Heroes And Philosophy

Author : David K. Johnson
Publisher : John Wiley & Sons
Page : 312 pages
File Size : 42,8 Mb
Release : 2009-07-23
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9780470730393

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Heroes and Philosophy by David K. Johnson Pdf

The first unauthorized look at the philosophy behind Heroes, one of TV's most popular shows When ordinary individuals from around the world inexplicably develop superhuman abilities, they question who they are, struggle to cope with new responsibilities, and decide whether to use their new power for good or for evil. Every episode of Tim Kring's hit TV show Heroes is a philosophical quandary. Heroes and Philosophy is the first book to analyze how philosophy makes this show so compelling. It lets you examine questions crucial to our existence as thinking, rational beings. Is the Company evil, or good? Does Hiro really have a destiny? Do we? Is it okay to lie in order to hide your powers or save the world? Heroes and Philosophy offers answers to these and other intriguing questions. Brings the insight of history's philosophical heavyweights such as Plato and Nietzche to Heroes characters and settings Adds a fun and fascinating dimension to your understanding of the show Expands your thinking about Heroes as the series expands from graphic and text novels to action figures and a video game Whether you're new to Heroes or have been a fan since day one, this book will take your enjoyment of the show to the next level.

Author : Ari Kohen
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 206 pages
File Size : 45,8 Mb
Release : 2013-10-15
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9781317964582

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Untangling Heroism by Ari Kohen Pdf

The idea of heroism has become thoroughly muddled today. In contemporary society, any behavior that seems distinctly difficult or unusually impressive is classified as heroic: everyone from firefighters to foster fathers to freedom fighters are our heroes. But what motivates these people to act heroically and what prevents other people from being heroes? In our culture today, what makes one sort of hero appear more heroic than another sort? In order to answer these questions, Ari Kohen turns to classical conceptions of the hero to explain the confusion and to highlight the ways in which distinct heroic categories can be useful at different times. Untangling Heroism argues for the existence of three categories of heroism that can be traced back to the earliest Western literature – the epic poetry of Homer and the dialogues of Plato – and that are complex enough to resonate with us and assist us in thinking about heroism today. Kohen carefully examines the Homeric heroes Achilles and Odysseus and Plato’s Socrates, and then compares the three to each other. He makes clear how and why it is that the other-regarding hero, Socrates, supplanted the battlefield hero, Achilles, and the suffering hero, Odysseus. Finally, he explores in detail four cases of contemporary heroism that highlight Plato’s success. Kohen states that in a post-Socratic world, we have chosen to place a premium on heroes who make other-regarding choices over self-interested ones. He argues that when humans face the fact of their mortality, they are able to think most clearly about the sort of life they want to have lived, and only in doing that does heroic action become a possibility. Kohen’s careful analysis and rethinking of the heroism concept will be relevant to scholars across the disciplines of political science, philosophy, literature, and classics.

Author : Clemens Lode
Publisher : Clemens Lode Verlag E.K.
Page : 128 pages
File Size : 43,9 Mb
Release : 2016-12-16
Category : Electronic
ISBN : 3945586216

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Philosophy for Heroes by Clemens Lode Pdf

We are each heroes in the making. How can this be? Because we can reflect on our actions. We have the potential to become heroes in every aspect and every action of our lives... Being a hero is much more than committing a heroic act. One does not magically morph into a "hero" as a result of circumstance: the just-in-time rescue, rising up in the midst of a crisis, or even leading others out of a catastrophe. Becoming a hero is more than even these courageous acts. It requires deep insight-the type of philosophical investigation that the greatest minds throughout history have pondered. With his book series Philosophy for Heroes, Clemens Lode bridges the gap between coding, science, philosophy, and, ultimately, leadership. In Philosophy for Heroes: Knowledge, he takes the reader on a journey, examining the foundations of knowledge. What is the basis of our understanding of the world? How does society define a "hero"? How do basic skills, such as language and mathematics, train our way of thinking and reasoning? Becoming a hero requires more than courage. It requires speaking up, stepping forward from the sidelines, and taking action. For all of this, a deep insight into philosophy is the first, and most important, step. Philosophy for Heroes connects the wisdom of the ages to today's real world. Table of Contents 1 My Philosophy 1.1 Heroism 1.1.1 The Conventional Hero 1.1.2 Heroes and Conflicts 1.2 The Key to Wisdom 1.3 Why Philosophy Is Important 1.4 Basics of Philosophy 1.5 Ontology 1.5.1 The Fallacy of the Stolen Concept 1.5.2 The Axiom of Existence 1.5.3 The Axiom of Identity 1.5.4 The Axiom of Consciousness 1.6 Epistemology 1.6.1 Perception 1.6.1.1 The Limits of Perception 1.6.1.2 The Range of Perception 1.6.2 Concepts 1.6.2.1 Concept Formation 1.6.2.2 Establishment of a Definition 1.6.2.3 Concept Hierarchies 1.6.2.4 Conceptual Common Denominator 1.6.2.5 Boundary Cases 1.6.2.6 Concepts in Computers 1.6.3 Induction and Deduction 1.6.4 Rationalism 1.6.5 Induction and Empiricism 1.6.5.1 A World Without Induction 1.6.5.2 The Problem of Induction 1.6.5.3 The Truth 2 Language 2.1 Properties of Language 2.1.1 The Origin of Writing 2.1.2 Completeness and Consistency 2.1.2.1 Incomplete Languages 2.1.2.2 Inconsistent Languages 2.1.3 Language Optimization 2.1.4 Learning of Languages 2.2 Language and Mathematics 2.2.1 Sets 2.2.1.1 Set of all Sets 2.2.1.2 Countable Sets 2.2.2 Ratios 2.2.3 Irrational Numbers 2.2.4 Mathematics and Empiricism 2.2.5 The Zero 2.2.6 Mathematics and Reality 2.3 The Value of Language 2.3.1 The Foundation of Knowledge 2.3.2 The Theory of Mind 2.3.3 Language as Communication 2.3.3.1 Differences in Concepts 2.3.3.2 Cultural Differences 2.3.3.3 Translatability 2.3.3.4 Other Forms of Intelligence 2.3.3.5 The Arecibo Message 2.3.3.6 Trust 2.3.3.7 Language in Society

