Chapter 3

Question 1

Briefly state what constituted the good life according to Skepticism, Cynicism, Epicureanism, and Stoicism.

Answer 1

Skepticism: tranquility through suspension of judgment (ataraxia). Cynicism: virtue through living simply in accord with nature and rejecting social conventions. Epicureanism: happiness through moderate pleasure, absence of pain, and freedom from fear. Stoicism: virtue and inner peace achieved by living rationally and accepting fate.

Question 2

What did the Skeptics mean by dogmatism, and why did they oppose it?

Answer 2

Dogmatism meant claiming certain knowledge about reality. Skeptics opposed it because such certainty leads to anxiety and conflict; suspending judgment brings mental tranquility.

Question 3

In what sense were Epicureanism and Stoicism materialistic philosophies?

Answer 3

Both held that reality consists of material substance. Epicureans believed everything is made of atoms and void. Stoics believed a divine rational fire (logos) structures matter, but all existence remains physical.

Question 4

Describe the factors that contributed to the development of early Christian theology.

Answer 4

Jewish religious traditions, Greek philosophy (especially Platonism), Roman political structure, the life and teachings of Jesus, and the need to define doctrine against heresies all shaped early theology.

Question 5

What characterized the Pauline version of Christianity?

Answer 5

Emphasis on Jesus as divine savior, salvation through faith rather than Jewish law, universality of Christianity for Jews and Gentiles, and strong focus on sin, grace, and redemption.

Question 6

Summarize the philosophy of Neoplatonism.

Answer 6

A mystical development of Platonism teaching that all reality emanates from ‘the One.’ The soul ascends through intellectual and spiritual purification toward union with the divine source.

Question 7

Discuss how Constantine influenced the history of Christianity.

Answer 7

He legalized Christianity, ended persecutions, supported church leadership, called the Council of Nicaea, and helped transform Christianity into a dominant institutional religion within the Roman Empire.

Question 8

How did Augustine change the locus of control of human behavior from forces outside the person to forces inside the person?

Answer 8

He emphasized inner psychological conflict, free will, conscience, and personal responsibility for sin, shifting moral struggle from external forces to internal mental and spiritual processes.

Question 9

What did Augustine feel about pagan writings? What did he believe humans could be certain of, and how did he arrive at his conclusion? How, according to Augustine, could humans best experience God?

Answer 9

He believed pagan works contained useful truths if interpreted carefully. He argued humans can be certain of their own existence and inner experience through introspection (‘if I am mistaken, I exist’). God is best experienced through inner reflection, faith, and personal spiritual awareness.

Question 10

In what ways were the early Middle Ages dark? Explain.

Answer 10

Political fragmentation, economic decline, reduced trade, loss of classical learning, low literacy, frequent invasions, and weakened cultural institutions led to instability and intellectual stagnation.

Question 11

What was the importance of Avicenna’s, Averroës’s, and Mainonides’s philosophies to Western thought?

Answer 11

They preserved and interpreted Aristotle, integrated Greek philosophy with religion, influenced Scholasticism, and reintroduced rational analysis and scientific thinking to medieval Europe.

Question 12

How did the works of St. Anselm help prepare the Western world for the acceptance of Aristotle’s philosophy?

Answer 12

He promoted rigorous logical analysis of theological issues, encouraged reason in religious inquiry, and helped legitimize the use of philosophy in Christian doctrine.

Question 13

What was St. Anselm’s ontological argument for the existence of God?

Answer 13

God is the greatest conceivable being. Existing in reality is greater than existing only in the mind; therefore, God must exist in reality.

Question 14

What was the significance of the work of Abelard and Magnus?

Answer 14

Abelard advanced logical analysis and emphasized resolving contradictions through reason. Albertus Magnus systematically studied Aristotle and helped integrate empirical observation with Christian scholarship.

Question 15

Summarize the debate between the realists and the nominalists. What was Abelard’s position in this debate?

Answer 15

Realists believed universals are real independent entities; nominalists believed universals are merely names. Abelard took a conceptualist position: universals exist as mental concepts but not as independent realities.

Question 16

How, according to Aquinas, can humans know God? What are some of the implications of Aquinas’s position?

Answer 16

Humans know God through reason, observation of nature, and divine revelation. Implications: faith and reason are compatible, empirical study is valid, and knowledge of God is indirect but rationally supported.

Question 17

What was Scholasticism? Give an example of what the Scholastics did.

Answer 17

A medieval method of learning that used logic and debate to reconcile faith with reason. Example: disputations analyzing theological questions using Aristotelian logic.

Question 18

Why does William of Occam represent an important turning point in the history of psychology? What is Occam’s razor?

Answer 18

He shifted focus toward empirical observation and away from abstract metaphysics, encouraging simpler explanations of mental processes. Occam’s razor: the simplest explanation with the fewest assumptions is preferred.

Question 19

Was William of Occam a realist or a nominalist? Explain.

Answer 19

He was a nominalist, arguing universals are only names or mental labels and that only individual objects truly exist.

Question 20

What was the paradigm in the Middle Age? What anomalies may have existed?

Answer 20

Paradigm: a theocentric worldview where religion guided science, politics, and philosophy, and Aristotle’s philosophy aligned with Church doctrine. Anomalies: scientific observations, mystical experiences, cultural diversity, and logical problems that conflicted with doctrine.