Author: Frederik Kaufman Categories: Ethics, Metaphysics, Historical Philosophy Word count: 987 Listen here Most people think dying would be bad for them and so they fear it. Is that fear rational? The ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus (341-270 BCE) says no. He argues that death— as the permanent extinction of consciousness—is not bad, so we should … Continue reading Is Death Bad? Epicurus and Lucretius on the Fear of Death
Author: A.G. Holdier Category: Philosophy of Religion, Metaphysics, Ethics Word Count: 995 Many religious traditions picture Hell as a place of immense suffering that some people experience after they die. But who might go to Hell, and why, and for how long? And, although many people believe there is a Hell, might they be mistaken? … Continue reading Hell and Universalism: Could God Sentence Anyone to Eternal Punishment?
Author: Tufan Kıymaz Category: Philosophy of Mind and Language, Metaphysics Word Count: 1000 In philosophy of mind, physicalism is the view that mental states, like beliefs, feelings and desires, are nothing over and above the physical states of the brain: we don’t have souls or any non-physical features, and so all facts about our minds … Continue reading The Knowledge Argument Against Physicalism
Author: Daniel Peterson Categories: Epistemology, Philosophy of Science, Logic and Reasoning Word count: 998 Imagine that Beauty takes part in an experiment: on Sunday night, she is put to sleep. Then, the experimenters flip a fair coin. If the coin lands heads, Beauty is awakened on Monday, then is put back to sleep until the … Continue reading The Sleeping Beauty Problem
Author: Darren Hibbs Categories: Philosophy of Language, Metaphysics Word Count: 1000 How tall do you have to be to be tall? How much hair do you have to lose to be bald? How old do you have to be to be old? It is an unremarkable feature of language that words such as ‘tall’, ‘bald’, and … Continue reading Vagueness
Author: Daniel Miller Categories: Ethics, Metaphysics Word Count: 1000 Sometimes ignorance is a legitimate excuse for morally wrong behavior, and sometimes it isn’t. If someone has secretly replaced my sugar with arsenic, then I’m blameless for putting arsenic in your tea.[1] But if I put arsenic in your tea because I keep arsenic and sugar … Continue reading Ignorance and Blame: Can Ignorance Excuse?
Author: Taylor W. Cyr Category: Ethics, Metaphysics Word Count: 1000 Consider a case of manipulation:[1] Beth is a talented student with a well-rounded life. Her professor wants her to focus all her energies on school, at the expense of Beth’s hobbies and relationships. After failing to convince Beth to spend all of her time studying, … Continue reading Manipulation and Moral Responsibility
Author: Andre Leo Rusavuk Category: Metaphysics Word count: 990 We frequently say things like, ‘This seems possible,’ ‘That can’t be done,’ ‘This must happen,’ ‘She might be able to . . ,’ ‘This is necessary for . .’ and so on.[1] Claims like these are modal claims. They involve the modal concepts of actuality, possibility, … Continue reading Possibility and Necessity: An Introduction to Modality
Author: Abiral Chitrakar Phnuyal Category: Philosophy of Race, Metaphysics, Philosophy of Science, Ethics, Social and Political Philosophy Word Count: 998 Various racial concepts have been employed at different times in human history – most prominently since the 17th century[1] – to classify humans into groups, often to great social, political, ethical, medical, and scientific significance. … Continue reading The Ontology of Race: What are Races?
Author: Taylor W. Cyr Category: Metaphysics Word Count: 1000 Time travel is familiar from science fiction and is interesting to philosophers because of the metaphysical issues it raises: the nature of time, causation, personal identity, and freedom, among others.[1] It’s widely accepted that time travel to the future is possible, but the possibility of backward … Continue reading Time Travel
1000-Word Philosophy: An Introductory Anthology 