The concepts of human freedom and radical questioning in the works of Plato, René Descartes, and Albert Camus

Ensayo , 2015 , 8 Páginas , Calificación: 1,3

Filosofía - Ensayos generales, épocas

The human freedom and the human capability to reflect about the circumstances of our existence are phenomenons that have puzzled philosophers, anthropologists and other scientists alike, since we can think. Over the course of history, especially the art of philosophy has seen many great thinkers reflecting on the nature of human freedom: Three of them – Plato, René Descartes, and Albert Camus – are the material on which this paper will retrace the development of the interpretation of human freedom.

In doing so, it is very important to, first of all, define how Plato, Descartes, and Camus saw human freedom. After that, we can have a look at the key differences that are – or maybe are not – findable when comparing Plato's “Republic” and Descartes’ “Meditations on First Philosophy”, as well as when comparing Descartes' work and Camus' “The Myth of Sisyphus”.

The goal of this analysis is to examine how the conception of human freedom changed from Plato over Descartes to Camus. This is crucial to completing the third and last part of this paper. That will be determining which thinker was most thoroughly committed to the radical questioning of things, that we nowadays hold to be the core value of philosophy. However, the goal of this paper is not to determine, who was the “best” philosopher, but rather to show how different their conceptions of human freedom and the human capacity to ask questions truly were.

Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)

• Introduction to Western Philosophy
• Plato's understanding of human freedom: political freedom as the enemy of a good individual and a good society
• René Descartes' understanding of human freedom: free will as a precondition to philosophical thinking
• Albert Camus' understanding of human freedom: freedom as the meed for a thorough philosophical inquiry
• Differences and similarities in the three thinkers' views of human freedom:
• Plato and René Descartes
• René Descartes and Albert Camus

Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)

This paper examines the development of the interpretation of human freedom in the works of Plato, René Descartes, and Albert Camus. It analyzes how their conceptions of human freedom and the human capacity to ask questions differed. The paper aims to determine which thinker was most thoroughly committed to the radical questioning of things, a core value of philosophy.

• Human freedom and its interpretation by different philosophers
• The role of free will in philosophical thinking
• The connection between freedom and radical questioning
• The concepts of "the good" and the "absurd"
• The influence of philosophical ideas on societal structures

Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)

• Introduction to Western Philosophy: This section introduces the concept of human freedom and its significance in philosophical thought, outlining the paper's focus on Plato, Descartes, and Camus.
• Plato's understanding of human freedom: political freedom as the enemy of a good individual and a good society: This section explores Plato's view of human freedom, highlighting his belief that true freedom lies in knowing and pursuing "the good." Plato argues that political freedom can lead to chaos and that only philosophers who understand the good can guide society towards it.
• René Descartes' understanding of human freedom: free will as a precondition to philosophical thinking: Descartes, unlike Plato, sees free will as the foundation for philosophical inquiry. He argues that the human mind is capable of independent thought and action, making it equal to God in its free will. This section examines Descartes' concept of the "thinking substance" and his exploration of the existence of God and the external world.
• Albert Camus' understanding of human freedom: freedom as the meed for a thorough philosophical inquiry: This section delves into Camus' understanding of freedom, particularly his concept of "Absurd freedom." Camus argues that true freedom lies in accepting the absurdity of life and living without seeking meaning. He emphasizes the importance of revolt and individual responsibility in overcoming the Absurd.
• Differences and similarities in the three thinkers' views of human freedom: This section compares and contrasts the views of Plato, Descartes, and Camus on human freedom. It highlights their differing perspectives on free will, the role of philosophy in society, and the nature of true freedom.

Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)

The central keywords of this paper are human freedom, free will, radical questioning, "the good," the "absurd," Plato, Descartes, Camus, philosophical inquiry, political freedom, societal structures, and individual responsibility.

• Curso: Introduction to western Philosophy
• Calificación: 1,3
• Autor: Ulrich Roschitsch (Autor)
• Año de publicación: 2015
• Páginas: 8
• No. de catálogo: V334506
• ISBN (Ebook): 9783668240285
• ISBN (Libro): 9783668240292
• Idioma: Inglés
• Etiqueta: plato, rené, descartes, albert, camus