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EMPIRICISM:. TRUTH ORIGINATES IN OUR EXPERIENCE. JOHN LOCKE. RECOGNIZED AS THE “FOUNDING FATHER” OF WHAT WE NOW UNDERSTAND IS THE “SCHOOL OF EMPIRICAL PRACTICES.” ADVOCATED THE CONCEPT OF TABULA RASA : NO KNOWLEDGE COMES FROM PRE-BIRTH. WE ARE BORN WITH MINDS THAT ARE “BLANK SLATES.”.
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EMPIRICISM: TRUTH ORIGINATES IN OUR EXPERIENCE
JOHN LOCKE • RECOGNIZED AS THE “FOUNDING FATHER” OF WHAT WE NOW UNDERSTAND IS THE “SCHOOL OF EMPIRICAL PRACTICES.” • ADVOCATED THE CONCEPT OF TABULA RASA: NO KNOWLEDGE COMES FROM PRE-BIRTH. WE ARE BORN WITH MINDS THAT ARE “BLANK SLATES.”
ESSENTIAL IDEAS: • OUR IDEAS ARE ANYTHING THAT IS IMMEDIATELY PRESENT TO OUR CONSCIOUS AWARENESS. • CONSCIOUS AWARENESS IS POSSIBLE BECAUSE OF SENSORY IMAGES, THOUGHTS, FEELINGS, AND MEMORIES. • ONLY OUR SENSES CAN MAKE US AWARE OF ANYTHING.
ESSENTIAL IDEAS • WE LEARN BY INDUCTION, NOT DEDUCTION. THAT IS, WE REASON FROM PARTICULARS TO GENERALS. • SOMETIMES OUR GENERALIZATIONS ARE MISTAKEN; THEREFORE, WE MUST BE WILLING TO CHANGE OUR BELIEFS IN THINGS IN LIGHT OF CHANGING EVIDENCE.
KEY QUESTION FOR PHILOLOGY: • Can one person’s perception of an object be EXACTLY the same as another person’s? Why or why not? Please explain by using a concrete example and posing some questions.
ESSENTIAL IDEAS • POLITICALLY, THE GOVERNED SHOULD RETAIN INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS AND NOT BE THE SUBJECTS OF THE CONTROLLING FEW. • LIBERTY IS AN INDIVIDUAL NECESSITY.
KEY QUESTION • IF JOHN LOCKE COULD OBSERVE GLOBAL CULTURE TODAY, WHAT POLITICAL ISSUES MIGHT HE CHALLENGE. WHY? • ARRIVE IN CLASS, TOMORROW, WITH AN IDEA RELATED TO THIS ISSUE. BE PREPARED TO EXPLAIN WHY LOCKE WOULD CHALLENGE IT.