Ch01
Student: ___________________________________________________________________________
1. According to Søren Kierkegaard, philosophy is the search for self-understanding.
True False
2. According to your text, fundamental beliefs are those convictions that cannot be rationally justified.
True False
3. Epistemology concerns fundamental questions about the nature of reality.
True False
4. The question "Are mental events really brain events?" is a metaphysical question.
True False
5. Philosophy of religion is concerned with the religious beliefs of various cultures and how they serve
social needs.
True False
6. Logic is the study of the psychological causes of our beliefs.
True False
7. The Apology by Plato is an account of Socrates' trial.
True False
8. Socrates was punished for his ideas by being forced to leave Athens and go into exile.
True False
9. Plato referred to Socrates' method as "dialectic."
True False
10. In his discussion with Socrates, Thrasymachus claims that justice is the interest of the stronger.
True False
11. The Sophists were disciples of Socrates who were dedicated to spreading his teachings.
True False
12. Socrates argued against the existence of the soul.
True False
13. In Plato's Allegory of the Cave, the prisoners were glad when their friend told them about the world
outside the cave.
True False
14. Plato believed that there were levels of reality that transcended the world of sense experience.
True False
15. According to Plato, there is no truth about justice, for everyone has a different opinion about it.
True False
16. Skepticism is the belief that we cannot have knowledge.
True False
17. A philosophy can fail the criteria of rational coherence without being contradictory.
True False
18. One of the six criteria listed in the text for evaluating a philosophy is emotional satisfaction.
True False
,19. An inference to the best explanation attempts to directly prove the truth of a theory.
True False
20. "All opinions are false" is an example of a self-referential inconsistency.
