Key Terms and Distinctions
Science is knowledge according to the causes. This implies that just knowledge about the facts cannot be considered as science. It is important to understand them, to know why something is true and to interpret this knowledge. Science requires development of the mind, it is caused by strengthening the intellect and working on it.
Practical science is compared to the theoretical science. The latter one is based on searching for the truth for the sake of itself. Theoretical science is aimed to explain the fact or event not its causes. On the contrary, practical science is designed to provide a person with knowledge that can be actively used. Practical science has an outside aim.
The relation of two should be determined by the issue of love. Love means the spiritual and non-practical feeling, which contradicts with violence and egoism. Friendship of two persons also includes love because it has spiritual part behind this relation.
Two meanings of happiness. Happiness, according to utilitarianism, means pleasure, and pleasure is defined by its usefulness. The more something is useful, the more happiness in can bring. On the other hand, happiness should include an unpractical, spiritual part.
Two meanings of reason are specified according to narrowness of view. In its common meaning “reason” means the ability to calculate, to carry out quantitative calculations. In its broader ancient sense, reason is the ability to distinguish between good and evil, beautiful and ugly, and understand the importance of this reason.
Two “jobs” and the relations. There are actually two aspects of work because they are often performed simultaneously. One of the faces is “toil”, and the second is a human development or what makes you a person. The second aspect has a broader meaning because it includes a personal progress and growth of the economics, intellect and many other changes. The relation between a worker and his or her work is the relation of cause to effect. The worker is the cause of his or her work as well. In this case cause always resembles the effect. Adding reasoning that human includes its dignity in the work, we understand that the worker is humanizing the work.
Two ways to “journey” were distinguished by the ancient Greeks. The first one is vagus, a travelling without any particular destination. Such journeys have no sense. On the other hand, peregrinus has its aim, the sense of the journey is in the destination to be achieved.
End of the final purpose of the human life must have spiritual meaning because humans are spiritual by their nature. It is the thing that distinguishes us from animals. The end of thing follows to its nature. This means that the end of human life is not aimed in burial.
Mystery is something that cannot be understood and known at the moment. Mystery is unintelligible for us. However, it does not mean that this thing is a mystery for another person.
Two meanings of “true”. True is something that is real. It is certain. In its broader meaning true means good in its relation to evil.
There are at least two ways according to which real causes knowledge. The first is that the real is the efficient cause of knowledge. It has influence on a person and shapes his or her thoughts. The real is resistant. Secondly, the real is the last and final cause of knowledge. The aim of being able to know is to discover the reality. People ask questions because it is important for them to know, they want to understand the truth and to contact the reality.
The inevitability of and need for philosophy can be proved by the fact that everyone thinks critically about what is true and what the good and the bad deeds. Every time a person thinking about his or actions and its causes, he or she is philosophizing. The philosophy cannot be escaped. The only thing that can be chosen is to live life in a good or in a bad way.
Three kinds of persuasion/argument were first identified by Aristotle. Rhetorical argument appeals to the senses, to emotions rather than to intellect. Necessary argument is the most forcible and the one required by philosophy. It is the strictest kind of argument. The conclusion of the argument is drawn by the logically reasons. The dialectical argument can seems to be strictly rational but the conclusions are only probable.
“Universal spiritual heritage of mankind” is included into the collective unconsciousness because it contains the whole physic reality shared by all humans.
Intelligibility per se, and quaod nos. These two kinds of intelligibility are often confused. Therefore, it is very important to distinguish them. If something seems to be unintelligible to us, it does not mean that it is so. It depends on our previous experience and accumulated knowledge. The issue can be unintelligible for us, because we have not understood it yet. However, it is intelligible per se.
“Inward” and “outward” movement. When action takes place in one person and has impact in another one, it is called the “outward movement”. The moral deeds can be described as both outward and inward movement, because they have impact on all, who is involved.
The activity of gaining virtue can be transitive and immanent. Transitive activity is the one, which begins in one object and is transferred to another one. Immanent activity has an effect from the very beginning. The immanent activity means that effect is the cause. The learning is immanent, it is movement towards the inner world of a person.
Virtue is a well-balanced and reliable condition of excellence. The virtue can be achieved when a person is working continuously and deliberately to increase the natural ability in a way, to which it has tendency. Virtue is strength. The basic moral virtues include justice, temperance, courage and prudence. All other virtues are related to the abovementioned ones. The virtue of intellect is knowledge combined with understanding of causes.
Existentially central vs. peripheral questions and answers. The answers to the existentially central questions are extremely important. Those are the questions that are widely discussed by humans. The way of understanding the existentially central questions matters for our understanding of us and our being and lives. The answers to the peripheral are not that important. A person may feel indifferent towards the peripheral questions.
Two senses of “certitude” are defined by their objectivity or subjectivity. The objective certainty reflects the reality. On the other hand, the subjective certainty relates to the psychological condition. In this case it has impact on a person and can change his or her vision of reality.
