Great Philosophers
Final Exam Study Sheet
Exam: December 11 (Thursday), 12:30-2:30pm
Short Answer Section. The following list of concepts and terms is to assist you in
preparing for the short answer section of the final. There will be 12 short answer
questions on the final and you are to answer 10 (4 points each).
skepticism
empiricism
degrees of belief
ideas and impressions
association of ideas
liberty and necessity
idea of necessity
missing shade of blue
superstition
habit and custom
Is metaphysics possible
Analytic and synthetic
Transcendental concepts/categories
Saussure
space and time
synthetic a priori judgments
good with/without qualifications
good will
categorical imperative
Why something rather nothing?
ordinary/extra-ordinary
philosophy vs. science
Being/being (ontological difference)
Tractatus vs. Philosophical Investigations
meaning as use
language games
forms of life
differance
Essay question. Two of the following three essay topics will be on the final. You will be
required to write an essay on one of the two (60 points).
1. Hume argues that for philosophy to become a source of knowledge we need first
to determine how the mind itself works. Through this study Hume comes to
certain conclusions about the formation of our beliefs (e.g., in causal necessity),
human nature, and superstition, among other things. By discussing Hume’s
analysis of the theory of ideas as he develops it, discuss Hume’s skepticism and
his ultimate criterion for differentiating between reasonable and unreasonable
beliefs in light of this skepticism. At some point in this essay, discuss Hume’s
analysis of superstition.
2. Kant argues that it was as a result of reading Hume that he was awakened from
his “dogmatic slumber.” What was this slumber and what was it about Hume’s
philosophy that Kant found to be so distressing? How did this then become, for
Kant, the question of whether or not metaphysics is possible? In the remainder of
this essay, compare and contrast both Hume’s and Kant’s answers to the question
of whether or not, and why or why, metaphysics is possible. Be sure to be
specific, refer in detail to Hume and Kant, and use examples to clarify your
points.
3. Heidegger, Wittgenstein, and Derrida are each noted for the importance they
place on language and the relationship between language and philosophy. In the
case of Heidegger, for instance, poetry gets us closer to Being; Wittgenstein’s
views shifted from what he wrote in the Tractatus to the conclusions he reached
in the Philosophical Investigations; and Derrida follows Ferdinand de Saussure in
setting forth a critique of the traditional view of language and meaning. Discuss in
detail the relationship between language and philosophy as found in each of these
philosophers.