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Rene Descartes vs Aristotle
Sophie’s World Analysis
Rene Descartes vs Aristotle
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When one considers the idea of a philosophical text or piece of literature, many different examples immediately come to mind. Some might imagine the renowned works of philosophy’s past, such as Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics, René Descartes’ Meditations on First Philosophy, or Immanuel Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason (to name a few). Others may consider the scholarly articles and texts found in contemporary philosophical journals such as the Philosophical Review and the Journal of Philosophy. Few, however, would likely point to philosophical novels, especially those published in recent history. This is unfortunate, however, because superb novels interwoven with philosophical history, arguments, and ideas continue to be written today, notably …show more content…
An enjoyable and fruitful exploration of the storied past of philosophical ideas and movements, Gaarder’s Sophie’s World is undoubtedly successful in imparting a solid and enriching foundation for philosophical thinking to its reader. Born on August 8, 1952 in Oslo, Norway, Jostein Gaarder has dedicated much of his life to the dissemination and teaching of philosophical and religious ideas to young students and readers worldwide. Gaarder’s philosophical career began after graduating from the University of Oslo, where he studied the history of philosophy, religion, and Nordic literature. Upon completing his studies in 1976, Gaarder chose to work as a secondary school teacher of philosophy, religion, and literature in the Norwegian cities of Oslo and Bergen. Gaarder’s role as an educator to a …show more content…
Gaarder’s work reads like a suspenseful and mysterious novel from cover to cover; however, interlaced within Sophie’s story is an easily understandable and well-explained discourse on the progress of Western philosophy through time. The story of the work begins with Sophie Amundsen – a typical, fourteen year old Norwegian girl – discovering two notes in her family’s mailbox, each of which contains a seemingly simple question: the first asks “Who are you?” and the second asks “Where does the world come from?” (Gaarder 9). Though initially unimpressed, Sophie quickly becomes perplexed by the notes and the many questions borne out of her thoughts: “Why was it so difficult to be absorbed in the most vital and, in a way, the most natural of all questions?” (Gaarder 13). Sophie also receives an unexplainable birthday card for a girl named Hilde Møller Knag (who happens to share Sophie’s birthday) before stumbling upon the first of many lessons from a mysterious philosopher by the name of Alberto Knox (Gaarder
Rowlands, Mark. The Philosopher and the Wolf . New York : Pegasus Publishing , 2008.
Brother and Sister Hans and Sophie Scholl are forever recognized for their gallantry, witnessed by their community, recorded in official court documents, and reestablished in a dramatic film directed by Macr Rothemund and written by Fred Breinersdorfer (IMDb). In their film, Sophie Scholl: The Final Days, the audience is introduced to “The White Rose”; a Nazi resistance group constructed in 1992 by a group of young Germans. Out of respect for human life, this group used powerful altercation reflected in the distribution of 6 leaflets (An Honorable Defeat). The film concentrates on The Scholl’s siblings final attempt to distribute copies of these leaflets, their arrest, and interrogation leading up to their execution.
Updike, John. "A&P." Thinking and Writing About Literature. Ed. Michael Meyer. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2001. 981-86. Print.
Gail Godwin's short story "A Sorrowful Woman" revolves around a wife and mother who becomes overwhelmed with her husband and child and withdraws from them, gradually shutting them completely out of her life. Unsatisfied with her role as dutiful mother and wife, she tries on other roles, but finds that none of them satisfy her either. She is accustomed to a specific role, and has a difficult time coping when a more extensive array of choices is presented to her. This is made clear in this section of the story.
Nadler, Steven M. The Best of All Possible Worlds: a Story of Philosophers, God, and Evil. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2008. Print.
Wittgenstein, Ludwig; G. E. M. Anscombe, P.M.S. Hacker and Joachim Schulte (eds. and trans.). Philosophical Investigations. 4th edition, Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2009. Print.