True False
21. In philosophy, an argument is defined as "a contentious dispute."
True False
22. It is possible for a valid argument to have false premises and a false conclusion.
True False
23. It is possible for an invalid argument to have true premises and a true conclusion.
True False
24. If an argument is strong, the premises make the conclusion highly probable.
True False
25. The term "philosophy" literally means
A. the search for knowledge.
B. the love of wisdom.
C. deep questions.
D. the search for meaning.
26. Socrates was brought to trial on the charges of
A. calling for a revolution and refusing to pay taxes.
B. being a pacifist and refusing to go to war.
C. being an atheist and an ethical relativist.
D. corrupting the youth and teaching about false gods.
27. Socrates referred to himself as
A. a mirror that reflects the truths in nature.
B. the housekeeper of the mind.
C. the midwife of ideas.
D. an artist that creates pictures with ideas.
28. Socrates believed he was wiser than anyone else in Athens because he
A. had found the ultimate truth, using the Socratic method.
B. knew he was ignorant.
C. did not believe in any god.
D. realized that all opinions are equally true.
29. In his trial, Socrates referred to himself as
A. a rudder that keeps the people of Athens on course.
B. a gadfly that continually harasses people to wake them from their apathy.
C. a compass that shows people the direction they should take.
D. a coach that trains people on how to use their intellectual muscles.
30. The Socratic method consisted of
A. drawing philosophical conclusions from scientific observations.
B. lecturing to people on the basic principles for successful living.
C. surveying public opinion and embracing the collective wisdom of the majority.
D. asking questions of people and then questioning their answers.
31. Socrates undermines Thrasymachus's definition of justice by
A. showing that it leads to a contradiction.
B. arguing that most people would be unlikely to accept it.
C. demonstrating that it would violate the laws of Athens.
D. arguing that adopting it would lead to social instability.
,32. A central teaching of the Sophists was
A. the importance of caring for one's own soul.
B. it is better to be morally good than successful by society's standards.
C. skepticism concerning our ability to know what is true or good.
D. the impossibility of finding happiness.
33. Socrates maintained that a good person cannot be harmed by others because
A. the gods will protect the good person.
B. others will respect and honor a person who is truly good.
C. society will come to the defense of someone who is good.
D. evil people can harm the body, but not a person's true self.
34. In Plato's Allegory of the Cave, the shadows represented
A. our doubts and lack of confidence in our own worth.
B. the fact that truth is elusive and cannot be found.
C. the gods.
D. imperfect and confused representations of a higher reality.
35. Three of the six criteria the book discussed for evaluating philosophical claims are
A. cultural consensus, convincingness, clarity.
B. clarity, consistency, comprehensiveness.
C. centrality, comprehensiveness, cultural consensus.
D. compatibility, conviction, centrality.
36. The criterion of "compatibility" evaluates a philosophy in terms of its compatibility with
A. the answers of other philosophers.
B. well-established facts and theories.
C. a vision of life that is emotionally satisfying.
D. the laws of logic.
37. In discussing "inference to the best explanation," the text pointed out that
A. philosophy makes use of this method, but science does not.
B. science makes use of this method, but philosophy does not.
C. both science and philosophy make use of this method.
D. religion makes use of this method, but science and philosophy do not.
38. Expressing two assertions that could not both be true under any possible circumstances is known as
A. a logical inconsistency.
B. a self-referential inconsistency.
C. the false dichotomy fallacy.
D. the fallacy of affirming the consequent.
39. Which of the following is a characteristic of a valid argument?
A. All the premises must be true.
B. The conclusion must be true.
C. If the premises are true, the conclusion must be true.
D. all of the above
40. A valid argument with all true premises is called
A. a strong argument.
B. a cogent argument.
C. an inductive argument.
D. a sound argument.
41. In a sound argument, the conclusion is
A. necessarily true.
B. probably true.
C. valid.
D. strong.
, 42. In a cogent argument, the premises are ________ and the conclusion is ________.
A. true/necessarily true
B. true/probably true
C. valid/valid
D. valid/sound
43. Briefly explain the points the text made under the following headings: philosophy and aerobics,
philosophy and love, philosophy and peanut butter, philosophy and colds.
44. Suppose a friend asked, "Why are you studying philosophy? It is an abstract, totally impractical, and
useless subject." What sort of reply could be made in defense of philosophy?
45. Explain the Socratic method. What are the various stages of this method? Next, discuss Socrates'
conversation with Thrasymachus. What was the issue they were debating? How did Socrates get
Thrasymachus to realize that there were problems with his initial position? How did this conversation
illustrate Socrates' method?
46. Why did Socrates call himself the "midwife of ideas"? Why did he refer to himself as a "gadfly"? What
does each figure of speech tell us about how he viewed philosophy and his mission?
47. Who were the Sophists? What was their philosophy? Why did Socrates disagree with them?
Student: ___________________________________________________________________________
1. According to Søren Kierkegaard, philosophy is the search for self-understanding.
True False
2. According to your text, fundamental beliefs are those convictions that cannot be rationally justified.
True False
3. Epistemology concerns fundamental questions about the nature of reality.
True False
4. The question "Are mental events really brain events?" is a metaphysical question.
True False
5. Philosophy of religion is concerned with the religious beliefs of various cultures and how they serve
social needs.
True False
6. Logic is the study of the psychological causes of our beliefs.
True False
7. The Apology by Plato is an account of Socrates' trial.
True False
8. Socrates was punished for his ideas by being forced to leave Athens and go into exile.
True False
9. Plato referred to Socrates' method as "dialectic."
True False
10. In his discussion with Socrates, Thrasymachus claims that justice is the interest of the stronger.
True False
11. The Sophists were disciples of Socrates who were dedicated to spreading his teachings.
True False
12. Socrates argued against the existence of the soul.
True False
13. In Plato's Allegory of the Cave, the prisoners were glad when their friend told them about the world
outside the cave.
True False
14. Plato believed that there were levels of reality that transcended the world of sense experience.
True False
15. According to Plato, there is no truth about justice, for everyone has a different opinion about it.
True False
16. Skepticism is the belief that we cannot have knowledge.
True False
17. A philosophy can fail the criteria of rational coherence without being contradictory.
True False
18. One of the six criteria listed in the text for evaluating a philosophy is emotional satisfaction.
True False
,19. An inference to the best explanation attempts to directly prove the truth of a theory.
True False
20. "All opinions are false" is an example of a self-referential inconsistency.
