The categorical syllogism is the foundation of Aristotelian logic, and Aristotle's logic is the foundation of modern logic. Proper fallacies were rather errors in reasoning based on ambiguities, such as those Aristotle speaks of in Sophistical Refutations and on which Galen comments in De Captionibus (On Fallacies). Each categorical fallacy is a violation of a rule for the formation of valid syllogisms. Formal fallacies, according to Aldrich, include any reasoning that violates the law of identity, law of non‐contradiction, or law (...) of excluded middle. This chapter deals with one of the common fallacies in Western philosophy, the exclusive premises (EP). EP occurs when a syllogism has two negative premises, which are propositions that deny a connection between the subject and predicate. The quality or quantity of the premises of a syllogism can make them exclusive to one another. (shrink)

This chapter focuses on one of the common fallacies in Western philosophy called four terms (FT). The fallacy of FT violates the very first rule of constructing a valid syllogism: any syllogism must contain three and only three terms. These terms have, since Aristotle, been called the major, the minor, and the middle. The major and minor are also called the “extremes” of a syllogism, since they lie on either extreme of the middle term. In a valid syllogism, the major (...) and minor terms are related in the conclusion, and their relation is absolutely necessary and completely justified by the premises alone. When there are four terms, either the terms are unrelated and no deduction is possible, or there are multiple syllogisms. It is clear also that in every syllogism either both or one of the premises must be like the conclusion. (shrink)

The categorical logic fallacies are called formal fallacies because they are all violations of proper syllogistic form. This chapter deals with one of the common fallacies in Western philosophy, the illicit major and minor terms. The fallacies of illicit major term and illicit minor term have to do with distribution in syllogisms. The illicit process of the major term is much the same, except we would illicitly process the major term as opposed to the minor. So if we are only (...) talking about some of something, then we cannot go on to conclude something about all of that something. We cannot distribute anything in the conclusion that was not distributed in the premises. But we may not have to distribute in the conclusion whatever was distributed in the premises. (shrink)

Sons of Anarchy puts us in a world where bikers and other criminal gangs rule, where violence is normal, and where everyone is tattooed. The conjunction of these three things calls to mind our tendency to form expectations of people based on their appearance and especially on how they have chosen to permanently alter their bodies, with ink or in other dramatic ways. The fact that many people modify their bodies, whether through tattoos, piercings, or muscle toning and weight loss, (...) betrays the natural identification each of us feels with our body. We recognize the Sons of Anarchy characters in part by their tattoos, which reflect their choices, values, and personal histories. Getting a giant Grim Reaper tattoo that transforms one's appearance to reflect one's loyalties is akin to other ceremonies that induct someone into an organization or demonstrate someone's dedication to something. (shrink)

This chapter focuses on one of the common fallacies in Western philosophy called 'undistributed middle'. “Distribution” is meant to describe the extension of the term, that is, how many things it applies to. Basically, demanding that the middle term be distributed in at least one of the premises ensures that there is going to be some overlap between the two premises so that it is possible to deduce their relation. If the middle term is undistributed, the argument is invalid. There (...) exist any number of ways this fallacy could be avoided; that is, the way to avoid the fallacy of undistributed middle is to create any valid syllogism. While not all syllogisms with distributed middles are valid, a syllogism must have a distributed middle in order to be valid. Distribution of the middle term is thus a necessary but not sufficient condition for a valid syllogism. (shrink)

Essays on Aesthetic Genesis is a collection of essays written on Jeff Mitscherling s work in realist phenomenology, Aesthetic Genesis: The Origin of Consciousness in the Intentional Being of Nature. The authors explicate, expand, contextualize and apply the concepts of intentional being, the New Copernican Hypothesis, the idea of intentional structures in nature, and the foundational concepts of Aesthetic Genesis as they appear in the work of Aristotle, Ingarden and Gadamer amongst others. This book takes as its focus Mitscherling s (...) comprehensive phenomenological analysis of embodiment, aesthetic experience, the interpretation of texts, moral behavior, and cognition, and exemplifies subsequent work in the field of realist phenomenology being conducted by an international collection of active scholars influenced by Aesthetic Genesis.". (shrink)