ABSTRACT: The discussion of Heidegger's “destructive retrieve” of Aristotle has been intensified in recent years by the publication of Heidegger's courses in the years surrounding his magnum opus. Heidegger's explicit commentary on Aristotle in these courses permits one to read Being and Time with Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics and Metaphysics. My paper analyzes a network of differences between the two thinkers, focusing on the relationship between theory and praxis. From Aristotle to Heidegger, there is: (1) a shift from the priority of actuality to the priority of possibility. This shift, I argue, is itself the metaphysical ground of: (2) a shift from the priority of theory to the priority of praxis. This shift is seen most clearly in the way in which (3) Heidegger's notion of Theorie is a modification of his poíesis. The temporal ground of the reversal is seen in (4) Heidegger's notion of transcendence towards the world, and not towards an eternal being.
Solomon, Robert C. Introducing Philosophy, “A text with integrated readings”. New York: Oxford University Press. 2005. Print.
Meyer, Michael, ed. Thinking and Writing About Literature. Second Edition. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2001.
Consequently, one can broach a series of querries about literature and the nature of literary theories : what is literature ? What is the novel and what is its function ? And finally, to what extent does criticism affect the quality of literature ? This welter of questions is nothing but the tip of the ice berg.
Robert Pirsig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance offers an extensive look into the author’s concept of reason in relation to discovering an ultimate truth. Pirsig, the implied narrator of the novel, wrestles with his memories of his past life as Phaedrus and must rediscover who he is and what he truly believes. One of his most recurring issues is his search for an eternal and absolute truth in the conglomeration of logic, philosophy, quality, and classics which he refers to as Reason. Reason, to Pirsig, is the most paramount aspect of his university. Pirsig, however, does not define a university in the most familiar and traditional terms. A university, like a church, is not the bricks and mortar that make up the building. It
It has been said that not everything worth reading is a philosophical argument., and I agree. A glance through the shelves of bookstores, news stands, and libraries will incline one away from the idea that all valuable reading is philosophy. Thoughts back upon experiences that have touched one’s life undoubtedly will include an important novel or story and confirm the original statement. It is also fair to say that people approach literature and philosophy with different expectations. It seems fair to expect one’s philosophical reading to impart knowledge, while not necessarily demanding this of poetry or a short story. Likewise, there are different settings, goals, and different relations that exist between reader and writer, and reader and recommender. Some reading may be for enjoyment, escapism, or metaphor while other is for personal knowledge acquisition and/or a class assignment. While this is not to say that I haven’t enjoyed much of the reading required of me in the pursuit of my degree, I approached it all with an expectation that it should fit nicely within my preconceived notion of ‘Philosophy’. In this class I was presented with reading that broke out of that mold. I want to step back a little and work my way back into the literature from some distance. This is, I hope, a fair way of coming to an understanding of the field of feminist thinking.
In Sophie's World, Jostein Gaarder teaches philosophy and it explains basic philosophical ideas better than any other reading book or textbook that I have ever read. The many philosophical lessons of the diversified thinkers of their own time were dexterously understood. The author has a wonderful knack for finding the heart of a concept and placing it on display. For example, he metamorphoses Democritus' atoms into Lego bricks and in a stroke makes the classical conception of the atom dexterously attainable. He relates all the abstract concepts about the world and what is real with straightforward everyday things that everyone can relate to which makes this whole philosophy course manageable. ''The best way of approaching philosophy is to ask a few philosophical questions: How was the world created? Is there any will or meaning behind what happens? Is there a life after death? How can we answer these questions? And most important, how ought we to live?'' (Gaarder, Jostein 15).
"Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy." Beauvoir, Simone de []. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Apr. 2014. .
The so-called "hermeneutic turn" is unquestionably one of the major events that took place in the contemporary philosophical scene, and its impact goes beyond the boundaries of any academic discipline, embracing the whole field of the human sciences. For this reason, the word "hermeneutics" refers today not only to a philosophical movement, but ...