True False
21. In philosophy, an argument is defined as "a contentious dispute."
True False
22. It is possible for a valid argument to have false premises and a false conclusion.
True False
23. It is possible for an invalid argument to have true premises and a true conclusion.
True False
24. If an argument is strong, the premises make the conclusion highly probable.
True False
25. The term "philosophy" literally means
A. the search for knowledge.
B. the love of wisdom.
C. deep questions.
D. the search for meaning.
26. Socrates was brought to trial on the charges of
A. calling for a revolution and refusing to pay taxes.
B. being a pacifist and refusing to go to war.
C. being an atheist and an ethical relativist.
D. corrupting the youth and teaching about false gods.
27. Socrates referred to himself as
A. a mirror that reflects the truths in nature.
B. the housekeeper of the mind.
C. the midwife of ideas.
D. an artist that creates pictures with ideas.
28. Socrates believed he was wiser than anyone else in Athens because he
A. had found the ultimate truth, using the Socratic method.
B. knew he was ignorant.
C. did not believe in any god.
D. realized that all opinions are equally true.
29. In his trial, Socrates referred to himself as
A. a rudder that keeps the people of Athens on course.
B. a gadfly that continually harasses people to wake them from their apathy.
C. a compass that shows people the direction they should take.
D. a coach that trains people on how to use their intellectual muscles.
30. The Socratic method consisted of
A. drawing philosophical conclusions from scientific observations.
B. lecturing to people on the basic principles for successful living.
C. surveying public opinion and embracing the collective wisdom of the majority.
D. asking questions of people and then questioning their answers.
31. Socrates undermines Thrasymachus's definition of justice by
A. showing that it leads to a contradiction.
B. arguing that most people would be unlikely to accept it.
C. demonstrating that it would violate the laws of Athens.
D. arguing that adopting it would lead to social instability.
,32. A central teaching of the Sophists was
A. the importance of caring for one's own soul.
B. it is better to be morally good than successful by society's standards.
C. skepticism concerning our ability to know what is true or good.
D. the impossibility of finding happiness.
33. Socrates maintained that a good person cannot be harmed by others because
A. the gods will protect the good person.
B. others will respect and honor a person who is truly good.
C. society will come to the defense of someone who is good.
D. evil people can harm the body, but not a person's true self.
34. In Plato's Allegory of the Cave, the shadows represented
A. our doubts and lack of confidence in our own worth.
B. the fact that truth is elusive and cannot be found.
C. the gods.
D. imperfect and confused representations of a higher reality.
35. Three of the six criteria the book discussed for evaluating philosophical claims are
A. cultural consensus, convincingness, clarity.
B. clarity, consistency, comprehensiveness.
C. centrality, comprehensiveness, cultural consensus.
D. compatibility, conviction, centrality.
36. The criterion of "compatibility" evaluates a philosophy in terms of its compatibility with
A. the answers of other philosophers.
B. well-established facts and theories.
C. a vision of life that is emotionally satisfying.
D. the laws of logic.
37. In discussing "inference to the best explanation," the text pointed out that
A. philosophy makes use of this method, but science does not.
B. science makes use of this method, but philosophy does not.
C. both science and philosophy make use of this method.
D. religion makes use of this method, but science and philosophy do not.
38. Expressing two assertions that could not both be true under any possible circumstances is known as
A. a logical inconsistency.
B. a self-referential inconsistency.
C. the false dichotomy fallacy.
D. the fallacy of affirming the consequent.
39. Which of the following is a characteristic of a valid argument?
A. All the premises must be true.
B. The conclusion must be true.
C. If the premises are true, the conclusion must be true.
D. all of the above
40. A valid argument with all true premises is called
A. a strong argument.
B. a cogent argument.
C. an inductive argument.
D. a sound argument.
41. In a sound argument, the conclusion is
A. necessarily true.
B. probably true.
C. valid.
D. strong.
, 42. In a cogent argument, the premises are ________ and the conclusion is ________.
A. true/necessarily true
B. true/probably true
C. valid/valid
D. valid/sound
43. Briefly explain the points the text made under the following headings: philosophy and aerobics,
philosophy and love, philosophy and peanut butter, philosophy and colds.
44. Suppose a friend asked, "Why are you studying philosophy? It is an abstract, totally impractical, and
useless subject." What sort of reply could be made in defense of philosophy?
45. Explain the Socratic method. What are the various stages of this method? Next, discuss Socrates'
conversation with Thrasymachus. What was the issue they were debating? How did Socrates get
Thrasymachus to realize that there were problems with his initial position? How did this conversation
illustrate Socrates' method?
46. Why did Socrates call himself the "midwife of ideas"? Why did he refer to himself as a "gadfly"? What
does each figure of speech tell us about how he viewed philosophy and his mission?
47. Who were the Sophists? What was their philosophy? Why did Socrates disagree with them?
