Causality

necessarily transitive. After all, if in any sequence of counterfactual dependancies chain together, then it must be argued that each one of those dependancies are caused. Thus the same reasoning which connects each counterfactual must similarly apply to causality, showing that each…

that a person’s actions are the effects of their will. A person’s will comes from their desires, motives, and emotions. And that a person’s desires, motives, and emotions are the effects of their genes, upbringing, and experiences. This chain of causality was interesting primarily because it raised the question of accountability. While reading the passage I remembered a discussion I had in my psychology class. The discussion had to do with the upbringing and mental illnesses of notorious…

less formal reality than the objective reality contained, therefore, he could not have created the idea of God. If the evil genius did not create the idea of God the only thing with enough reality to create this idea is God himself. The rule of causality also works in disproving the evil genius. One of the consequences of the rule is that something more real and more perfect cannot come from something less real or less perfect. Since the evil genius lacks, because he deceives, he is less real…

how) which enable the causal relation between the mind and the body. I will firstly provide a description of Cartesian Dualism, then explain Princess Elizabeth’s criticism of the theory and reformulate her demands in the terms of Hume’s theory of causality, and…

Are humans’ lives completely predetermined? Or do they have the power to choose the outcome of their lives indefinitely? This is the question of free will, which has become a key argument in philosophy for many years, and will continue to be so. The topic of free will has plagued a gamut of great philosophers, and many have searched for an answer to this complicated question. However, Immanuel Kant does his best interpretation of the question while arguing other philosopher’s points. Kant begins…

For David Hume, there are significant issues with the statement, “The ice cream melted because it was left out in the sun.” As an empiricist, he would claim that it is impossible to believe in causation and remain consistent. Some of Hume’s most important of contributions comes from his work on the philosophy of causation. Hume’s main axiom in his work is known as the Copy Principle, which states that every thing we come to think and know is through our own experience. The contents of the mind…

The issue of teenage pregnancy has been a dominant point of interest and contention in American politics and American popular culture, with shows like 16 and Pregnant or Teen Mom becoming a platform for a more open discussion of this issue in American media. Though, these shows are in most cases not a true depiction of this important issue, they are demonstrative of how prevalence and widespread teenage pregnancy has become in America. Therefore, it is important to ask what the the influencing…

of causality in physics. As it is present in physics, this line of reasoning is also an accepted idea in all of the natural sciences and is the principle that keeps the scientific method valid. If events were not causal then reproducibility would be impossible and events could not be tested. Causality does not solely live in the realm of the natural sciences. The concept is also present in the methods of observation within the human sciences. Possibly the most publicly relevant is causality…

The discussion regarding free will and determinism is extensive and ever pressing. David Hume believes that the two (of which he refers to as liberty and necessity respectively) are intrinsically compatible, and that the dispute surrounding the issue is a result of failing to accurately define the terms. Hume proposes that through his interpretations of the two, it will become apparent that the debate about liberty and necessity is merely verbal. While some insist that Hume’s account of liberty…

In Treatise, David Hume explains two categories of perceptions – impressions or ideas. Impressions originate from our sensory observation or feeling, which is also regarded as reflections by Hume. Ideas aren’t as vivid as impressions, nonetheless they originate from our impressions. Ideas aren’t as vivid as impressions because it involves thinking of something instead of (first hand) experiencing it. Hume proposes a principle that implies that all ideas, regardless of whether simple or complex,…