Author : Angela Hobbs
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
Page : 306 pages
File Size : 41,5 Mb
Release : 2000-10-12
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN : 0521417333

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Plato and the Hero by Angela Hobbs Pdf

Examines Plato's critique of the notions and embodiments of manliness prevalent in his culture.

Author : Nicolas Michaud
Publisher : Open Court
Page : 288 pages
File Size : 49,9 Mb
Release : 2015-04-07
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9780812698862

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Adventure Time and Philosophy by Nicolas Michaud Pdf

Adventure Time and Philosophy is a monster-beating, wild ride of philosophical mayhem. The authors have come together to understand and explore one of the deepest and most thoughtful television shows ever to assault human brain waves. Where Adventure Time shows us what the world could be like, this book screws open our cranial lids, mucks about in the mess that is our heads, and attempts to come to some answers about the nature of reality. Adventure Time challenges everything we know about life, meaning, heroism, and even burritos. And it’s time to give the show some serious thought. Adventure Time and Philosophy is a chance to put down your broadsword, put your exhausted monster-slaying feet up, and try to figure out why you spend your time rescuing people in distress and fighting for justice. What is justice anyway? If you don’t happen to have your pocket edition of the Enchiridion on hand, and Billy the Hero *wicked guitar solo* hasn’t been returning your calls, pick up Adventure Time and Philosophy and learn what it means to be a real hero! The authors of the chapters will prove that Adventure Time is much more than a cartoon, it’s a way of life. . . . It’s also the future!-—a post-apocalyptic future 10,000 years after the Great Mushroom War, actually. Who better to have as companions than Finn and Jake when taking on Plato, Nietzsche, and Baudrillard or encountering the Slime Princess, the Ice King, and Marceline the Vampire Queen. In a review of the show in Entertainment Weekly, Darren Franich characterized Adventure Time as a “hybrid sci-fi/fantasy/horror/musical/fairy tale, with echoes of Calvin and Hobbes, Hayao Miyazaki, Final Fantasy, Richard Linklater, Where the Wild Things Are, and the music video you made with your high school garage band.” This book is filled with chapters written by a colorful cast of characters who enlighten us about the profound and life-affirming spiritual subtext and dark comedic elements of an awesomely fantastic show.

Author : Florence Parry Heide
Publisher : Chronicle Books
Page : 41 pages
File Size : 50,7 Mb
Release : 2016-10-04
Category : Electronic
ISBN : 9781452139470

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How to Be a Hero by Florence Parry Heide Pdf

Once upon a time, there was a nice boy and his name was Gideon. He lived in a nice house, and he had nice parents and lots of toys. But Gideon wasn't satisfied. He wanted to be a hero. You know, a hero, with his name on the front page of the newspaper. That sort of thing. So how does anyone get to be a hero, anyway? Heroes have to be strong. Heroes have to be brave. Heroes have to be clever. Don't they? With wry humor, Florence Parry Heide and Chuck Groenink explore how we choose our idols in a witty story that leaves it to readers to decide the real nature of heroism. Plus, this is the fixed format version, which looks almost identical to the print edition.

