106 ideas
| 13773 | For the truth you need Prodicus's fifty-drachma course, not his one-drachma course [Socrates] |
| 7421 | A philosopher is one who cares about what other people care about [Socrates, by Foucault] |
| 1649 | Socrates opened philosophy to all, but Plato confined moral enquiry to a tiny elite [Vlastos on Socrates] |
| 5842 | Philosophical discussion involves dividing subject-matter into categories [Socrates, by Xenophon] |
| 648 | Socrates began the quest for something universal with his definitions, but he didn't make them separate [Socrates, by Aristotle] |
| 14456 | 'Socrates is human' expresses predication, and 'Socrates is a man' expresses identity [Russell] |
| 164 | It is legitimate to play the devil's advocate [Socrates] |
| 1647 | In Socratic dialogue you must say what you believe, so unasserted premises are not debated [Vlastos on Socrates] |
| 115 | Socrates was pleased if his mistakes were proved wrong [Socrates] |
| 22099 | The method of Socrates shows the student is discovering the truth within himself [Socrates, by Carlisle] |
| 5844 | Socrates always proceeded in argument by general agreement at each stage [Socrates, by Xenophon] |
| 14426 | A definition by 'extension' enumerates items, and one by 'intension' gives a defining property [Russell] |
| 11389 | Socrates sought essences, which are the basis of formal logic [Socrates, by Aristotle] |
| 8468 | The sentence 'procrastination drinks quadruplicity' is meaningless, rather than false [Russell, by Orenstein] |
| 14454 | An argument 'satisfies' a function φx if φa is true [Russell] |
| 639 | Socrates developed definitions as the basis of syllogisms, and also inductive arguments [Socrates, by Aristotle] |
| 14453 | The Darapti syllogism is fallacious: All M is S, all M is P, so some S is P' - but if there is no M? [Russell] |
| 14427 | We can enumerate finite classes, but an intensional definition is needed for infinite classes [Russell] |
| 14428 | Members define a unique class, whereas defining characteristics are numerous [Russell] |
| 14447 | Infinity says 'for any inductive cardinal, there is a class having that many terms' [Russell] |
| 14440 | We may assume that there are infinite collections, as there is no logical reason against them [Russell] |
| 14443 | The British parliament has one representative selected from each constituency [Russell] |
| 14445 | Choice shows that if any two cardinals are not equal, one must be the greater [Russell] |
| 14444 | Choice is equivalent to the proposition that every class is well-ordered [Russell] |
| 14446 | We can pick all the right or left boots, but socks need Choice to insure the representative class [Russell] |
| 14459 | Reducibility: a family of functions is equivalent to a single type of function [Russell] |
| 14461 | Propositions about classes can be reduced to propositions about their defining functions [Russell] |
| 8469 | Russell's proposal was that only meaningful predicates have sets as their extensions [Russell, by Orenstein] |
| 8745 | Classes are logical fictions, and are not part of the ultimate furniture of the world [Russell] |
| 14452 | All the propositions of logic are completely general [Russell] |
| 14462 | In modern times, logic has become mathematical, and mathematics has become logical [Russell] |
| 10057 | Logic can only assert hypothetical existence [Russell] |
| 12444 | Logic is concerned with the real world just as truly as zoology [Russell] |
| 14464 | Logic can be known a priori, without study of the actual world [Russell] |
| 14458 | Asking 'Did Homer exist?' is employing an abbreviated description [Russell] |
| 10450 | Russell admitted that even names could also be used as descriptions [Russell, by Bach] |
| 14457 | Names are really descriptions, except for a few words like 'this' and 'that' [Russell] |
| 7311 | The only genuine proper names are 'this' and 'that' [Russell] |
| 14455 | 'I met a unicorn' is meaningful, and so is 'unicorn', but 'a unicorn' is not [Russell] |
| 14442 | If straight lines were like ratios they might intersect at a 'gap', and have no point in common [Russell] |
| 14438 | New numbers solve problems: negatives for subtraction, fractions for division, complex for equations [Russell] |
| 13510 | Could a number just be something which occurs in a progression? [Russell, by Hart,WD] |
| 14436 | A series can be 'Cut' in two, where the lower class has no maximum, the upper no minimum [Russell] |
| 14439 | A complex number is simply an ordered couple of real numbers [Russell] |
| 14421 | Discovering that 1 is a number was difficult [Russell] |
| 14424 | Numbers are needed for counting, so they need a meaning, and not just formal properties [Russell] |
| 14441 | The formal laws of arithmetic are the Commutative, the Associative and the Distributive [Russell] |
| 14420 | Infinity and continuity used to be philosophy, but are now mathematics [Russell] |
| 14431 | The definition of order needs a transitive relation, to leap over infinite intermediate terms [Russell] |
| 14422 | Any founded, non-repeating series all reachable in steps will satisfy Peano's axioms [Russell] |
| 14423 | '0', 'number' and 'successor' cannot be defined by Peano's axioms [Russell] |
| 14425 | A number is something which characterises collections of the same size [Russell] |
| 14434 | What matters is the logical interrelation of mathematical terms, not their intrinsic nature [Russell] |
