THE MORE THAT THINGS CHANGE THE MORE THEY STAY THE SAME

The More That Things Change The More They Stay The Same

Table of Contents

Introduction2

Contribution to Society4

Social Environment4

Problem or Idea4

Description of the Solution and Implementation5

Critiquing the Creative Ideas5

The Atomists7

Protagoras7

The Sources of Plato's Opinions8

Plato8

Plato's Utopia8

The Theory of Ideas9

Plato's Theory of Immortality9

Plato's Cosmogony10

Knowledge and Perception in Plato10

Aristotle's Metaphysics10

Aristotle's Ethics11

Aristotle11

Aristotle's Politics11

Aristotle's Logic12

Aristotle's Physics13

Conclusion13

References16

The More That Things Change The More They Stay The Same

Introduction

Bertrand Russell must be considered, by any standards, one of the greatest intellectuals and human beings of the 20th century. Upon completing his magisterial A History of Western Philosophy, one can also understand why he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1950; chiefly for this work- the citation states that the award was “in recognition of his varied and significant writings in which he champions humanitarian ideals and freedom of thought”.

These varied writings consist of more than 90 published works in philosophy, logic, mathematics, political theory, education, and social commentary over the course of 74 years, until his death at the age of 97. The details of this Welsh aristocrat's life are equally varied and significant, though I will only provide here a couple of my favorite anecdotes. He was the godchild of John Stuart Mill orphaned by the age of 6, and raised by his grandfather who was the former Prime Minister (and who had visited Napoleon on Elba!). He was one of the most important founders of the Analytic school of philosophy, along with his brilliant student Ludwig Wittgenstein, and attempted to provide a mathematical and logical solution for all problems of philosophy. He was imprisoned during World War I for pacifism, which did not stop him from receiving the Order of Merit from the King 30 years later. He co-authored the Russell-Einstein manifesto of 1955 calling for nuclear disarmament, and remained an anti-war activist, especially in regards to Vietnam and the Israeli-Arab wars, until his last days. An online sample of some of his writings can be found here, including a satirical auto-obituary he wrote in 1936.

“Three interests, simple but extremely powerful, have controlled my life: the desiring love, the search for understanding, and incredible bad for the struggling of human beings. These interests, like great gusts of wind, have provided me hither and thither, in a run course, over an in-depth beach of struggling, attaining to the very brink of despair. This has been my lifestyle. I have discovered it value residing, and would love to stay it again if the opportunity were provided me”.

Contribution to Society

Bertrand Russell made numerous contributions to society such as developing the basis of modern statistical logics; he is the creator of analytic philosophy and provides questionable opinions in governmental political concepts, religious studies and education that produced the thought of never recognizing inference over factual evidences.

Social Environment

The political and social atmosphere during Bertrand Russell's life affected his philosophical opinions associated with state policies and knowledge. He openly criticized about the atomic and nuclear proliferation. Set against the back drop of World War I, ...