SEPTEMBER
TH
25 2014
AT PHILOSOPHY CLUB
ANNOUNCEMENTS
 Dues are $20 (optional)
 Submit your T-shirt design on Facebook
 Winner of the club t-shirt design gets his/her T-shirt
free!
 First social will be in November
SCHOLARSHIPS
 PLATO High School Essay Contest
 http://plato-philosophy.org/plato-2013-14-high-schoolessay-contest/
 “The PLATO High School Essay Contest awards will be
given to the best philosophical essays written by high
school students, in response to the year’s contest essay
question. In addition to first, second and third place prizes,
there will be two honorable mention awards.”
 First place – $250
Second place – $150
Third place – $100
SCHOLARSHIPS
 International Philosophy Olympiad 2015
 http://www.philosophy-olympiad.org/
 http://precollegephilosophy.blogspot.com/
 https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BwOyR5OJBP3oUzU3M0Z
sTE11NWs/edit
 “To enter this competition, participants must submit an
essay of no more than 1200 words on a philosophy topic of
your choice in Spanish, French, or German.”
 If you are interested, you MUST talk to either to Tommy or
Mr. Kaul after club.
SCHOLARSHIPS
 Kids Philosophy Slam
 http://www.philosophyslam.org/rules_fin.html#high
 “High school students may write an essay of 500 words or
less, answering the philosophical question: “(Insert 2015
question here)” Students may write essays based on
research, historical context and philosophical references,
though personal experiences and observations may also
be included. Four finalists from this category will be
announced in April and "The Most Philosophical Student
in America" will then be determined by a national
philosophical panel of judges and announced in May of
2015.”
 “Over $3,000 in prizes”
SCHOLARSHIPS
 Society of Professional Journalists High School Essay
Contest
 http://www.spj.org/a-hs.asp
 Last Year’s Topic: “Why is it important that we have news media
that are independent of the government?”
 First-place: $1,000 Scholarship
Second-place: $500 Scholarship
Third-place: $300 Scholarship
SCHOLARSHIP
 Signet Essay Contest 2015
 http://www.penguin.com/services-academic/essayhome/
1.
Henry Higgins, the leading man in Pygmalion and My Fair Lady,
may be considered an anti-hero, a character who acts in ways
contrary to conventional literary representations of heroism. What
qualities mark him as an anti-hero?
2.
When Eliza threatens to leave Henry in Act 5 of Pygmalion,
Henry defends himself, saying, “I care for life, for humanity….What
more can you or anyone ask?” In light of Henry’s behavior
throughout the play, does this self-justification seem satisfactory?
What are the pitfalls of caring for life and humanity in general, as
Henry does, but neglecting to consider the needs of individuals?

Etc…
 Prize (5 winners): $1000 scholarship
$1,600 donation to our school library!
ANARCHISM
AND
COMMUNISM
HOLD YOUR HORSES OF OPINIONS
WHAT IS COMMUNISM?
A theory or system of social organization
based on the holding of all property in
common, actual ownership being ascribed
to the community as a whole or to the state.
OTHER TERMS
•
Socialism - A theory or system of social organization that advocates the vesting of
the ownership and control of the means of production and distribution, of capital,
land, etc., in the community as a whole.
•
Proletariat - The laboring class; especially : The class of industrial workers who
lack their own means of production and hence sell their labor to live.
•
Materialism - A theory of socioeconomic development according to which changes
in material conditions (technology and productive capacity) are the primary
influence on how society and the economy are organized.
•
Class - A social stratum whose members share certain economic, social, or cultural
characteristics.
•
Bourgeoisie/Capitalist - The class which controls the means of production,
therefore owning all of the wealth.
•
“Means of Production” - Capital assets used to produce wealth, such as machinery,
tools and factories
•
Vanguardism (Vanguard Party) - A strategy whereby the most class-conscious and
politically advanced sections of the proletariat or working class form organizations
in order to draw larger sections of the working class towards revolutionary politics
and serve as manifestations of proletarian political power against its class enemies.
KARL MARX
•
The father of Communism and Marxism
•
Class Struggle is the inherent root of
conflict in society.
•
Society is divided up into 2 classes:
Bourgeoisie and Proletariat
•
Materialism is the reasons behind wars in
history.
•
History is:
Primitive -> Slave -> Feudalism - >
Capitalism -> Socialism - > Communism
•
Workers will eventually overthrow the
ruling class and make a classless society.
SCHOOLS OF COMMUNISM
• Marxist-Leninism
• Stalinism
• Maoism
• Trotskyism
• Anarcho-Communism
• Christian Communism
MARXIST-LENINISM
•
Different from Classic Marxism
•
Promoted the use of a
vanguard party to lead the
workers revolution
•
State monopoly and political
repression was A-ok to achieve
the goals of a socialist
revolution
•
“Socialism in One Country”
•
Invented by Vladimir Lenin and
used to an extreme by Stalin
QUESTIONS RAISED BY
COMMUNISM
• Is Capitalism repressive, or does it just favors those who
win the competition?
• Who should control the “means of production”?
• Is history materialistic?
• Will the State dissolve away?
• Is Communist dictatorship more important than
democracy to achieve stateless communism?
NO ITS NOT THE PURGE…
ANARCHISM
CLEARING UP 4 BIG
MISCONCEPTIONS
1. Anarchy does not mean “chaos”
2. No state does not mean no government
or organization
3. Anarchists are inherently violent to
cause destruction
4. No destruction is needed to achieve
anarchy or communism.
WHAT IS ANARCHISM?
A political theory holding all forms of
governmental authority to be unnecessary
and undesirable* and advocating a society
based on voluntary cooperation and free
association of individuals and groups.
FAMOUS ANARCHIST
PHILOSOPHERS
-
Henry David Thoreau
Max Stirner
Mikhail Bakunin
Peter Kropotkin
Rudolf Rocker
Alexander Berkman
Murray Bookchin
Noam Chomsky
John Zerzan
SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT
• AnarchoCommunism
•
Anarcho-Syndicalism
• Anarcho-Capitalism
• Anarcho-Primitivism
• Anarcha-Feminism
COMPLETE OPPOSITES
ANARCHOCOMMUNISM
ANARCHOCAPITALISM
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
• Is the state legitimate?
• Are people inherently greedy or cooperative (within their
communities)?
• Does a free society have market economics or economic
control?
• Do individuals have a right over their own body?
• Are all social hierarchies legitimate , if so, to what extent?
• What is better: Direct Democracy or Representative
Democracy?