articles
philosophy [ fi-los-uh-fee ]
By definition, philosophy is the rational investigation of the truths and principles of being, knowledge, or conduct. As such, it is our goal to invite students to delve into the following quintessential philosophical questions.
Why do we exist?
Metaphysics / Virtue ethics / Existentialism
The perennial questions of our being - why we’re here, what gives our lives meaning, and defining happiness - seem to function like the Hydra in Greek mythology: so many questions left to be answered, and when we try to tackle one, many more seem to emerge and take its place. The goal of this section is to try to make sense of the ideas of happiness and meaning and why they are relevant to our personal lives. In doing so, we’ll examine the likes of Aristotle, Jean-Paul Sartre, and other philosophers that have written about deriving meaning from a universe that often seems to lack it.
What do we know?
Epistemology / Self-evident truths and falsehoods / Empiricism / Rationalism / Pragmatism / Ontology
This section is mainly concerned with the questions regarding knowledge, otherwise known as the philosophical field of epistemology: what exactly is knowledge, and how do we get it? At the crossroads of truth and beliefs, according to philosophers in the field, is what is believed to be knowledge. With the help of texts like Immanuel Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason and Descartes’ Meditations, we’ll delve into schools of thought that have varying definitions on what exactly constitutes things like truth, knowledge, and reason. Through this process, we’ll try to answer the problem of the growing political divide in America, along with other timely issues.
Why should you care?
Ethics / Golden Mean / Virtue Ethics / Eudaimonia / Absurdism / Nihilism / Utilitarianism
One thought experiment can help us reconsider why we don’t put in our time and energy into solving problems greater than ourselves: if you saw a child in front of you drowning in a pool, would you try to jump in and save him at the expense of ruining your clothes, phone, and money in your wallet? The most sensible answer is yes - in the same vein, why don’t we feel compelled to help the proverbial “drowning child” on the other side of the earth? To answer this question, we’ll explore what exactly it means to be virtuous by revisiting one of Aristotle’s most notable works, Nicomachean Ethics, and juxtaposing these ideas with literature that embraces the philosophical absurd, which put ideas like nihilism into the field's forefront.
What is beauty?
Aesthetics / Semiotics / Beauty and Morality / Aesthetic Values
What makes some art more appealing than others? Is it the effort artists put into their art that make it appealing to us, or is it a painting’s accuracy with reality that makes one a better fit in an art gallery? What are the arguments for and against counterfeit art? By exploring art in all its forms - music, film, architecture, and many more - you’ll realize it’s incredibly difficult to define why some things are considered beautiful when dealing in absolutes. Additionally, we’ll relate the philosophical principles that guide us through this study of beauty with defining zeitgeists of historical eras, eventually touching on aesthetics’ implications on pop culture today.