PHILOSOPHY FOR THE REAL WORLD

This is the first episode to look at a practical question related to social and political philosophy. We look at “social contract theory” and an interesting question it raises about who should be entitled to vote.

Episode 2 described the ancient Greek philosopher Socrates’ idea that “vice harms the doer.” This episode describes the remarkably similar idea advanced by the fourth century Christian thinker Saint Augustine that vice contains its own punishment.

This is the first episode dedicated to examining logical mistakes. This episode looks at the “informal fallacy” of “unwarranted generalization and stereotyping”–one of the most common examples of logical mistakes in political rhetoric.

Think of this as a test. Sorry about the cryptic episode title, but saying too much will be a spoiler.

“Doing the right thing” is often difficult because it means putting other people’s interests ahead of our own. The ancient Greek thinker Socrates has an interesting–and surprising–perspective because he argues that “vice harms the doer.” The selfish thing, then, is to avoid that harm by doing what’s right.

This is the first in a series of podcasts by Professor Thomas White about the practical usefulness of philosophy–philosophy for the real world. This episode identifies the main areas of philosophy we’ll be applying: logic, ethics, knowledge, living with others in community. For a general introduction to philosophy, see my Discovering Philosophy (Hackett). Click here for information.