Best Social Philosophy: What Do You Think?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the question of which philosophical framework is best suited to run a society. Participants explore various philosophical schools, debating their relevance and applicability to political theory and societal organization.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants propose Objectivism as a significant philosophy for societal governance.
  • Others advocate for pragmatism, suggesting its practical approach is most suitable.
  • Existentialism is presented as a strong contender by one participant, who asserts its importance.
  • Concerns are raised that many of the mentioned philosophies, except for existentialism, are primarily epistemologies rather than political philosophies, prompting a call for clarification on their application to societal governance.
  • One participant notes that each philosophy has various branches, including epistemology, metaphysics, axiology, and logic, which complicates their classification.
  • Questions are posed regarding how idealism, which posits that only ideas exist, can inform societal operation, especially in the absence of ethical prescriptions.
  • A participant acknowledges a mix-up in terminology, clarifying that the discussed philosophies are metaphysical rather than epistemological.
  • There is a call for a more focused question regarding which philosophy could effectively serve as a foundation for political theory.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the relevance of various philosophies to societal governance, with no consensus reached on which philosophy is best suited for this purpose. The discussion remains unresolved regarding the applicability of the mentioned philosophies to political theory.

Contextual Notes

Participants highlight limitations in the initial framing of the question, particularly regarding the distinction between epistemology and political philosophy. There is an ongoing exploration of how these philosophical frameworks can be practically applied to societal structures.

What philosophy is best to run a society?

  • Idealism

    Votes: 3 17.6%

  • Realism

    Votes: 4 23.5%

  • Pragmatism

    Votes: 6 35.3%

  • Existentialism

    Votes: 4 23.5%
  • Total voters
    17
  • Poll closed .
ComputerGeek
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Which Philosophy do you think is best to run a society on?
 
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Hey, you left out some big ones, like Objectivism !
 
pragmatism, obviously.
 
Existentialism. Face it, this is all you got.
 
Except for existentialism, these are all epistemologies. None of the four are political philosophies. You should explain exactly how one would run a society based on one of these schools of philosophy.
 
loseyourname said:
Except for existentialism, these are all epistemologies. None of the four are political philosophies. You should explain exactly how one would run a society based on one of these schools of philosophy.


Bah. *beats self for not catching that*

Good job.
 
loseyourname said:
Except for existentialism, these are all epistemologies. None of the four are political philosophies. You should explain exactly how one would run a society based on one of these schools of philosophy.

Umm... actually, each has an epistemology wing, a metaphysical wing, an axiology wing and a Logic wing.
 
ComputerGeek said:
Umm... actually, each has an epistemology wing, a metaphysical wing, an axiology wing and a Logic wing.

How does idealism have a metaphysical wing?
 
franznietzsche said:
How does idealism have a metaphysical wing?

Idealists would say that reality is a manifestation of the spiritual world.
 
  • #10
ComputerGeek said:
Idealists would say that reality is a manifestation of the spiritual world.

Idealism is an ontology that says nothing but ideas exist, but how do you run a society based on this tenet? You haven't really answered the question. Given that none prescribes any kind of ethics, and therefore any course of action, what are the implications of each for how a society that believed in them would operate?

I'm not asking this to antagonize you. I'm the philosophy forum mentor and it's my job to try and clarify discussions that are muddied in the initial post.
 
  • #11
And yeah, I meant to say these are all metaphysics, not epistemologies; just mixed up the words. Sorry about that.
 
  • #12
loseyourname said:
Idealism is an ontology that says nothing but ideas exist, but how do you run a society based on this tenet? You haven't really answered the question. Given that none prescribes any kind of ethics, and therefore any course of action, what are the implications of each for how a society that believed in them would operate?
I'm not asking this to antagonize you. I'm the philosophy forum mentor and it's my job to try and clarify discussions that are muddied in the initial post.

Well, I understand that you can not use these as a political philosophy. Perhaps I should have said "What philosophy is best to build a political theory on."
 

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