Aristotle vs. Hobbes Equality. - 2378 Words

Aristotle vs. Hobbes, constitutes a debate between two great thinkers from two profoundly different periods of time. Whereas Aristotle (384 - 322 BCE) had been a part of the Greeks and more precisely, Athenss Golden Age, Thomas Hobbes (1588 - 1679) had lived through the English Civil War of 1640s to become one of the most influential philosophers. Based on their own personal experiences and surroundings, both Aristotle and Hobbes had developed a view of what human equality should sustain. However, Hobbes understanding of natural equality is preferable, as he provides society with the extra room for equality and opportunity that the subjects of a good sovereign would experience to be available to them, in comparison to Aristotles†¦show more content†¦In fact, people would never be satisfied with what they have, since the need for more would increase with the possessions owned (Aristotle, p. 17-20). That is why the only way for people to achieve their higher virtue would have been through politics and practical reason. It is only natural to think that, as Aristotle points out, because no other being posses the ability to reason. Thus, it is the citizens main goal in life, to achieve the natural telos, the good life, by enhancing more upon his political participation (Aristotle, p. 3-5). The natural slaves, however, cannot achieve any such telos due to their natural impairment and inferiority to the citizen. Their natural purpose in life is to serve the ruler and provide for them, since the natural slave lacks such capabilities as reason, For he is a slave by nature who is capable of belonging to another - which is also why he belongs to another - and who participates in reason only to the extent of perceiving it, but does not have it (1254b16-23). Usually, as Aristotle points out, natural slaves bread other natural slaves, although, sometimes superiors are known to have natural slaves as well. However, he struggles to determine whether the natural slave is in fact completely rationally impaired and upon what reasons he should be enslaved. Thus, this creates difficulties when trying to differentiate who should be enslaved, why and how to distinguish between a natural slave and a naturalShow MoreRelatedEmpiricism Is The Theory That Experience1202 Words   |  5 Page sshould be about making citizens more virtuous vs politics should be about the â€Å"basics† like security and property rights. Throughout this paper, I will be analyzing these two different outlooks on politics and presenting a case for both. Thomas Hobbes believed that the government should essentially limit itself to the protection of property and persons. Hobbes thought that power derived from the office, not from the people. Things like virtue, social equality, and welfare were not important. To protectRead MorePolitical Theory: Comparing Locke, Rousseau and Plato Essay3770 Words   |  16 Pagescalm and peaceful - men give up some of their freedom to secure the advantages of civilized socity - men have the right to protect their freedom (killing if necessary) - bound by the laws of nature - contrast with hobbes: everyone has the right over everything, there exist no private property - Liberty to do as he will, but not harm others Purpose of government: - to secure the natural rights of property rights and liberty - we need lawRead MoreLaw and Justice4680 Words   |  19 Pagesstarting point to understand this whole world of law and justice. In this paper an attempt has been made to understand and analyze Rawls theory of justice. This work has been done to distinguish the concept of justice as propounded by utilitarian’s (Aristotle[1] and Benthem[2]) vis-a-vis Rawls. Finally an analysis is done to examine how well the concept of justice given by Rawls is relevant in India, a multilayered pluralistic society. Introduction: Justice is defined as the quality of being just or