Author : Tom Morris,Matt Morris
Publisher : ReadHowYouWant.com
Page : 470 pages
File Size : 44,8 Mb
Release : 2010-10
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 9781459601130

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Superheroes and Philosophy by Tom Morris,Matt Morris Pdf

Great Caesars Ghost!! A team of Brainiacs! Superheroes and Philosophy is Kryptonite for those super villains who diss the heroes as lightweights! Riddle me this, Batman: How are Gotham City and Metropolis like ancient Athens and modern Paris? Read this sensational book and find out!

Author : Anat Biletzki,Anat Matar
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 291 pages
File Size : 53,7 Mb
Release : 2002-01-31
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9781134716142

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The Story of Analytic Philosophy by Anat Biletzki,Anat Matar Pdf

This unique collection looks at analytic philosophy in its historical context. Prominent philosophers discuss key figures, including Russell and Wittgenstein, methods and results in analytic philosophy to present its story. This volume assesses the challenge posed by changing cultural and philosophical trends and movements.

Author : Sydney Hook
Publisher : Taylor & Francis
Page : 263 pages
File Size : 48,7 Mb
Release : 2023-04-14
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9781000939705

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The Hero in History by Sydney Hook Pdf

The interaction of the individual in history and politics has posed major theoretical questions of historical analysis for the past two centuries: is social destiny shaped by forces beyond the power of the individual, or can the future be mastered by collective effort under the outstanding leadership of heroic men and women? In this classic study, a major philosopher and social theorist of the twentieth century offers a searching examination of the conditions under which individuals make choices that significantly alter the course of historical events and presents a scathing critique of various forms of social determinism that deny the individual freedom of action or a decisive role in history.The myth of the hero as the savior of the tribe or nation, as Hook notes, is older than written history. Until the ninteenth century, the hero functioned not merely as a cult figure but as a principle of historical explanation, a key to the rise and fall of countries and even of cultures. The exaggerations and omissions of this point of view produced an equally simplistic reaction with the formulation of determinist historiographies in which physical, racial, social, and economic forces replaced individuals as the dynamic factors in the development of events. Hook singles out orthodox Marxism as the most all-encompassing determinist system and subjects the historical thinking of Engels, Plekhanov, and Trotsky to sharp and meticulous scrutiny. Using the Russian Revolution as a test case, Hook observes that while the February 1917 Revolution was an inevitable development, the October revolution was, according to the best historical evidence, contingent upon the personality and actions of Lenin.In his 1978 reconsideration of the subject of heroism, appearing new to this edition, Hook defines a middle ground between the extremes of voluntarism and determinism that explains why the presence of strong personalities are decisive under certain conditions while under others key actors would appear to be almost interchangeable. He points us toward an understanding of a fascinating problem in history and raises essential questions about the role of "great" men and women in a democracy. The Hero in History will be of interest to intellectual historians, philosophers, political scientists, and sociologists.

Author : Nicolas Michaud
Publisher : Open Court
Page : 319 pages
File Size : 43,8 Mb
Release : 2015-04-14
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9780812698589

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Adventure Time and Philosophy by Nicolas Michaud Pdf

Adventure Time and Philosophy is a monster-beating, wild ride of philosophical mayhem. One of the deepest and most thoughtful television shows ever to assault human brain waves, Adventure Time shows us what the world could be like, challenging everything we know about life, meaning, heroism, and even burritos, and it’s time to give the show some serious thought. This book screws open our cranial lids, mucks about in the mess that is our heads, and attempts to come to some answers about the nature of reality. Adventure Time and Philosophy is a chance to put down your broadsword, put your exhausted monster-slaying feet up, and try to figure out why you spend your time rescuing people in distress and fighting for justice. Who better than Finn and Jake to have as companions when taking on Plato, Nietzsche, and Baudrillard or encountering the Slime Princess, the Ice King, and Marceline the Vampire Queen? Filled with chapters written by a colorful cast of characters, Adventure Time and Philosophy enlightens us about the profound and life-affirming spiritual subtext and dark comedic elements of an awesomely fantastic show.

Author : Marina Berzins McCoy,Marina McCoy
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Page : 247 pages
File Size : 43,5 Mb
Release : 2013-09-26
Category : History
ISBN : 9780199672783

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Wounded Heroes by Marina Berzins McCoy,Marina McCoy Pdf

McCoy examines how Greek epic, tragedy, and philosophy offer important insights into the nature of human vulnerability, especially how Greek thought extols the recognition and proper acceptance of vulnerability. Beginning with the literary works of Homer and Sophocles, she also expands her analysis to the philosophical works of Plato and Aristotle.

