Combining Philosophers

All the ideas for Michael Faraday, Lawrence Kohlberg and Thomas More

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7 ideas

22. Metaethics / A. Ethics Foundations / 1. Nature of Ethics / b. Defining ethics
Avoid punishment, then get rewards, avoid rejection, avoid guilt, accept contracts, follow conscience [Kohlberg, by Wilson,EO]
     Full Idea: Kohlberg's six stages of ethical development are: 1) avoid punishment, 2) obtain rewards, 3) avoid rejection, 4) avoid censure and guilt, 5) recognise contracts, 6) individual conscience.
     From: report of Lawrence Kohlberg (works [1969]) by Edmund O. Wilson - On Human Nature p.166
     A reaction: This doesn't throw much light on philosophical problems, but the order of the six stages is interesting. Beware of oversimplification, because a situation can put pressure on any one of these six aspects of morality.
24. Political Theory / D. Ideologies / 3. Conservatism
All modern social systems seem to be conspiracies of the rich [More,T]
     Full Idea: When I consider any social system that prevails in the modern world, I can't see it as anything but a conspiracy of the rich to advance their own interests under the pretext of organizing society.
     From: Thomas More (Utopia [1516], Bk 2)
     A reaction: I'm afraid this is my own view of most conservative politics. I don't deny that there is a good case to be made for the conservative view (by Burke and Scruton, for example), but the rich will always latch onto its coat-tails. Cf. Idea 122.
24. Political Theory / D. Ideologies / 5. Democracy / d. Representative democracy
If you try to get elected, you should be permanently barred from seeking office [More,T]
     Full Idea: In Utopia, anyone who deliberately tries to get himself elected to a public office is permanently disqualified from holding one.
     From: Thomas More (Utopia [1516], Bk 2)
     A reaction: This echoes a thought found in Plato (Idea 2149). I've always liked this idea. Why can't we have elections were a group of the best people are invited to stand? Well, yes, it would lead to corruption... Still, the best should be pushed to the front.
25. Social Practice / E. Policies / 1. War / a. Just wars
Only Utopians fail to see glory in warfare [More,T]
     Full Idea: Utopians are practically the only people on earth who fail to see anything glorious in war.
     From: Thomas More (Utopia [1516], Bk 2)
     A reaction: A refreshing thought for such an early date. Whatever dubious behaviour is nowadays attributed to Thomas More, you have to admire someone who writes this during the reign of Henry VIII.
25. Social Practice / F. Life Issues / 2. Euthanasia
In Utopia, legal euthanasia is considered honourable [More,T]
     Full Idea: In Utopia, officially sanctioned euthanasia is regarded as an honourable death.
     From: Thomas More (Utopia [1516], Bk 2)
     A reaction: A bit surprising coming from a writer who is now a Catholic martyr and saint.
27. Natural Reality / B. Modern Physics / 2. Electrodynamics / b. Fields
Faraday's single field of variable forces introduces a criterion of Unity into what is ultimate [Faraday, by Harré/Madden]
     Full Idea: In Faraday lines of force picture the directional structure of powers,...so the fundamental entity is a single, unified field. ...A new criterion of the ultimate has stepped in: Unity. The universal field is still the final explanation, but not invariant.
     From: report of Michael Faraday (Experimental Researches in Electricity [1859]) by Harré,R./Madden,E.H. - Causal Powers 9.II.B
     A reaction: Almost Parmenides, except that the field is not invariant. But that was always the ancient objection to the One - that it offered no explanation of change.
28. God / C. Attitudes to God / 2. Pantheism
In Utopia, the Supreme Being is identical with Nature [More,T]
     Full Idea: Everyone in Utopia agrees that the Supreme Being (which they call Mythras) is identical with Nature.
     From: Thomas More (Utopia [1516], Bk 2)
     A reaction: This sounds remarkably like full-blown Spinozean pantheism, though it should be interpreted with caution. It certainly seems to show that pantheism was a possibility in the minds of late medieval religious thinkers.