While nowhere does he use the term to refer to his own theory, Aristotle is often thought to exemplify an early correspondence theory of truth. In the paper, I examine the textual evidence used to support the idea that Aristotle holds a correspondence theory of truth, and to infer the nuances of this theory. I hold that Aristotle’s theory of truth can account for terms that signify non-existent things, i.e., that on Aristotle’s account, an assertion is not automatically false given (...) its subject term’s “failure to refer”. Terms do not refer for Aristotle, they signify. (shrink)

In this monograph, Sentesy defends the revolutionary Aristotelian claim that change is. Change is, insofar as it exists and can be defined; it has identifiable aspects and is subject to analysis, as much as anything else that is. The contradictory claim would be, of course, that change is not—that change is the opposite of being, a becoming that itself is nothing. The fundamental claim of this book is that such conceptions are mistaken, that Aristotle has an ontology of change that (...) accounts for it as both real and existent, and also that the possibility of describing said ontology of change is itself evidence for the claim that change is. Sentesy writes, "In showing what change is, Aristotle also shows that it... (shrink)

This collection of essays takes as its focus Mitscherling’s comprehensive phenomenological analysis of embodiment, aesthetic experience, the interpretation of texts, moral behavior, and cognition, and exemplifies subsequent work in the field of realist phenomenology being conducted by an international collection of active scholars influenced by Mischerling’s Aesthetic Genesis.

In Plato’s texts, and especially in the Apology, the Platonic Socrates refers to a daimonion, or daimonion sēmeion that appears only to contradict Socrates in some course of action on which he is about to embark. Socrates infers, as well, that its not interfering is a sign that what he is doing is right. I argue that the Socrates’ daimonion is not a divine spirit in its own right, i.e., the Greek daimōn. Daimonion is used in an adjectival or diminutive (...) sense, describing Socrates’ sign; it is a human reflection of a divinity, the divine in the human, the culmination of Socrates’ participation in the reasoning of the divine. As a “demonic man”, Socrates maintains a relation to the divine, having become habituated to the same reasoning. (shrink)

The time of the literary work of art is a schematized aspect of the represented objectivities of the literary work. Roman Ingarden’s analysis of the time of the literary work extends upon Husserl’s phenomenology of time consciousness but nevertheless remains consistent with it, insofar as within a literary work as well as actuality, an objective time or literary objective time is constituted from an experience of temporal objects. The time of the literary work of art is experienced through its represented (...) objectivities and depends on an already existent concept of objective time. The time of the literary work, however, gains an indeterminacy, as the author of the literary work is able to manipulate our experience of time within the literary work by predicting how the reader will concretize its events, characters, and objects with respect to time. I use Alain Robbe-Grillet’s representation of the centipede in La Jalousie as an example of the possible manipulations of time, explicable through Ingarden’s analysis of time in the literary work of art. (shrink)

The product of a Kickstarter fundraising campaign, "Clear and Present Thinking" is a college-level textbook in logic and critical thinking. Chapters: 1. Questions, Problems, and World Views 2. Good and Bad Thinking Habits 3. Basics of Argumentation 4. Fallacies 5. Reasonable Doubt 6. Moral Reasoning In an effort to reduce the cost of education for students, this textbook was funded by over 700 people through the Kickstarter online crowd-funding platform.

Most people would not associate Confucian philosophy with contemporary education. After all, the former is an ancient Chinese tradition and the latter is a modern phenomenon. But this book shows otherwise, by explaining how millennia-old Confucian ideas and practices can inform, inspire and improve teaching and learning today. Drawing upon major Confucian texts such as the Analects and Mencius, as well as influential thinkers such as Confucius, Zhu Xi and Empress Xu, the various chapters address current educational issues and challenges (...) such as the following: How can humanity resolve the climate emergency? What (more) should schools do to promote education for girls? Is there more to lifelong learning than just skills upgrading? Is teacher-centred education really bad? What is missing in the existing frameworks on 21st century competencies? What new initiatives are needed to champion sustainable development? Confucian Philosophy for Contemporary Education answers the above questions and more by presenting a Confucian model of education. The author describes a Confucian school where Dao - a shared vision of human excellence - is realised through an inclusive, mindful, learning-centred and ultimately humanising form of education. This book is a useful resource for academic researchers, educators, students and general readers on Confucian philosophy and its continual relevance for present-day education. (shrink)

