PHIL 1301. PHILOSOPHY FOR LIVING
NOVY. FALL 2022
ESSAY SET #2

Select two of the options below.
• Instructions, a grading rubric, and the submission upload link may be found in the “Essay
Set #2” folder under “Assignments” in Blackboard.
• Essay Set #2 is due no later than 11:59 pm 10/18/2022.

1. What is Baldwin’s basic point in “A Talk to Teachers?” Explain. Why does he claim that “What does the Negro want?” is “perhaps the most asinine and perhaps the most insulting” question?

2. Explain Paley’s “Watchmaker Analogy.” What is the advantage of concluding God’s existence from our ordinary experiences in the world (as with the “Argument from Design”)? Are there disadvantages to this approach? Explain.

3. What is knowledge? How does it differ from belief? Give an example of something most people claim to know but which they actually do not. Explain how this mistake might occur and how it can be avoided.

4. Fully explain “the Euthyphro Problem.” If right and wrong are not determined by God’s commands, does morality become a matter of individual preference? If yes, how can we explain the apparently on what might morality be based instead?
Explain.

Write as if your mother or roommate will be reading your answer: a. Really. Write as if your audience is not you, your classmates, or your professor (all of whom should be familiar with the material already). b. Rather, ask yourself if someone as smart as you – but without benefit of having read the texts or participating in class – can understand what is at issue, the positions under consideration, the reasoning behind those positions, etc. 7. Be sure to address all aspects of multi-part questions. a. Define all specialized terms. b. Be explicit regarding the relationship of ideas to one another. c. Remember, if something is not written down or is unclear, it simply won’t help your case.