A Summary Guide to Philosophical Taxonomy

Why bother? Mostly for efficiently organizing bookshelves and folders. To be clear, I don’t understand this sort of thing to hold any deep or critical significance: for me, it’s strictly the sort of thing we refer to in order to avoid organizational confusion. By my reckoning a fairly trivial all things considered so arguing about

Intro to Philosophy First

Kinda random but I’ve been reflecting on a typical conversation I run into online a lot in recent years which troubles me… A top-down analysis only works well if the top concepts can be codified into a coherent understanding of the bottom concepts. Example: Let’s suppose a dog is a domesticated carnivorous mammal that typically

A Few Menexenus Notes

Lines 234a – 249e Bio info from The People of Plato A Prosopography of Plato and Other Socratics by Debra Nails (2002) Hackett Publishing. Antiphon of Rhamnous, son of Sophiluslived ±479–411; student of, or influenced by, Gorgias; teacher of Thucydides; oligarchic leader, sophist, and rhetorician. Archinus of Coeleactive ±405–399; rhetorician, politician, and general. Aspasia of

Considering Skepticism: Why or When Might there be Reason for Concern? AVGS

• The risk of inaction – Though it’s a concern addressed by ancient texts, it’s worth reflecting on for the sake of reviewing coping strategies: that there is a possibility the skeptic way will lead to a kind of mental paralysis or another undesirable state which prevents action.  An obvious option to avoid this sort

How Does Skepticism Work? A Very General Summary

• Pyrrhonism and its legacy – Those who hold no philosophical beliefs whatsoever. A brief rough summary: skeptical inquiry results in an intellectual standstill on philosophical matters to which the skeptic responds with a suspension of judgment which just so happens to lead to a desirable mental calm and clarity. • Academism and its legacy

Who is Skepticism For? A Very General Summary

• The skeptics – From the responses in the first section: there’s a very specific group of people whom skepticism is likely to be a benefit to. The skeptics are those who are said to acquire an improved mental balance through the application of skepticism. • The philosophically interested – Inasmuch as skepticism serves as

What is Skepticism? A Very General Summary

• A word – Skeptic (also sceptic) from French sceptique, directly from Latin scepticus, and from Greek skeptikos (PIE root *spek- ‘to observe’); a noun use of an adjective meaning doubting, questioning, or seeking. Also a title used to identify people associated with figures like Pyrrho and Sextus. Lastly, skepticism is sometimes used as a

Understanding Skepticism: A Very General Outline

What is skepticism? A word An attitude About doubt About disbelief Seeking mental calm and clarity The way of inquiry or investigation Dealing with puzzlement and uncertainty A way of engaging in philosophical thinking Who is skepticism for? The skeptics The philosophically interested People in general How does it work? Pyrrhonism and its legacy Academism

Reiteration: Again and Again

If you happen to glance back at my older posts, especially skepticism related content, it’s likely you’ll notice I repeat myself a fair bit. That’s because I’m constantly recreating and revising introductory approaches to understanding skepticism and on occasion I post some of that material. It’s all for the sake of developing finished pieces of

Preliminaries to Understanding Pyrrhonism & Ancient Skeptical Inquiry

I initiated my current study of skepticism in 2019 through reading Outlines of Scepticism by Sextus Empiricus translated by Julia Annas and Jonathan Barnes. Other reliable English language editions I’ve consulted include translations by R.G. Bury (Loeb), Benson Mates (Oxford), and Richard Bett (Princeton). As I write this it’s 2022 and over the past three