Your Three Big Things

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chewybrian
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Your Three Big Things

Post by chewybrian »

What are the core concepts of philosophy that you find most compelling, useful, or interesting?
-------------------------

Here are mine:

1. Desire

Desire is suffering...when it is misplaced. It is critical to understand what is in your control and what is not. You are bound to suffer if you align your desires and aversions with things outside your control. Instead, focus your efforts on what you can control and remove any emotional attachment from the rest. Decide to want what you have, and you'll have everything you want.

2. Perspective

Socrates said people only act immorally out of ignorance. Remember that others are only able to do what they see as best, not what seems best to you. So, don't expect them to see things your way. They may lack information, or they may have misinformation, or they may have misinterpreted facts. They may have been indoctrinated to see things in a certain light. Or, you may suffer from any or all of these. It's complicated, always.

3. Essence

Existence precedes essence. At some point, you will gain the ability to decide what type of person you would like to become, and have the strength, if you exert it, to work toward that end. Yet, before you reach that point, you will have become a different sort of person. You will have been influenced by: family, friends, society, propaganda, advertising, etc. You can't afford to trust yourself. You must consistently encounter yourself and examine your own motives as fairly as possible in order to make progress.
"If determinism holds, then past events have conspired to cause me to hold this view--it is out of my control. Either I am right about free will, or it is not my fault that I am wrong."
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Burning ghost
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Re: Your Three Big Things

Post by Burning ghost »

Nice question! I’ll have to sidestep it a little and offer something easier for me to decide on.

I’ll have to go for fields of philosophy rather than concepts (and one isn’t exactly strictly “philosophical”. I’ll also pick one for each (“compelling”, “useful” and “interesting”)

Compelling - Aesthetics: I have to cheat here because I would include theology within this field to a good extent.

Useful - Logic: Not strictly “philosophical” though.

Interesting - Phenomenology: Easiest pick for me. I make no secret of being extremely interested in part of Husserl’s work. This does tie into aesthetics as well as logic.

To try and answer your question more precisely I will now add to each some concepts that intrigue me.

Aesthetics - Beauty, Symmetry and Creativity.
Logic - Truth, Belief, and Knowledge (subsets: epistemology & ontology)
Phenomenology - Epoche, Horizon, and Subjectivity (see Husserl)
AKA badgerjelly
Fooloso4
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Re: Your Three Big Things

Post by Fooloso4 »

Philosophy as a way of life -
Philosophy as a practical art. Writing and dialogue. The development of discipline and practice to control harmful desires and promote beneficial ones. Self-discovery. Self-knowledge. Becoming who you are.


Zetetic skepticism -
The limits of knowledge. Perspectivism. The priority of questions over answers.

Philosophical Poesis -
Truth and stories. Valuation and stories. Creating good stories. Determining what makes a good story.
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Hereandnow
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Re: Your Three Big Things

Post by Hereandnow »

There is only one: value. Others may crowd around this, but they all beg the question in the end: why bother?; and all bothering is because there is interest, fascination, intrigue, joy, indulgence of some kind and these and their kin are the subjective end of the strangest thing there is in all existence, which is value.
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LuckyR
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Re: Your Three Big Things

Post by LuckyR »

From my perspective while there are numerous Classical philosophical views, I find the theoretical implications/predictions of them to be of limited interest. Whereas the intersection of theory and reality to be much more interesting.
"As usual... it depends."
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Hereandnow
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Re: Your Three Big Things

Post by Hereandnow »

Intersection? Sounds right, but what does it mean?
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LuckyR
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Re: Your Three Big Things

Post by LuckyR »

Hereandnow wrote: September 13th, 2018, 4:29 pm Intersection? Sounds right, but what does it mean?
Nothing dramatic, merely how theoretical philosophical ideas behave in practice (as opposed to the classroom or the textbook).
"As usual... it depends."
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Hereandnow
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Re: Your Three Big Things

Post by Hereandnow »

Have you considered, LuckyR, that the intersection, the only real one, is within? The theoretical implications of philosophical views: any in particular?
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LuckyR
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Re: Your Three Big Things

Post by LuckyR »

Hereandnow wrote: September 14th, 2018, 8:09 am Have you considered, LuckyR, that the intersection, the only real one, is within? The theoretical implications of philosophical views: any in particular?
Again you are correct... for individuals. I was referring to societal effects.
"As usual... it depends."
Eduk
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Re: Your Three Big Things

Post by Eduk »

1. The unexamined life is not worth living. I value thought itself.
2. No one is an island. We are both effected by and effect others with our actions.
3. Treat others as you would have them treat you. A simple rule, if only more people could follow it.
Unknown means unknown.
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ThomasHobbes
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Re: Your Three Big Things

Post by ThomasHobbes »

1. We are all homo sapiens, and as a species we cannot afford the luxury of race, nation, or any other exclusive clubs that provide benefits to some and deny them to others.

2. Most people seem to enjoy participating in their own oppression, so challenge everything and ask questions.

3. When all else fails listen to music and make sculpture. And when it does not, listen to music and make sculpture.
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Sy Borg
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Re: Your Three Big Things

Post by Sy Borg »

I'm basically just interested in the nature of reality - of life (and not just biology), of consciousness, time, the cosmos and the nature of being. The usual stuff :)
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Thinking critical
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Re: Your Three Big Things

Post by Thinking critical »

To better understand the nature of reality.
All concepts in regards to this topic interest me.

I find it interesting to analyse how other people think, some thought processes are complete opposites of my own.

Ontology > I like to attempt to understand concepts which I believe aren't accurate descriptions of reality.
This cocky little cognitive contortionist will straighten you right out
Surreptitious75
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Re: Your Three Big Things

Post by Surreptitious75 »

I am interested in many aspects of philosophy particularly logic and existence and death
Logic because it is the most rigorous methodology and the foundation of all mathematics
Existence because it is eternal as non existence cannot temporally persist beyond the very infinitesimal
Death because it is the final absolute destination and the ending of suffering in all of its manifestations
Alias
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Re: Your Three Big Things

Post by Alias »

Ethics - how to behave for the enhancement of communal life
Consilience - how to organize different kinds of knowledge harmoniously
Linguistics - the communication of observations, feelings and ideas
Those who can induce you to believe absurdities can induce you to commit atrocities. - Voltaire
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