Notes on David Cunning, Everyday Examples, chapters 1-4

Chapter 1The Nature and Existence of the External World

• Commonsense or direct realism (Aristotle)• Skepticism about the reliability of perceptions of the external

world• Descartes's use of skepticism to defend indirect realism (doubt

[e.g., the Dream Argument] => cogito => existence of God => non-deceiving God => pretty

reliable perception of the external world [as long as we do our part])• Aristotle on the four causes or explanatory factors (material,

formal, efficient, final)• Heidegger’s critique of technology and "enframing" (for example,

an automobile, computer, or cellphone)

Chapter 2Morality and Value

Possible Sources of Morality and Value:

• God• Objective structure of the world • Subjective feeling or sentiment• Evolution by natural selection (not covered by Cunning)

God and Morality

Euthyphro’s Dilemma – How do we understand the relationship between God and morality? There are two options:

1. Something is good (bad) because God commands (forbids) it.

2. God commands (or forbids) something because it is independently good (or bad).

An objection to #1 => morality is arbitraryAn objection to #2 => morality is self-standing and independent of God

Morality is Objective

• Definition: What is good or bad can be identified by anyone through rational inquiry into the moral order of the universe.

• Objections: How exactly do we identify this objective moral order? Why should we follow this order?

Morality is Subjective

• Definition: Everyone has an inner moral sense that enables him or her to identify bad from bad.

• Objections: What about differences among individuals or cultures? What if an individual or a culture lacks moral sentiment?

Evolution by Natural Election

The Dutch primatologist Frans de Waal has identified the following basic features involved in the emergence of “morality from the bottom up”:• Empathy and Consolation• Pro-social Tendencies• Reciprocity and Fairness

http://www.ted.com/talks/frans_de_waal_do_animals_have_morals?language=en

Chapter 3Material Minds: A No-Brainer?

• Materialism• Immaterialism• Eliminative materialism

Arguments for Materialism

• Only matter exists (Epicurus, Lucretius, Thomas Hobbes)• Minds travel with bodies (Margaret Cavendish)• Mind-Body interaction (Princess Elizabeth)• Aging and brain trauma (Julien Offray de la Mettrie)• Artificial intelligence (Alan Turing vs. John Searle)

Arguments for Immaterialism

• Dualism (Socrates, René Descartes)• Matter is too low-grade to explain consciousness (Plotinus,

Augustine)• Human beings are made in the image (tselem) of God

(Genesis 1:26-28)• How could physical parts interact to create the unity of

consciousness? (G.W. Leibniz)• Physicalism is false; there exists an irreducible subjective

viewpoint (Thomas Nagel, Frank Jackson)

An Argument for Eliminative Materialism

• Paul Churchland’s position is that external mental categories like beliefs and desires (“folk psychology”) are misleading and can (and should) be reduced to internal brain states and activities

• Objections: – Churchland’s view is self-refuting;– His preferred scientific terminology is just as imprecise as folk psychological

terms as “beliefs” or “desires”

Chapter 4The Meaning of Life

• Epicurus on hedonism (= maximizing net pleasure over pain)• Epictetus on rational self-control over one’s emotions and “going with the grain”• Susan Wolf on the four criteria for a having a meaningful life:

– The person must be excited about, and actively engaged in, some set of projects (vs. the Blob);– The person must have some goal(s) that he or she sees as having long-term value, and that their

everyday pursuits contribute to these (vs. the Useless);– The person - to some degree – must be successful at the pursuits to which he or she is

committed (vs. the Bankrupt);– The person’s life must actually be valuable or important (vs. the Failure).– Two case studies:

Walter Palmer (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LzXpE1mjqA&feature=youtu.be) Rachel Beckwith https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXpkBJ5r0Qg)

• Harry Frankfurt on first-order and second-order desires (for example, having a desire to eat nutritious food vs. having a desire to have the desire to eat nutritious food).

• Socrates on the best life as one that emphasizes spiritual and intellectual activity over embodiment

• The question of an eternal afterlife