The Problems Of Philosophy, by Bertrand Russell :: The Problems Of Philosophy Essays

The value of Philosophy is, in fact, to be sought largely in its uncertainty. The man who has no tincture of Philosophy goes through life imprisoned in the prejudices derived from common sense, from the habitual beliefs of his age or his nation, and from the convictions which have grown up in his mind without the co-operation of his deliberate reason. Bertrand Russell, The Problems of Philosophy. Philosophy is commonly thought of as an activity reserved for Oxbridge high- brows; or a sort of intellectual table-tennis indulged in by the Ancient Greeks to while the time away before television came along. Russell suggests that it may actually serve a purpose for everyone. In the first line, Russell is clearly contrasting his own belief in the inherent uncertainty of philosophy with the attitude of those people who dedicate their lives to a search for the "right" theory, in an attempt to understand the "truth" about human nature. He argues that, were a philosopher to write the perfect, unanswerable theory, the solution to life, the universe and everything, then philosophy would itself become responsible for inducing the very mental laziness which it should help us to avoid. Disagreement and debate between the adherents of rival theories is, moreover, essential to the health of philosophy. Just as many major advances of science are catalysed by war, so the great intellectual insights are sparked by discussion. If there were universal agreement on one philosophical theory, then all further thought would be rendered useless. (See p.319, Small World by David Lodge: "†¦what matters in the field of critical practice is not truth but difference. If everybody were convinced by your arguments, they would have to do the same as you and then there would be no satisfaction in doing it.") Russell talks of three different factors involved in the formation of prejudice. Each is considered in detail below. The first type of prejudice is derived from common sense. This is interesting: it appears that Russell is suggesting that common sense is to be avoided. The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines common sense as "sound, practical sense, especially in everyday matters". In theory, any sound sense is to be welcomed, where appropriate; the distinction to be made here is between applying common sense to mundane problems, which Russell would certainly not advise against, and taking it out of context as a set of rules which can be followed without any further thought, no matter what the circumstances. For example, if you are feeling hungry, and you are holding a biscuit, then a philosophical debate is not required to reach the conclusion that you eat the biscuit: it's common sense. The Problems Of Philosophy, by Bertrand Russell :: The Problems Of Philosophy Essays The value of Philosophy is, in fact, to be sought largely in its uncertainty. The man who has no tincture of Philosophy goes through life imprisoned in the prejudices derived from common sense, from the habitual beliefs of his age or his nation, and from the convictions which have grown up in his mind without the co-operation of his deliberate reason. Bertrand Russell, The Problems of Philosophy. Philosophy is commonly thought of as an activity reserved for Oxbridge high- brows; or a sort of intellectual table-tennis indulged in by the Ancient Greeks to while the time away before television came along. Russell suggests that it may actually serve a purpose for everyone. In the first line, Russell is clearly contrasting his own belief in the inherent uncertainty of philosophy with the attitude of those people who dedicate their lives to a search for the "right" theory, in an attempt to understand the "truth" about human nature. He argues that, were a philosopher to write the perfect, unanswerable theory, the solution to life, the universe and everything, then philosophy would itself become responsible for inducing the very mental laziness which it should help us to avoid. Disagreement and debate between the adherents of rival theories is, moreover, essential to the health of philosophy. Just as many major advances of science are catalysed by war, so the great intellectual insights are sparked by discussion. If there were universal agreement on one philosophical theory, then all further thought would be rendered useless. (See p.319, Small World by David Lodge: "†¦what matters in the field of critical practice is not truth but difference. If everybody were convinced by your arguments, they would have to do the same as you and then there would be no satisfaction in doing it.") Russell talks of three different factors involved in the formation of prejudice. Each is considered in detail below. The first type of prejudice is derived from common sense. This is interesting: it appears that Russell is suggesting that common sense is to be avoided. The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines common sense as "sound, practical sense, especially in everyday matters". In theory, any sound sense is to be welcomed, where appropriate; the distinction to be made here is between applying common sense to mundane problems, which Russell would certainly not advise against, and taking it out of context as a set of rules which can be followed without any further thought, no matter what the circumstances. For example, if you are feeling hungry, and you are holding a biscuit, then a philosophical debate is not required to reach the conclusion that you eat the biscuit: it's common sense.

