gcaron]ūd to his own problematic of māhiyya v. wu[gcaron]ūd can be detected in his discussions of efficient and final causation.

scholarly journals Dooyweerd on Law and Morality: Legal Ethics - A Test Case

1998 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 262
Author(s):  
Alan Cameron
Keyword(s):  
General Problem ◽  
English Translation ◽  
Legal Philosophy ◽  
Test Case ◽  
Ethical Aspects ◽  
Philosophical Work ◽  
Legal Ethics ◽  
Law And Morality ◽  
Basic Concepts ◽  
The Relationship

The philosophical work of the Dutch Christian intellectual Hernum Dooyeweerd is notinternationally well known. His major jurisprudential work is even less well known owing to the fact that it has not been published either in his native language or in English. The author of this article, who is involved in the editing of the English translation of Dooyeweerd's jurisprudence for publication, briefly expounds the main themes and some of the basic concepts of his legal philosophy with reference to the general problem of the relationship between law and morality and then attempts to apply these insights towards a theoretical elucidation of the relationship between law and legal ethics. Central to the Dooyeweerdian jurisprudential perspective is a highly original theory of the modal aspects. ln particular, the notions of the jural and ethical aspects provide the baszs of his unique account of the relationshzp between law and morality and of this article's application of Dooyeweerd's theoretical framework to the topic of legal ethics.

scholarly journals The Coherence of Spinoza’s Theological-Political Treatise

Philosophies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 20
Author(s):  
Yoram Stein
Keyword(s):  
Close Correlation ◽  
The State ◽  
The Political ◽  
Philosophical Work ◽  
Absolute Power ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Theology And Philosophy

Spinoza’s Tractatus Theologico-Politicus has been critiqued as contradictory and inconsistent. This is why I believe that the question with regard to Spinoza’s ‘neglected masterpiece’ should be: How to read the Treatise as a coherent philosophical work? I suggest that the reason why the Treatise seems contradictory is because of the complex juxtaposition of its two main foci: the relationship between theology and philosophy, and that of theology and politics. In this paper, I will argue against the claim of contradiction and pursue to demonstrate a close correlation and mutual interdependence of both relations. While the domains of theology and philosophy may be separate, there is no contradiction between the salvation of the ignorant and the salvation of the wise. Similarly, there is no contradiction between the theological part of the Treatise—which focuses on ‘piety’ and the defense of the freedom of ‘internal religion’—and the political part—which focuses on ‘peace’, and claims that the state should have absolute power over ‘external religion’.

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