3 Assignments

2/23/2017

1

Critical Thinking and the

Good Life

Chapter 15

Learning Objectives

After reading this chapter, you will be able to:17.1 Discuss the meaning of the good life in relation to the diversity all around us.17.2 Analyze the need to use critical thinking in developing your own morals.

What is good, what is right?

What is the right w ay to live? What is the right thing to do? These crucial questions about an examined life themselves might seem to address separate issues, and deep divides even w ithin each question can confound the best of us. Yet, it is precisely by reaching for the best in us, by thinking critically about our possibilities, and by recognizing our differences that w e may approach answ ers to both questions. 2/23/2017

2

Pluralism and Diversity

The good life must include our recognition of this diversity. The good life must take into account our relations w ith those w ho disagree w ith our choices only because w e all seem to be in the same boat. The good life must begin w ith an open -mindedness and a capacity to engage different points of view . Pluralism is a reality, but pluralism cannot confuse the critical analysis of moral values

Why is there so much evil?

Epicurus w as a materialist philosopher w ho followed the lead of the early pre -Socratic atomists and believed that there w as no afterlife or indeed nothing otherw orldly about our existence. He w as particularly vocal about the problem of evil, a subject that challenges philosophers and theologians to this day. I f God is omnipotent, Epicurus, asked, w hy doesn’t he eliminate evil? I f God is unable to do that, then he is not omnipotent; if he is able to eliminate evil but doesn’t, then he must be evil himself.

Ataraxia

With a nod to Aristotle, Epicurus developed a moral philosophy that values happiness as our ultimate goal in life, a happiness achievable by not fearing death, by enjoying life’s small pleasures, and by finding guidance in the pursuit of w isdom. Cultivating friendships and living a good life consisted of achieving freedom from w orry, w hat he called ataraxia . That, according to Epicurus, w as the goal of any lifetime. 2/23/2017

3

Ethics, Reason and The Good Life

Ethics is a complex subject, difficult to isolate and tough to pin dow n. Theories conflict w ith each other as much as they can illuminate each other. The different moral theories discussed in this book can illuminate each other and help you find your ow n moral strategies and critically strengthen your ow n principles. Clarity is a desired goal that is not always reached, but action is a necessity.