This essay introduces the Divine Command Theory of ethics, that wrong actions are wrong because God forbids them and right actions are right because God commands them, and the most important responses to it, which date back to Socrates’ discussion in ancient Greece with a man named Euthyphro.
Avicenna’s ‘Proof’ for the Existence of God
This essay presents and explains what’s called Avicenna’s ‘proof’ for the existence of God. It is likely the most influential argument in the history of philosophy in the Islamic world.
Ecstatic Experiences: The Philosophy of ‘Losing Yourself’
"Ecstatic experiences” are when we seem to joyfully “lose” or transcend or go beyond ourselves. This essay introduces some philosophical issues about ecstatic experiences.
Teleological Explanations: Purposes, Functions, and Goals in Biology
When we talk about living things, we often describe their parts as if they have purposes or goals or functions. Explanations like these are called teleological: they explain biological features in terms of what they are for. Most sciences explain the world without appealing to purposes or goals. So why is biology different?
Friedrich Nietzsche on Tragedy: Why Do We Like Tragic Art?
Tragic art is creative work that depicts the painful and catastrophic aspects of life. This essay summarizes German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche’s (1844-1900) theory of why we enjoy tragic art.
Theism and Atheism: Reasons for Belief and Disbelief
This essay provides an overview of these various types of reasons for affirming theism or atheism.
Atheism: Believing God Does Not Exist
This essay introduces some of the core philosophical issues about atheism: what it is, how and why people accept atheism, and the relationships between atheism and meaning in life and ethics.
Philosophical Counseling: Using Philosophy to Address Life’s Challenges
This essay describes a leading approach to philosophical counseling, known as Logic-Based Therapy, that has been developed and used since the 1980s.
Dehumanization: What is it to Dehumanize People?
Dehumanization involves wrongly treating or viewing some person or group as less than human. But what exactly is it to treat or view some person or group as less than human? And how might these actions and beliefs be related? This essay introduces influential answers to these questions so we might better understand dehumanization.
“That’s Subjective”: Subjectivism about Truth, Beauty, and Goodness
People sometimes say that judgments about what’s true, what’s ethical, what others find beautiful or aesthetically pleasing, and more are "subjective." What does “subjective” really mean? Are judgments like these truly “subjective”? This essay introduces different answers to these questions.