Lesson 2

Critical Thinking & Writing: Recap & HW #2

Today we talked about the story of “the Ring of Gyges” and play the “the Prisoners’ Dilemma” game. In both cases, we talked about the ways in which the good of the individual can differ from the good of the collective. If someone had the ring of Gyges, they would be able to do whatever they wanted without getting caught. This might be good for one individual, but if everyone had the ring then society would be in trouble. With the prisoners’ dilemma, we talked about how the best outcome for everyone can be the one that it is not in the rational interest of any individual to choose.

In light of the discussion, write a short essay (about three paragraphs) answering the question: what is the relationship between the good of the individual and the good of the community? Is the individual’s self-interest always in conflict with the interest of society, or can they be brought into harmony? Feel free to draw on class discussion as well as your personal experience when putting together your argument.

Hint: Philosophers place a great deal of emphasis on the structure of their arguments. Therefore, it might be a good idea to organize your essay in the following way. Begin by stating the position you are defending. Then, give a few reasons to support your position (think about what we talked about in class). In another paragraph, briefly summarize an objection or two that an opponent might make in response to your argument. Then, in a final paragraph, explain why you think your opponent’s arguments are not strong enough to refute your own. This format is very effective, which is why it is so common among professional philosophers! Don’t worry if you find it difficult to put your arguments in perfect order, we will continue to practice structuring arguments over the course of this class.

Reading assignments for next lesson:

The 3 pages on the evil demon thought experiment,see attachments.

Another optional assignment is (optional because the language might be difficult) Meditation II from Descartes Mediations on the first philosophy.