Due date and length of essay: Your essay should be 1250 - 1500 words.
Essay topic options and guidelines: You have a choice of topics - one geared toward ancient philosophy (Plato), and the other two about issues in modern and contemporary philosophy. You must submit the essay electronically, here on Blackboard. Here are the topic options (choose one of them, and not two or three of them!):
Option 1: At the beginning of the course, we explored the basic elements of Plato's philosophy, through his theory of morality and the state. In many ways, Plato's philosophy is based upon his theory of the 'objects of knowledge.' For example, the keyboard I am writing at is clearly an 'object.' In a certain sense; according to Plato, there are also 'objects of knowledge.'
Write an essay which discusses and clarifies how Plato sees the relation between objects - like keyboards, cars, etc. - and 'objects of knowledge.' Make sure your essay includes content on why this relation is important to Plato in the first place. Also, organize your essay so that it incorporates one of the relevant Platonic arguments (epistemological, metaphysical, or semantic) that the text treats. The best essays usually incorporate just one of these arguments rather than trying to handle more than one of them; for the purposes of this essay, a solid interpretation of one of these arguments is quite sufficient.
Finally, conclude your essay by discussing the extent to which you agree or disagree with Plato on the objects/objects of knowledge issue (and explain why!)
Option 2: Re-read p. 455- 458 in our textbook (p. 410 - 414 in the 7th edition). These pages deal with Hume's position on the issue of God. In your own words, discuss the argument from design, and then summarize any two of Hume’s critiques against this argument. In the concluding part of your essay, discuss whether you accept the argument from design, or Hume’s critiques (there is room for a qualified position here). As you write your essay, note that a good essay usually illustrates some insight into how Hume’s position sees the relationships among science, religion, and philosophy. You might want to think about this especially in the concluding part of your essay. Be sure to give reasons for your position!
Option 3: Go to the Chronicle of Higher Education link at http://chronicle.com/article/Is-Free-Will-an-Illusion-/131159/?sid=cr&utm_source=cr&utm_medium=en
You will find six short commentaries on the topic of free will (by Coyne, Mele, Gazzaniga, Bok, Jones, and Bloom). Feel free to read all six of these commentaries, but choose one to write about. For the commentary you choose to write about, your essay must address each of the following:
You may have to sign up for a free account to the Chronicle of Higher Education to see the commentaries, but the process is relatively easy for this. If that does not work for finding all of the commentaries (you do not have to pay for a subscription!), just go to Weeks 14-15 of the 'PowerPoints and Scanned Textbook Readings' area of our Blackboard platform, and you will find all of these commentaries collected in a single Word document.
(1) What is the main point the author is trying to make about free will, and how does the author argue for this point?
(2) Describe the main problem(s) with the author’s point – in other words, what, in your opinion, is the main weakness (or main weaknesses) of the author’s position on free will? Be sure to explain!
(3) Is the author a compatibilist or not? Again, be sure to explain!
