Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Arts and Humanities Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Philosophy

Trinity University

Descartes

Publication Year

Articles 1 - 3 of 3

Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities

The Essential Functions Of A Plotinian Soul, Damian Caluori Jan 2005

The Essential Functions Of A Plotinian Soul, Damian Caluori

Philosophy Faculty Research

In reading Plotinus one might get the impression that the essential functions of a Plotinian soul are very similar to those of an Aristotelian soul. Plotinus talks of such vegetative functions as growth, nurture and reproduction. He discusses such animal functions as sense perception, imagination and memory. And he attributes such functions as reasoning, judging and having opinions to the soul. In Plotinus' Psychology, Blumenthal bases his whole discussion of the soul on an analysis of these functions. He concludes that Plotinus 'saw the soul's activities as the functions of a series of faculties which were basically those of …


Indiscernability Skepticism, Steven Luper Jan 2003

Indiscernability Skepticism, Steven Luper

Philosophy Faculty Research

Ideally, our account of knowledge would help us to understand the appeal of (and flaws in) skepticism,2 while remaining consistent with our ‘intuitions,’ and supporting epistemic principles that seem eminently plausible. Of course, we don’t always get what we want; we may not be able to move from intuitions and principles to an account that fully squares with them. As a last resort, we may have to move in the other direction, and give up intuitions or principles that are undermined by an otherwise compelling account of knowledge, so as to achieve ‘reflective equilibrium.’3 But last resorts come …


What Skeptics Don't Know Refutes Them, Steven Luper Jan 1984

What Skeptics Don't Know Refutes Them, Steven Luper

Philosophy Faculty Research

Skeptics usually argue that from the fact that (1) it is possible that you are in certain situations that I will call 'skeptical scenarios' where you would not know anything you believe by processing sensory information, it follows that (2) you do not know anything that you believe by processing sensory information no matter what circumstances you are in. Skeptical scenarios, which range from Descartes' deceitful demon to the modest Gettier case, are situations such that: if you were in one of them, (a) your sensory information would not be any different from the way it would be if you …