Great Expectations and Oliver Twist Essay

Every author has his own style of writing. He may use an idea in one of his novels in another. In the books Great Expectations and Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens, the author uses descriptive plots, exiting characters, and a meaningful message to prove that two ideas in a book although similar can be presented differently. Throughout the plot of Great Expectations and Oliver twist, Dickens uses robbery to show the similarities and differences within the book. After a young child, Pip, visits his parents’ tombstone in the graveyard, he comes across a petrifying convict on the run; the convict threatens to hurt Pip unless he bring the man food and makes the child keep his whereabouts a secret. Pip wakes up in the middle of the night and admits, â€Å"I was in mortal terror of myself, from whom an awful promise had been extracted†¦. I had no time to spare. I stole some bread, some rind of cheese, and about half a jar of mincemeat†¦. and a beautiful round compact pork pie. The child is terrified of the convict and is afraid what will befall him if he does not do as the convict instructed. The boy steals food , not out of the evil within his heart, but out of fear that the felon might hurt him. On the other hand, Oliver, a homeless orphan, is welcomed into the home of Fagin (also known as the Jew) who brings in stray children. A while later, while walking through the city streets with his inmates, what appears before the child is, â€Å"†¦. Oliver’s horror and alarm as he stood a few paces off, looking on with his eye-lids as wide open as they would possibly go. o see the Dodger plunge his hand into this old gentleman’s pocket, and draw from thence a handkerchief, which he handed to Charley Bates†¦. In one instant the whole mystery of the handkerchiefs, and the watches, and the jewels, and the Jew rushes upon the boy’s mind. † Fagin always teaches Oliver how to snatch handkerchiefs, jewels, without oliver realizing what he is doing it for and now the boy understands that they are all robbers and they wanted to turn him into one as well. Seeing Dodger and Charlie rob the old man brought pip to such a realization as to stop himself into falling into their trap. Pip robs out of fear of a threatening felon but Oliver stops himself from committing such a crime using the clues around him; Pip could have stopped himself from stealing from his home if he was smart enough. Similarities are found between Magwitch, a runaway convict, and Bill Sikes,a dangerous robber, as they do fairly identical actions with opposite outcomes. keep still, you little devil, or I’ll cut you’r throat† Magwitch is bullying Pip, an innocent child, by telling him that he will kill him if he does not do as the criminal instructs. Though traumatizing the child forever, Magwitch benefits Pip thought his childhood to sooth guilt brought about through his terrible actions. â€Å"If you speak a word out o’doors with me, except when I speak to you, that loading will be you’r head without notice. † Bill Sikes forces young Oliver, a lone orphan, to help him with a major robbery, willing to shoot the child if he does not listen. Bill shoots Oliver and does not regret it one bit, acting as the perfect villain. Magwitch may have started out like Bill but he was exposed to be a good hearted man. In Dickens’s novels it is presented how ones wrong doings does go unpunished. â€Å"It was two years more before I saw Estella. I had heard her as leading a most unhappy life, as being separated from her husband, who had used her with much cruelty†¦ † Estella, a cruel woman who breaks a young boy’s heart, lives her life suffering through a tragic marriage. Estella pays the price of her actions, feeling the pain that she gave the boy who’s hart she broke when she was younger. â€Å"There was nobody there ti speak to him; but fell back to render him are visible to the people who were clinging to the bars. † Fagin, the robber, influenced many children to believe that robbing for a living is justified, showing them his many methods of robbery from previous experience of his own. The man is forced to face his fate by eternally rotting in. prison. Both Estella and Fagin pay for the price of their actions.

The Three Tales of Cymbeline Essay - 737 Words

The Three Tales of Cymbeline nbsp; Cymbeline has always been a difficult play to categorize. The original collection of Shakespeares plays, quot;The First Folioquot; (published in 1623), classifies it as a tragedy; modern editors have revised that to comedy, and to distinguish it further from other comedies, it is also referred to, along with The Tempest, The Winters Tale, and Pericles, as a romance. Of course, like so many other plays of Shakespeare, these classifications are only guidelines rather than definitions, for an attempt to analyze a work of art according to somewhat arbitrary classifications is to diminish the very essence - its originality - that makes it a work of art. Undoubtedly, there are many aspects,†¦show more content†¦The danger to Imogens life by her husbands jealous action is as real as is Desdemonas fate, thus propelling the play to the edge of tragedy. Unlike Iago, however, Iachimo (the similarity of their names is interesting) repents (he is even ready to accept death as his punishm ent) and is then forgiven by the generous Posthumus. The theme of forgiveness is characteristic of Shakespeares romances - Hermiones forgiveness of Leontes is one of the most beautiful moments of The Winters Tale, and Prosperos decision to return to his kingdom is itself a forgiveness of the wrongs done him. Another staple of romantic epics is the story of lost and found children. Often, the lost child is a girl, but sometimes, as Shakespeare chooses here, the children may be boys. The Guiderius - Arviragus story includes the tale of Belarius, the quot;supposed fatherquot; who is drawn from the quot;rusticated courtierquot; of pastoral romance. By deciding to make Belarius a hunter and not a shepherd (as he does with the adoptive father of Perdita in The Winters Tale), Shakespeare permits the credibility of Guiderius and Arviragus as fighters in the defense of their country. In Imogens taking of the quot;poison,quot; Shakespeare employs a standard device of Greek romance which calle d for the supposed death of a beloved woman; it is a device that he uses in his tragedies (RomeoShow MoreRelatedCommon Features of a Shakespeare Comedy1745 Words   |  7 PagesThe Comedy of Errors 4 Cymbeline 5 Loves Labour’s Lost 6 Measure for Measure 7 The Merry Wives of Windsor 8 The Merchant of Venice 9 A Midsummer Nights Dream 10 Much Ado About Nothing 11 Pericles, Prince of Tyre 12 The Taming of the Shrew 13 The Tempest 14 Troilus and Cressida 15 Twelfth Night 16 Two Gentlemen of Verona 17 The Two Noble Kinsmen 18 The Winters Tale 2. 3. Comedy is aRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare: A Brief Biography651 Words   |  3 Pageslanguage forever. 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