Free To Choose Essays - Marcus Aurelius, Meditations,

Free to Choose Annonymous [All page references and quotations from the Meditations are taken from the 1995 Everyman edition] In the Meditations, Descartes embarks upon what Bernard Williams has called the project of 'Pure Enquiry' to discover certain, indubitable foundations for knowledge. By subjecting everything to doubt Descartes hoped to discover whatever was immune to it. In order to best understand how and why Descartes builds his epistemological system up from his foundations in the way that he does, it is helpful to gain an understanding of the intellectual background of the 17th century that provided the motivation for his work. We can discern three distinct influences on Descartes, three conflicting world-views that fought for prominence in his day. The first was what remained of the mediaeval scholastic philosophy, largely based on Aristotelian science and Christian theology. Descartes had been taught according to this outlook during his time at the Jesuit college La Flech? and it had an important influence on his work, as we shall see later. The second was the scepticism that had made a sudden impact on the intellectual world, mainly as a reaction to the scholastic outlook. This scepticism was strongly influenced by the work of the Pyrrhonians as handed down from antiquity by Sextus Empiricus, which claimed that, as there is never a reason to believe p that is better than a reason not to believe p, we should forget about trying to discover the nature of reality and live by appearance alone. This attitude was best exemplified in the work of Michel de Montaigne, who mockingly dismissed the attempts of theologians and scientists to understand the nature of God and the universe respectively. Descartes felt the force of sceptical arguments and, while not being sceptically disposed himself, came to believe that scepticism towards knowledge was the best way to discover what is certain: by applying sceptical doubt to all our beliefs, we can discover which of them are indubitable, and thus form an adequate foundation for knowledge. The third world-view resulted largely from the work of the new scientists; Galileo, Copernicus, Bacon et al. Science had finally begun to assert itself and shake off its dated Aristotelian prejudices. Coherent theories about the world and its place in the universe were being constructed and many of those who were aware of this work became very optimistic about the influence it could have. Descartes was a child of the scientific revolution, but felt that until sceptical concerns were dealt with, science would always have to contend with Montaigne and his cronies, standing on the sidelines and laughing at science's pretenses to knowledge. Descartes' project, then, was to use the tools of the sceptic to disprove the sceptical thesis by discovering certain knowledge that could subsequently be used as the foundation of a new science, in which knowledge about the external world was as certain as knowledge about mathematics. It was also to hammer the last nail into the coffin of scholasticism, but also, arguably, to show that God still had a vital r?le to play in the discovery of knowledge. Meditation One describes Descartes' method of doubt. By its conclusion, Descartes has seemingly subjected all of his beliefs to the strongest and most hyberbolic of doubts. He invokes the nightmarish notion of an all-powerful, malign demon who could be deceiving him in the realm of sensory experience, in his very understanding of matter and even in the simplest cases of mathematical or logical truths. The doubts may be obscure, but this is the strength of the method - the weakness of criteria for what makes a doubt reasonable means that almost anything can count as a doubt, and therefore whatever withstands doubt must be something epistemologically formidable. In Meditation Two, Descartes hits upon the indubitable principle he has been seeking. He exists, at least when he thinks he exists. The cogito (Descartes' proof of his own existence) has been the source of a great deal of discussion ever since Descartes first formulated it in the 1637 Discourse on Method, and, I believe, a great deal of misinterpretation (quite possibly as a result of Descartes' repeated contradictions of his own position in subsequent writings). Many commentators have fallen prey to the tempting interpretation of the cogito as either syllogism or enthymeme. This view holds that Descartes asserts that he is thinking, that he believes it axiomatic that 'whatever thinks must exist' and therefore that he logically concludes that he exists. This view, it seems to me, is wrong. It should be stated on no occasion, in the Meditations, does Descartes write 'I am thinking, therefore I am', nor anything directly equivalent. Rather, he says: Doubtless, then, that I existand, let him deceive me as he may, he can never bring it about that I am nothing, so long

European Union Essays - Eurozone, Economy Of The European Union

European Union Essays - Eurozone, Economy Of The European Union European Union In 1967, three European institutions merged. The three institutions were the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), the European Economic Community (EEC), and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom). When the three merged, they formed the European Community or EC. On November 1, 1993, the 12 members of the European Community ratified the Treaty on European Union, or Maastricht Treaty. The twelve members were- Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain. The countries of the Benelux Economic Union- Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg- continue to and in some ways as a single economic entity within the European Union. The EC became the policy-making body of the European Union. In 1994 Austria, Finland, and Sweden became members of the European Union. By 1997 more than a dozen countries had applied for European Union membership, but the European Union had only admitted the three listed above. The other countries that applied for membership include Turkey, Cyprus, Malta, Switzerland, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Bulgaria, and the Czech Republic. Of those countries, six are considered associate members of the European Union: Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia. Three other countries-Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania-are being considered for associate membership. Other potential European Union applicants include members of the European Free Trade Association. The European Union was expected to decide which counties it would open negotiations for full membership with by the end of 1997. The purpose of the European Union was to increase economic integration and strengthen cooperation among its member states. European citizenship was granted to citizens of each member state, under the Treaty on European Union. Customs and immigration agreements were enhanced to allow European citizens more freedom to live, work, and study in any of the member states, and border controls were also eased. The European Union also set a goal of establishing a single European currency, the Euro, by 1997; this date was later changed to 1999. It is proposed that full circulation of the Euro is to be in effect by the year 2002. At that time the individual states notes will no longer be valid. The European Union?s attempts to establish a single European currency have had some controversy. An example is, some member countries, such as Great Britain, have worried that a shared European currency would threaten their national identity and their government?s authority. On the other hand, some of the other European Union member countries have been struggling to meet the economic requirements for participating in a common currency. To meet the requirements, which include a budget deficit of no more than three percent of their gross domestic product, by the deadline of late 1997. To meet the requirements some countries have imposed budget cuts and new taxes. Some of the measures taken by these countries have faced some resistance. The people who will mainly benefit from the common currency are the European citizens. The overall benefit that the euro will bring is a stable economic environment that will lead to low inflation and low interest rates. There are three main areas that the member states will gain savings from, they include, reduced losses created by currency exchanges, lower costs created by better competition in the euro zone, and a more favorable trading and investment environment for local businesses. The reduction of losses due to the elimination of currency exchanges within the euro zone will produce almost a whole percentage point of annual European Union GDP every year. The use of a common currency will allow easier price comparisons in the member states. By eliminating the currency exchange risk, economic and monetary union will bring more business and trading potential to commercial companies, especially small and medium-sized businesses. Large European companies will have a reduction in a l ot of their costs, mainly in the processes of foreign exchange transactions. Consumers will benefit greatly from the common currency. Some of the benefits include: reduced costs for traveling to other countries; easier and less expensive transfer of funds to other countries; increased competition between businesses, which will lead to lower prices; low interest rates; and more economic growth, which will lead to increased job security. The European