Divine Justice In King Lear And Antigone - 1619 Words

In and around 441 BC, the idea of divine justice was challenged in the work of Antigone, when she battles Creon to establish a predominant theme of God versus man. During the Elizabethan era/Pre-Christian world, divine justice was a major concept in King Lear because religion played a substantial role in everyday life. Divine justice is belief that a higher power has all the answers to life’s questions, and that good triumphs over evil. In the works of King Lear and Antigone divine justice is a standard of living. Good does not triumph over evil throughout any of these works especially without the honorable characters suffering equivalent demises as the wicked characters. This then supports the concept that there is no such thing as divine†¦show more content†¦The conditions resulting from â€Å"bias of nature† (Hermesmann 1-2) indicates that nature is uncaring for humanity, and the possibility of there not being a just force to govern the world. Without establ ished social order, there cannot be any justice. Correspondingly, Lear, like anyone else, falls victim to making several poor decisions. Most noticeably, the misjudgment of Cordelia’s true meaning behind her words. He does not recognize Cordelia’s humble love amid the flattery, which he so desperately craves. In the first act of the play, the darker aspect of how Lear views the universe is revealed. He believes laws and traditions can be broken and defied without any fear of consequences. Lear’s fall from grace of an all-mighty king to an old broken man reveals this breakdown of order. When Lear encounters Edgar, disguised as Poor Tom, during the storm, Lear rips off his clothes symbolizing that â€Å"Unaccommodated man is no more than such a poor, bare, unforked animal† (Shakespeare III.iv.113-115). The act of removing his clothes is symbolic because of the breakdown of â€Å"Western Hierarchy† and â€Å"Societal order in general† (Spotswood 2). The betrayal of Lear by his two oldest daugh ters, Goneril and Regan, prompts his rebirth. Lear’s horrendous condition is caused by the oblique amount of justice in the Gods. Lear cries out in despair â€Å"Who is it that can tell me who I am† (Shakespeare I.iv. 226-237), after Goneril reprimanded Lear; to which â€Å"Lear’sShow MoreRelatedDeath of Cordelia--King Lear1396 Words   |  6 Pagesâ€Å"King Lear† is one of the greatest dramas written by Shakespeare. It is a poetic tragedy in which the good as well as bad characters play their role. King Lear has three daughters; Goneril, Regan andCordelia. Cordelia is the youngest daughter. She is an important character of the play. In the last act, she is hanged and her death seems unjustified. But it is not true. Shakespeare changed his source material to give his â€Å"King Lear† a tragic ending. Thus there is the defeat of Cordelia’s army,the imprisonment

An Argument for Morality a Critique Free Essays

A New Argument for Morality: A Critique The Prince, one of the first works of modern philosophy, was written in the genre of political doctrine: the Mirror of Princes. This style was reflected in the works of many writers of antiquity, such as Seneca and Isocrates, extending as far back as to the apices of traditional Western culture and civilization in Rome and Greece. As The Prince derives its thought from classical roots of political thought, its originality is questionable. We will write a custom essay sample on An Argument for Morality: a Critique or any similar topic only for you Order Now The third chapter of The Prince was the foundation of Rafael Major’s argument in A New Argument for Morality as it is â€Å"a kind of intellectual cornerstone for all modern political thought. † It must be analyzed in an attempt to evaluate the moral teaching of the entire book. It remains one of the only places in the book to describe the actions of the prince to be limited and guided by natural necessities and desires. Through the observance of this chapter, Machiavelli must be compared to the writers of antiquity to heighten awareness of his lack of originality. We are forced to re-examine both the â€Å"realism† exuded in The Prince and the â€Å"idealism† Machiavelli so opposed in the ancients as he himself claimed that they also taught many of the same lessons found in his book. Also read this  Critique of Stuff Is Not Salvation Through such examinations, we must ultimately judge the character of Machiavelli’s pursuit to expose the â€Å"harshest truths of political life. † However, one must begin by revisiting the actual thoughts of antiquity, its neglected realism, and supposed â€Å"idealism. † Major accomplishes this by composing a parody of The Prince by concatenating many sources of ancient texts regarding political philosophy into a work closely resembling the teachings in The Prince. For instance, in Plutarch’s history of Crassus it is written: â€Å"We should not worry too much about being feared because many have been feared and popular-but being feared is more powerful even when not popular,† which bears a resemblance to Machiavelli’s claim that â€Å"one should like to be both [loved] and [feared], but as it is difficult to bring them together, it is much safer to be feared than to be loved if one of the two has to be lacking. † As such an example of a passage from one of the ancient authors indicates, many of them were completely aware of the realism associated with political life. Thus, Major concludes that Machiavelli’s assessment of human nature does not suggest original thought and that Machiavelli possessed no more realism than any other classicist author. From the suitable extrapolations from ancient works of literature in Major’s parody, one can well be convinced of his reasonable claims. His examples are varied and many; they are not solely the works of a few authors. Whereas Machiavelli was too selective in the historic examples that he employed, Major has implemented as many as would make one think that he was not being selective. The crux of Major’s evaluation of the moral teaching of The Prince rests in the third chapter. In order to benefit from Machiavelli’s â€Å"moral suasion† it is imperative that one understands this chapter, which begins with the assertion of â€Å"two fundamental truths or natural conditions of political life in newly acquired characteristics. † The first natural difficulty is that in every principality, there are citizens who would willingly take arms up against their prince in the belief that they would fare better with a new prince. Machiavelli suggests that being cruel is a â€Å"natural† necessity in order to maintain the stability of a state. Major contradicts this assertion through a magnification of the first passage of chapter three. The obscurity of Machiavelli’s language makes it â€Å"impossible to discern that the second natural and ordinary necessity has even been specified,†as â€Å"the reader is only told that the second necessity of political life ‘requires that one must always offend those over whom he becomes a new prince. † The rest of the chapter, however, seems to indicate that the second natural and ordinary necessity must be similar to self-defence. The threat of inevitable foreign invasion establishes the necessity of preservation of one’s state by â€Å"necessary immorality. † Chapter three also introduces a change in perspective from an individual prince to the Romans. Machiavelli exemplifies the Romans as the standard for a wise prince, who ought to anticipate all present and future troubles; this is his foundation for all wise judgement. However, the Romans also had to anticipate foreign threats; thus all cruelty is excusable under the necessity of protecting themselves. Self-defence from an invasion is both a response to classical and Christian moral thinking, according to Major. It can become a â€Å"limitless licence of action,† though only prudence and vigilance offer true protection from the â€Å"natural difficulties of political life. † At the heart of Machiavelli’s political philosophy is the solution to such difficulties of political life: moral eaching. But the writers of antiquity, though they were realistic, envisioned an order of morality, that, according to Major, offers hope that a non-Machiavellian approach to politics exists. Rafael Major was effective in proving his thesis. Every one of his claims had textual evidence, specifically from The Prince, as support. The selection of textual support was indeed diverse; one would not be able to accuse such a varied source of texts as be ing selective. His argument was uniform and consi tent. Thus, I am convinced of the justice of his assertions. ——————————————– [ 1 ]. Rafael Major, â€Å"A New Argument for Morality: Machiavelli and the Ancients,† 53. [ 2 ]. Major, 52. [ 3 ]. Major, 54. [ 4 ]. Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince, in The Prince and Other Writings, trans. Wayne A. Rebhorn (New York: Barnes and Noble Classics, 2003), 71. [ 5 ]. Major, 55. [ 6 ]. Major, 57. [ 7 ]. Machiavelli, 10. [ 8 ]. Major, 57. [ 9 ]. Ibid. 58. [ 10 ]. Ibid. 58. How to cite An Argument for Morality: a Critique, Essays

