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 ESSAY ASSIGNMENT  You will choose one topic from the list below

Philosophy

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 ESSAY ASSIGNMENT

 You will choose one topic from the list below.  You will respond to each of the questions given for your chosen topic.   Each topic has several questions associated with it.  These are the questions you will respond to.

Your paper should be 800-1000 words, or about 4 pages in length, double-spaced in Times New Roman 12 font. 

You are not to do outside research for your responses unless the topic you’ve chosen instructs you to do so.  The point of the paper is to assess how well are comprehending the information given in the class or the readings from the text.

All papers are to be submitted on Canvas as a Word attachment (Open Office, odt, is also acceptable).  Do not submit as pdf, rtf, notepad – or any other format than Word or Open Office. Do not e-mail responses to me. Do not type your response into the submission box on the assignment page. 

Please review the syllabus for the policy on plagiarism – and remember that plagiarism on any portion of the paper results in a zero score for the assignment as a whole.

 Most of the topics are taken from end of chapter questions.

PAPER DUE FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 2  BY 10:00 PM.  Please review syllabus section regarding assignment submissions and late submission policy

100 points total

TOPICS

Topic one: Read the Trial and Death of Socrates beginning on page 44 of the text.  Then, address the following questions: According to Socrates, what are the charges brought against him? Why does he say the charges have been brought against him (hint: the oracle at Delphi is involved)? Why does he have such as “evil name” (according to Socrates – and here he explains that he goes to different people in Athens to ask questions)?  Who charges him for corrupting the youth of Athens and why? Discuss the points Socrates makes in his defense.  Then, (page 51) the jury decides in favor of the death penalty.  How does Socrates respond to the verdict?   Finally, what do you think he means when he says the unexamined life is not worth living?

Topic two:  Using your notes, summarize each of the arguments for God’s existence we discussed in class.  Which of these do you think makes the strongest argument for God’s existence?  Explain your answer.  Which do you think is the weakest?  Explain your answer. These arguments seek to use reason to prove faith, however, if you were to have a religious experience that seemed to be of God would your experience be strong evidence for God’s existence? Why or why not?  How would you distinguish a genuine experience from a false one (like wishful thinking or hallucination)?

 

Topic three:  Read the short story The Star beginning on page 126.  Summarize the story.  Then, answer the following questions: what is the terrible irony revealed in the last sentence of the story?  Could this irony arise in real life – could these events actually happen?  Why was the Jesuit astrophysicist’s faith shaken? If you were on his position and knew what he did, would your faith falter? What does the story suggest about the design of the universe?  Do the events imply that there is a designer God or not? Explain your answer

 

Topic Four:  read the excerpt from John Hick, Evil and the God of Love, starting on page 85.  What are the essential points Hick makes in defense of the notion of the God of Love and the reality of evil and suffering?  Describe these points, do not merely list them.  You can augment this with the lecture outline if you wish, but the bulk of your answer must come from the reading. Do you think Hick’s theodicy is an adequate response to the argument from evil?  Explain.  Finally, using your lecture notes, describe the theodicies we discussed in class.  Which one seems most convincing to you and why?

 

Topic Five: Read The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas beginning on page 191 of the text.  Before answering the questions related to the reading answer these questions using lecture notes and text:  describe the principle of utility as formulated by Jeremy Bentham.  What is the Hedonic Calculus and how is this used to arrive at moral decisions?  What element does Mill add to Bentham’s utilitarianism that serves to refute the claim that this is a “pig’s philosophy?”  Discuss the Greatest Happiness Principle. What does it mean to be a “disinterested but benevolent spectator?”  Then, answer the questions related to the reading: how does this story apply to utilitarian moral theories?  Does it put these theories in a good light or a bad light? Does our happiness in a relatively prosperous nation depend on the suffering of the poorer people of the world who work for low wages to support our consumer society? If you were a citizen of Omelas, would you walk away from it as a few have done?  Would you think that the suffering of one child, though regrettable, was justified to create a utopia for so many to enjoy? Why or why not?