Throughout the two-thousand-year span of Christian history, believers in Jesus have sought to articulate their faith and their understanding of how God works in the world. How do we, as we examine the vast and varied output of those who came before us, understand the unity and the diversity of their thinking? How do we make sense of our own thought in light of theirs? The Christian Understandings series offers to help. In this exciting volume, Charlene Burns offers a (...) brief but thorough tour through more than two millennia of thought on the nature of evil. Starting with the contexts of the Hebrew Bible and moving forward, Burns outlines the many ways that Christian thought has attempted to deal with the reality of evil and suffering. From a personal Satan and demonic activity, to questions of free will and autonomy, to the nature of God and Gods role in suffering, Burns offers a clear and compelling overview. (shrink)

Intellectual biography -- Confucius' life, personality and influence -- Critical exposition of Confucius' educational thought -- The concept of li -- The concepts of dao and he -- The concept of ren -- The concept of junzi -- The concepts of xue, wen and si -- The relevance of Confucius' work today -- Confucius and 21st century education -- Conclusion.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship broadcasts Mixed Martial Arts fights in over 149 countries to nearly a billion households worldwide. In 2013, the UFC signed the first ever female fighter Ronda ‘Rowdy’ Rousey. In this essay, I argue that women’s participation in the UFC challenges traditional stereotypes of female physical passivity and Iris Marion Young’s claims about feminine spatiality. However, at the same time, UFC culture emphasizes traditional sexist views of femininity and submissiveness. In order to analyze how gender is constructed (...) in the UFC, theories on women’s lived body experiences through participation in MMA are explored. Brian Pronger’s homosocial and homophobia framework is also applied to the phallocentric discourse that is part of the UFC. (shrink)

We critically analyze four images of female Paralympians posing nude in ESPN The Magazine’s Body Issue from the years 2009, 2010, 2012, and 2014. Past literature shows that media portrayals of female Paralympians emphasize esthetically pleasing bodies, able-bodied images and asexualization. Weaving’s continuum of sexual objectification was applied to assess the varying degrees of sexual objectification showcased within each image. From a feminist perspective, discourses of heteronormativity and ableism were applied to outline the concerns with female Paralympic representation in The (...) Body Issue. We argue that by normalizing disability and sexual objectification, woman athletes are trivialized. (shrink)

The year 2014 marked the 50th Anniversary of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. I argue that SISI is problematic for the continued struggle of women in sport given the nature and the extent of sexual objectification. The SISI has evolved over the years from a bathing suit fashion spread to a contemporary multimedia colossal. For example, to help celebrate the 50th anniversary, SISI teamed up with Mattel and featured Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Barbie in the February 2014 issue, and a special collector’s (...) item Barbie doll was produced and sold exclusively at Target. Sport is a celebration of human variety, yet Sports Illustrated rarely includes female athletes on their covers, and instead pushes a product that celebrates heterosexuality and sexual objectification of females. (shrink)

In this essay a selection of images of women Olympians who have opted to pose nude in calendars, in Playboy magazine and in mainstream men's magazines is critically analysed. It is argued that when women athletes pose nude, their talent and incredible skill are trivialised because they are sexually objectified. Based on Nussbaum's theory of objectification, a continuum is developed to analyse the said images. The analysis highlights theories of sexualisation, heteronormative culture, and homophobia which are entangled within the apparent (...) justifications for posing nude. These are rejected in favour of the objectification critique. (shrink)

In October 2017, after an 11-year-old battle, the Global Association of International Sports Federation classified pole dancing as a professional sport. In this essay, I argue that pole dan...

