26 ideas
| 1606 | You have to be a Platonist to debate about reality, so every philosopher is a Platonist [Roochnik] |
| 1595 | Philosophy aims to satisfy the chief human desire - the articulation of beauty itself [Roochnik] |
| 1571 | 'Logos' ranges from thought/reasoning, to words, to rational structures outside thought [Roochnik] |
| 1572 | In the seventeenth century the only acceptable form of logos was technical knowledge [Roochnik] |
| 1573 | The hallmark of a person with logos is that they give reasons why one opinion is superior to another [Roochnik] |
| 1592 | Logos cannot refute the relativist, and so must admit that it too is a matter of desire (for truth and agreement) [Roochnik] |
| 1593 | Human desire has an ordered structure, with logos at the pinnacle [Roochnik] |
| 1603 | Logos is not unconditionally good, but good if there is another person willing to engage with it [Roochnik] |
| 1598 | We prefer reason or poetry according to whether basics are intelligible or not [Roochnik] |
| 1584 | Modern science, by aiming for clarity about the external world, has abandoned rationality in the human world [Roochnik] |
| 1591 | Unfortunately for reason, argument can't be used to establish the value of argument [Roochnik] |
| 1599 | Attempts to suspend all presuppositions are hopeless, because a common ground must be agreed for the process [Roochnik] |
| 1605 | Reality can be viewed neutrally, or as an object of desire [Roochnik] |
| 1577 | Relativism is a disease which destroys the possibility of rational debate [Roochnik] |
| 20653 | Six reduction levels: groups, lives, cells, molecules, atoms, particles [Putnam/Oppenheim, by Watson] |
| 1578 | If relativism is the correct account of human values, then rhetoric is more important than reasoning [Roochnik] |
| 1596 | Reasoning aims not at the understanding of objects, but at the desire to give beautiful speeches [Roochnik] |
| 7127 | If men are good you should keep promises, but they aren't, so you needn't [Machiavelli] |
| 6309 | The principle foundations of all states are good laws and good armies [Machiavelli] |
| 6306 | People are vengeful, so be generous to them, or destroy them [Machiavelli] |
| 6305 | To retain a conquered state, wipe out the ruling family, and preserve everything else [Machiavelli] |
| 6308 | A sensible conqueror does all his harmful deeds immediately, because people soon forget [Machiavelli] |
| 6307 | A desire to conquer, and men who do it, are always praised, or not blamed [Machiavelli] |
| 7486 | Machiavelli emancipated politics from religion [Machiavelli, by Watson] |
| 19813 | All legislators invoke God in support of extraordinary laws, because their justification is not obvious [Machiavelli] |
| 7126 | Rulers should preserve the foundations of religion, to ensure good behaviour and unity [Machiavelli] |