Now That This Paper Has Evaluated Aquinas’S Summa Contra

Now that this paper has evaluated Aquinas’s Summa Contra Gentiles, it will move on to evaluate his next important work. In the years 1265–1274 Aquinas wrote what is considered one of his most prominent works, The Summa Theologiae. In Summa Theologiae (also known as Suma Theologica or simply Summa), Aquinas gave five proofs for the existence of God. This paper will first tell why these proofs are necessary then describe the proofs in themselves. These proofs are necessary because Aquinas believed that the existence of God is not self-evident. A self-evident proposition is one in which the predicate forms part of what is meant by the subject (PUT, 103). Meaning that â€Å"God exists† is not self-evident because we cannot grasp divine essence†¦show more content†¦Therefore anything that is in the process of changing cannot change itself so one thing is changed by another which in turn is changed by yet another (Clark, 122). Eventually, this stream of chang e has to stop somewhere or else there would be no first cause of change and consequently no subsequent causes. So when we come to the first cause that is not changed by anything else, Aquinas believed it is what we understand to be God (Clark, 122-123). The second proof is derived from the nature of causation. Aquinas thought that in the natural world we find causes in a natural order of succession. We never see something causing itself because if we did then it would be pre-existing and this would be impossible (Clark, 123). Every first cause impacts an intermediate (there can be many intermediates) which then impacts a last. You cannot take out any one cause without getting rid of its effects (Clark, 123). So you cannot take out the first cause without losing the intermediates and last causes that follow. Thus Aquinas thought that we must suppose a first cause, which is God (Clark, 123). The third proof addresses the issue of what is unnecessary and what is unnecessary. Our experience has shown us that in life there are things that are necessary and things that are unnecessary. Things that are

The Shakespeare Authorship Controversy

Could William Shakespeare, the country bumpkin from Stratford-upon-Avon, really be the man behind the World’s greatest ever literary texts? 400 years after his death, the Shakespeare authorship controversy continues. Many scholars simply can’t believe that William Shakespeare could have had the necessary education or life experiences to have written such complex texts–he was, after all, just the son of a glove maker in a rural town! Perhaps at the heart of the Shakespeare authorship controversy is a more philosophical debate: can you be born a genius? If you subscribe to the idea that genius is acquired, then believing that this little man from Stratford could acquire the necessary understanding of the classics, law, philosophy, and dramaturgy from a brief stint at grammar school is a stretch. Shakespeare Was Not Clever Enough! Before we begin this attack on Shakespeare, we should clearly state at the outset that there is no evidence to support these claims–in fact, the Shakespeare authorship conspiracy theories are largely based on â€Å"lack of evidence†. Shakespeare was not intelligent enough: The plays contain a deep knowledge of the classics, yet Shakespeare did not have a university education. Although he would have been introduced to the classics at grammar school, there is no official record of him attending.Where are his books?: If Shakespeare did amass knowledge independently, he would have had a large collection of books. Where are they? Where did they go? They certainly were not itemized in his will. Whilst the above may be a convincing argument, it is based on lack of evidence: records of pupils at Stratford-upon-Avon Grammar School have not survived or were not kept and the inventory part of Shakespeare’s will has been lost. Enter Edward de Vere It was not until 1920 that it was suggested that Edward de Vere was the real genius behind Shakespeare’s plays and poems. This art-loving Earl carried favor in the Royal Court, and so may have needed to use a pseudonym when writing these politically charged plays. It was also deemed socially unacceptable for a noble man to be involved with the lowly world of theater. The case for de Vere is largely circumstantial, but there are many parallels to be drawn: 14 of Shakespeare’s plays are set in Italy – the country De Vere traveled in 1575.The early poems are dedicated to Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton, who was considering marrying De Vere’s daughter.When De Vere stopped writing under his own name, Shakespeare’s texts soon appeared in print.Shakespeare was heavily influenced by Arthur Golding’s translation of Ovids Metamorphoses – and Golding lived with De Vere for a while. In The De Vere Code, Jonathan Bond reveals ciphers at work in the mysterious dedication that prefaces Shakespeare’s sonnets. In an interview with this website, Bond said, â€Å"I suggest that Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, wrote the sonnets – and the dedication at the beginning of the sonnets was a puzzle created for the recipient of the collection of poems. The ciphers fit the pattern of wordplay that was widely in evidence amongst writers during the Elizabethan era: they are simple in construction and all of immediate significance to the recipient †¦ My contention is that Edward de Vere was simply entertaining the recipient while avoiding explicitly naming himself in order to prevent a possible embarrassment over the intensely personal nature of the poems.† Marlowe and Bacon Edward de Vere is perhaps the most well-known, but not the only candidate in the Shakespeare authorship controversy. Two of the other leading candidates are Christopher Marlowe and Francis Bacon – both have strong, dedicated followers. Christopher Marlowe: When Shakespeare started writing his plays, Marlowe was killed in a brawl in a tavern. Up until that point, Marlowe was regarded as England’s best playwright. The theory is that Marlowe was a spy for the government, and his death was choreographed for political reasons. Marlowe would then have required a pseudonym to continue writing and developing his craft.Sir Francis Bacon: Cryptic ciphers were hugely popular at this time and supporters of Bacon have found many ciphers in Shakespeare’s texts concealing the identity of Bacon as the true author of Shakespeare’s plays and poems.