Research and Development free essay sample

Kristi Norgart McBride lived with her husband in Santa Rosa, California. Kristi suffered from manic-depressive mental illness (now called bipolar disorder). In this disease, a person cycles between manic episodes (ultra-happy, expansive, and extroverted) and depressive episodes. The disease is often treated with prescription drugs. Kristi attempted suicide. A psychiatrist prescribed an anti-anxiety drug. One year later, Kristi attempted suicide again by overdosing on drugs. The doctor prescribed Halcion, a hypnotic drug, and added Darvocet-N, a mild narcotic analgesic. Five months later, after descending into a severe depression, Kristi committed suicide by overdosing on Halcion and Darvocet-N. Exactly six years after Kristi’s death, Leo and Phyllis Norgart, Kristi’s parents, filed a lawsuit against the Upjohn Company, the maker of Halcion, to recover monetary damages for the wrongful death of their daughter, based on Upjohn’s alleged failure to warn of the unreasonable dangers of taking Halcion. Upjohn argued that the one-year statute of limitations for rongful death actions had run and that the case against it Dennis and Francis Burnham were married in West Virginia. We will write a custom essay sample on Research and Development or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page One year later, the couple moved to New Jersey, where their two children were born. After 11 years of marriage, the Burnhams decided to separate. Mrs. Burnham, who intended to move to California, was to have custody of the children. Mr. Burnham agreed to file for divorce on grounds of irreconcilable differences. He later threatened to file for divorce in New Jersey on grounds of desertion. After unsuccessfully demanding that Mr. Burnham adhere to the prior agreement, Mrs. Burnham brought suit for divorce in California state court. One month later, Mr. Burnham visited California on a business trip. He visited his children in the San Francisco Bay area, where his wife resided. He took the older child to San Francisco for the weekend. Upon returning the child to Mrs. Burnham’s home, he was served with a California court summons and a copy of Mrs. Burnham’s divorce petition. He then returned to New Jersey. Mr. Burnham made a special appearance in the California