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:Buddhist-Christian Studies 23 (2003) 87-100 [Access article in PDF] "Soul-Less" Christianity and the Buddhist Empirical Self:Buddhist-Christian Convergence? Charlene Burns University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Buddhist-Christian dialogue seems to founder on the shoals of theological anthropology. The Christian concept of the soul and concomitant ideas of life after death appear to be diametrically opposed to the Buddhist doctrine of anatta, no-self. The anthropological terminology, with its personalist implications in Christianity (...) and its impersonal meanings for Buddhism offers perhaps the greatest challenge to interreligious understanding. The two traditions have built up stereotypical interpretations of one another's (and their own) vocabularies to such an extent that "personal" and "impersonal" have at times operated in dialogue as "party slogans and fighting words. " 1In this paper I explore the plausibility that new interpretations of the human being in both traditions may overcome this problem. There is no agreement across denominations on the meaning of soul for Christianity and likewise no single orthodox interpretation of no-self for all forms of Buddhism. There are of course basics for both traditions that serve as the starting point for all interpretations, and these will be identified below. During the last decade interesting and innovative ways of elaborating on the basics for both Buddhism and Christianity approach something of a middle ground in religious anthropology. It is my thesis that the moves made by Christian theologians toward emphasis on the person as a body-soul unity, and by at least one Buddhist scholar toward the idea of an empirical (not metaphysical) self, are closing what has been perhaps the most problematic gap between the two traditions. The State of the Personal Soul in Christianity The stereotype of Christian anthropology is of the human constituted by a separable body and soul. Although there have been important voices expressing otherwise in history, for the average believer the immaterial soul separates from the physical body at the moment of death, and most assume that the soul goes immediately to its eternal reward or punishment. 2 (While the issue of the timing and nature of resurrection is an important and contested one, attention cannot be given to it here, since the present issue is the soul before death. ) [End Page 87]Early Christians agreed that the human being is more than just a physical body. However, there has never been agreement on the number and kind of "ontological ingredients" it takes to make a person. 3 Trichotomy, dichotomy, and monism have all been proposed at one time or another. The trichotomist position, usually attributed to Paul, was first popular among Greek and Alexandrian Christians. In this view, the human is made up of body, soul, and spirit: the parts function in concert, with soul mediating between the spirit and body. Here, the spirit is the essential self that exists in relationship to God. Dichotomists say that we are made of two substances, body and soul/spirit. This dualism of separable metaphysical substances with soul animating the body came to dominate the Western theological scene, in part due to Augustine's influence. Although there are significant differences in detail between trichotomist and dichotomist positions, what matters for our purposes is the underlying common anthropological assumption that "persons survive apart from their bodies. " 4Strong challenges to dualist anthropologies came in the seventeenth century in the form of materialism and monism. Thomas Hobbes, in Leviathan, argued for materialism, saying that there is no such thing as incorporeal substance. Nothing survives death, he said: it is through divine grace that we will be resurrected into eternity. Present-day descendants of materialism include psychological behaviorism, brain-mind identity theory, and epiphenomenalism. The second strong challenge to dualism took the shape of monism, as in the philosophy of Baruch Spinoza. He believed that reality is a single substance, and matter and spirit are properties of it. All of creation manifests the absolute substance, God. Each entity exists as idea in the mind of God, and so the soul can be said to be eternal when it becomes one with the mind... (shrink)

I analyze the case of pregnant athletes, and argue that sexism surrounds pregnant athlete’s participation in sport. I claim that we stigmatize the pregnant body in action. Participating in sport wh...

En s’appuyant sur leurs pratiques de recherche-création en art équestre et en acrobatie aérienne, les deux auteurs proposent une réflexion croisée sur le cirque. De l’entraînement à la représentation publique, cet article, d’une part, s’intéresse à la notion de répertoire technique qui provoque parfois souffrance et lassitude pour celui qui les pratique, et, d’autre part, observe dans quelle mesure la démonstration de ce répertoire tend à normer les gestes et les attitudes des corps humains ou animaux en scène. Au-delà du (...) cirque, c’est en convoquant des notions transdisciplinaires que certains processus de création engendrent des formes qui les extirpent de toute classification et laissent entrevoir un renouvellement des esthétiques et des modes de pensée du corps en scène. (shrink)

Business and Society Review, Volume 127, Issue 1, Page 97-125, Spring 2022.