| 14465 | Maybe numbers are adjectives, since 'ten men' grammatically resembles 'white men' [Russell] |
| 13414 | For Russell, numbers are sets of equivalent sets [Russell, by Benacerraf] |
| 14449 | There is always something psychological about inference [Russell] |
| 14463 | Existence can only be asserted of something described, not of something named [Russell] |
| 14429 | Classes are logical fictions, made from defining characteristics [Russell] |
| 14430 | If a relation is symmetrical and transitive, it has to be reflexive [Russell] |
| 14432 | 'Asymmetry' is incompatible with its converse; a is husband of b, so b can't be husband of a [Russell] |
| 1652 | Socrates did not consider universals or definitions as having separate existence, but Plato made Forms of them [Socrates, by Aristotle] |
| 14435 | The essence of individuality is beyond description, and hence irrelevant to science [Russell] |
| 12197 | Inferring q from p only needs p to be true, and 'not-p or q' to be true [Russell] |
| 14450 | All forms of implication are expressible as truth-functions [Russell] |
| 14460 | If something is true in all possible worlds then it is logically necessary [Russell] |
| 14433 | Mathematically expressed propositions are true of the world, but how to interpret them? [Russell] |
| 1650 | For Socrates our soul, though hard to define, is our self [Vlastos on Socrates] |
| 19451 | When absorbed in deep reflection, is your reason in control, or is it you? [Feuerbach] |
| 23252 | Socrates first proposed that we are run by mind or reason [Socrates, by Frede,M] |
| 14451 | Propositions are mainly verbal expressions of true or false, and perhaps also symbolic thoughts [Russell] |
| 199 | The common belief is that people can know the best without acting on it [Socrates] |
| 195 | No one willingly commits an evil or base act [Socrates] |
| 1653 | Socrates did not accept the tripartite soul (which permits akrasia) [Vlastos on Socrates] |
| 5843 | People do what they think they should do, and only ever do what they think they should do [Socrates, by Xenophon] |
| 5253 | Socrates was shocked by the idea of akrasia, but observation shows that it happens [Aristotle on Socrates] |
| 5839 | For Socrates, wisdom and prudence were the same thing [Socrates, by Xenophon] |
| 5867 | For Socrates, virtues are forms of knowledge, so knowing justice produces justice [Socrates, by Aristotle] |
| 5069 | Socrates was the first to base ethics upon reason, and use reason to explain it [Taylor,R on Socrates] |
| 5836 | All human virtues are increased by study and practice [Socrates, by Xenophon] |
| 5840 | The wise perform good actions, and people fail to be good without wisdom [Socrates, by Xenophon] |
| 185 | Socrates despised good looks [Socrates, by Plato] |
| 5070 | Socrates conservatively assumed that Athenian conventions were natural and true [Taylor,R on Socrates] |
| 5838 | A well-made dung basket is fine, and a badly-made gold shield is base, because of function [Socrates, by Xenophon] |
| 5837 | Things are both good and fine by the same standard [Socrates, by Xenophon] |
| 19450 | Reason, love and will are the highest perfections and essence of man - the purpose of his life [Feuerbach] |
| 3017 | The only good is knowledge, and the only evil is ignorance [Socrates, by Diog. Laertius] |
| 1646 | Socrates was the first to put 'eudaimonia' at the centre of ethics [Socrates, by Vlastos] |
| 1663 | By 'areté' Socrates means just what we mean by moral virtue [Vlastos on Socrates] |
| 4323 | Socrates is torn between intellectual virtue, which is united and teachable, and natural virtue, which isn't [PG on Socrates] |
| 8003 | Socrates agrees that virtue is teachable, but then denies that there are teachers [Socrates, by MacIntyre] |
| 126 | We should ask what sort of people we want to be [Socrates] |
| 4111 | Socrates believed that basically there is only one virtue, the power of right judgement [Socrates, by Williams,B] |
| 7808 | Socrates made the civic values of justice and friendship paramount [Socrates, by Grayling] |
| 23907 | Courage is scientific knowledge [Socrates, by Aristotle] |
| 7585 | Socrates emphasises that the knower is an existing individual, with existence his main task [Socrates, by Kierkegaard] |
| 5841 | Obedience to the law gives the best life, and success in war [Socrates, by Xenophon] |
| 1661 | Socrates was the first to grasp that a cruelty is not justified by another cruelty [Vlastos on Socrates] |
| 5846 | A lover using force is a villain, but a seducer is much worse, because he corrupts character [Socrates, by Xenophon] |
| 19448 | Consciousness is said to distinguish man from animals - consciousness of his own species [Feuerbach] |
| 19454 | A God needs justice, kindness and wisdom, but those concepts don't depend on the concept of God [Feuerbach] |
| 1657 | Socrates holds that right reason entails virtue, and this must also apply to the gods [Vlastos on Socrates] |
| 1662 | A new concept of God as unswerving goodness emerges from Socrates' commitment to virtue [Vlastos on Socrates] |
| 19452 | The nature of God is an expression of human nature [Feuerbach] |
| 19453 | If love, goodness and personality are human, the God who is their source is anthropomorphic [Feuerbach] |
| 19449 | Religion is the consciousness of the infinite [Feuerbach] |
| 19455 | Today's atheism will tomorrow become a religion [Feuerbach] |