Author : Thomas Carlyle
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 396 pages
File Size : 54,6 Mb
Release : 1852
Category : Hero worship
ISBN : BSB:BSB10738050

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On Heroes, Hero-worship, and the Heroic in History by Thomas Carlyle Pdf

Author : Will Durant
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
Page : 351 pages
File Size : 47,9 Mb
Release : 2002-04-23
Category : History
ISBN : 9780743229104

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Heroes of History by Will Durant Pdf

In the tradition of his own bestselling masterpieces The Story of Civilization and The Lessons of History, Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Will Durant traces the lives and ideas of those who have helped to define civilization, from its dawn to the beginning of the modern world. Heroes of History is a book of life-enhancing wisdom and optimism, complete with Durant's wit, knowledge, and unique ability to explain events and ideas in simple, exciting terms. It is the lessons of our heritage passed on for the edification and benefit of future generations—a fitting legacy from America's most beloved historian and philosopher. Will Durant's popularity as America's favorite teacher of history and philosophy remains undiminished by time. His books are accessible to readers of every kind, and his unique ability to compress complicated ideas and events into a few pages without ever "talking down" to the reader, enhanced by his memorable wit and a razor-sharp judgment about men and their motives, made all of his books huge bestsellers. Heroes of History carries on this tradition of making scholarship and philosophy understandable to the general reader, and making them good reading, as well. At the dawn of a new millennium and the beginning of a new century, nothing could be more appropriate than this brilliant book that examines the meaning of human civilization and history and draws from the experience of the past the lessons we need to know to put the future into context and live in confidence, rather than fear and ignorance.

Author : Rebecca Stangl
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Page : 128 pages
File Size : 40,9 Mb
Release : 2020-09-16
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9780197508473

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Neither Heroes nor Saints by Rebecca Stangl Pdf

Most of us are far from perfect in virtue. But even those who come far closer to perfect virtue than most of us--people like Mother Theresa, Martin Luther King, Jr., or Gandhi--nonetheless fall short of possessing it: not even moral saints and heroes are perfectly virtuous. Faced with this fact, moral philosophers can respond in two different ways: they might insist that the only real virtue is perfect virtue, and the only right actions are perfectly virtuous ones. Any failure to meet the exacting standards of perfect virtue will amount to vice, and any less than perfectly virtuous actions will be wrong. Or, if they reject such a rigorist picture, they can instead affirm that there are actions that are truly good and right even if they fall short of perfection. In this book, philosopher Rebecca Stangl urges the attractions of a virtue ethics committed to the second option, and in doing so, pushes forward two major innovations. First, she constructs and defends Neo-Aristotelian accounts of supererogation and suberogation, arguing such accounts are fully consistent with such traditional Aristotelian claims as the doctrine of the mean, the necessity of virtue, and the role of the phronimos in our moral epistemology. And further, far from encouraging a kind of complacency, she shows the recognition that there can be genuine goodness short of perfection is precisely what opens up theoretical space for appreciating the goodness of striving towards ideal virtue. The second major innovation of the book is its argument that self-improvement itself can be morally excellent, and the disposition to seek and engage in it, where appropriate, is itself virtuous. She terms this a virtue of self-cultivation, and the book defends and develops a rigorous account of its nature and value.

Author : Sidney Hook
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 182 pages
File Size : 51,5 Mb
Release : 2020-12-18
Category : Heroes
ISBN : 1138516031

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The Hero in History by Sidney Hook Pdf

The interaction of the individual in history and politics has posed major theoretical questions of historical analysis for the past two centuries: is social destiny shaped by forces beyond the power of the individual, or can the future be mastered by collective effort under the outstanding leadership of heroic men and women? In this classic study, a major philosopher and social theorist of the twentieth century offers a searching examination of the conditions under which individuals make choices that significantly alter the course of historical events and presents a scathing critique of various forms of social determinism that deny the individual freedom of action or a decisive role in history.The myth of the hero as the savior of the tribe or nation, as Hook notes, is older than written history. Until the ninteenth century, the hero functioned not merely as a cult figure but as a principle of historical explanation, a key to the rise and fall of countries and even of cultures. The exaggerations and omissions of this point of view produced an equally simplistic reaction with the formulation of determinist historiographies in which physical, racial, social, and economic forces replaced individuals as the dynamic factors in the development of events. Hook singles out orthodox Marxism as the most all-encompassing determinist system and subjects the historical thinking of Engels, Plekhanov, and Trotsky to sharp and meticulous scrutiny. Using the Russian Revolution as a test case, Hook observes that while the February 1917 Revolution was an inevitable development, the October revolution was, according to the best historical evidence, contingent upon the personality and actions of Lenin.In his 1978 reconsideration of the subject of heroism, appearing new to this edition, Hook defines a middle ground between the extremes of voluntarism and determinism that explains why the presence of strong personalities are decisive under certain conditions while under others key actors would appear to be almost interchangeable. He points us toward an understanding of a fascinating problem in history and raises essential questions about the role of great men and women in a democracy. The Hero in History will be of interest to intellectual historians, philosophers, political scientists, and sociologists.