Karl Marx’s Views on Family Ethics Essay - 1177 Words

Karl Marx’s Views on Family Ethics Karl Marx and Frederick Engels Karl Marx devoted much of his time to the study of morality, better known as ethics. Karl Marx was a firm believer in Communism and he authored the Communist Manifesto, along with Frederick Engels. Family ethics is an issue dealt with by Karl Marx in his teachings and writings. According to Marx and his co-author, Engels, morality is the slave of interest. Moral codes and ethics are believed to be dependent on the person and relative to the social setting.[1] Ethics are discussed on a philosophical level and also in everyday controversial topic discussions or debates. Marx was a huge supporter of freedom and believed that†¦show more content†¦Another noteworthy fact is that in order to express a group behavior result, the information would have to remain inseparable from his personal being.[4] A necessity to any group collaboration is interaction and therefore it was also key to the ethics displayed by the people of his time. Marx completed a research project in which he studied the interaction and â€Å"social instincts† between animals and humans. He found that the evolution process was similar and several actions are actually made subconsciously.[5] Marx stresses the fact that interaction occurs between all living organisms and this interaction is vital for the survival and future generations. The distinction between human beings and animals is finally made in saying that humans are given the potential of developing their individual identity regardless of societal views on certain issues. Interaction is b elieved by some to be the most crucial solution available to a problem. Marx has opinions and views on so many various topics, but his ideals of Communism are quite clear and do not stray often from his main point. His theory however only addresses landowners and steers clear of other commoners. He does not deal with the minorities of women,Show MoreRelatedMarx, Emile Durkheim, And Max Weber : The Unjust Theory Of The New World1470 Words   |  6 Pages Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim, and Max Weber were all born from a middle-class background in Europe. First Karl Marx was born in (1818-1883), Durkheim (1858-1917), and Max Weber (1864-1920) was close to Durkheim in age, but forty years later after Marx. Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim, and Max Weber are the most essential theorist of the nineteenth century whose theories are well known today. Their thinking was based on the rising of the preindustrial, and industrial revolution society. 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Deviance Essay Example For Students

Deviance Essay Deviance is an individuals or groups behavior, ideas, or attributes that some people in society find offensive, wrong, immoral, sinful, evil, strange, or disgusting. This definition consists of three parts. Expectation: Some behavioral expectation must exist. Violation: There must be a real or implied violation of the expectationReaction: An individual, group, or society must react to the devianceThe strain theory by Robert Merton believes that American society pushes individuals toward deviance by overemphasizing the importance of monetary success, while failing to emphasize the legitimate means to achieve that success. Cultural Transmission Theory by Edwin Sutherland states that deviants learn patterns of behavior form the people with whom they associate on a regular basis. Not only do they teach us the techniques for committing deviant acts, but also a set of beliefs and attitudes that justify or rationalize the behaviorThe Anomie Theory was coined by Emile Durkheim and it refers to the condition of normlessness, in which values and norms have little impact and the culture no longer provides adequate guidlines for behavior. Deviance is also thought of as an individual choice because it appears that the consequences of doing it are more desirable than the consequences of doing something else. The choice is as simple as weighing the pros and cons. Biological theories are a bit weak due to all the exceptions to the rule. William Sheldon proposed that deviance is in the body type. Other theorists say its in the extra Y chromosonePsychologists have attributed antisocial behavior to the conscious mind being too weak to overcome the strength of the id. Labeling theorists attempt to explain how cultural and individual perceptions create and sustain deviant idetities. A deviant is not different from you or I, they are just labeled deviant successfully. Has led sociologists to distinguish between primary and secondary deviance. Primary deviance is the original behavior that leads to the application of the label to an individual. Secondary deviance is the behavior that people develop as a result of having been labeledFunctions of DevianceDeviance actually helps teach societys rules providing illustrations of violation. It is functional in that it 1) causes the groups members to close ranks 2) promotes group solidarity 3) help clarify what society really believes in 4)teaches normal behavior by showing us what is abnormal. Durkheim stated that deviance is an intergral part of all healthy societies.There seems to be a disjunction between means and ends, such as the emphasis on wealth and success without many legitimate means to achieve them. Those individuals without such opportunities attempt to bridge this gap in a number of ways:The conformist seeks to continue the acceptance of the goals and means offered for their attainment. The innovator may continue to accept the goals while seeking new, and in many cases, illegitimate revenues for the attainment of these goals. The ritualist may make the means into an end by rejecting the culturally prescribed goals as being out of his reach. The retreat rejects both the means and ends offered by society by dropping into drug use, menatl illness, alcoholism, homelessness. The rebellious reject both the means and ends while seeking to replace both with alternatives, thereby changing the way society as a whole is structured.