Philosophy 226: Environmental Ethic The Last Man Argument There are three types of intrinsic values. The first intrinsic value (IV1) means the same as something having something non-instrumental value. It has an end in itself. Trees are valuable because they are trees. The second intrinsic value (IV2) is used to refer to an object as having value due to its intrinsic properties; properties that can be characterized without reference to other objects.
Since his argument is based on a common fallacy, his essay appears unreasonable and flawed. Another flaw is Twain’s Appeal to Ignorance, or Ad Ignorantiam. Twain writes that, “… [man’s tonsils] perform no useful function; they have no value.” (Twain
Locke thought that the government’s power was best limited by dividing it up into branches, with each branch having only as much power as is needed for its proper function. This way no one branch has too much authority. This also increased the protection and preservation of mankind’s private property. In conclusion Locke's work he explains that the concepts of government power cannot possibly be absolutely arbitrary over the lives and fortunes of the people. He also states that it was the joint power of every member of the society.
How is it related to civil law? The natural law is against the government of one human being. It guarantees the equality, independence, and the right to be in charge of one’s own life, family, and property. Locke holds that everybody is equal and that a single human being has no right to govern, because government should be managed by all people, or more precisely by people’s majority. The natural law does not constrain freedom but according to Locke is should preserve and even broaden the freedom.
Because language is arbitrary, the meanings of words can change over time. This means that language is dynamic. Symbols are ambiguous because what they mean isn’t clear-cut. Finally, symbols are abstract, which means that they are not concrete or tangible. Words stand for ideas, people, events, objects, feelings, and so forth, but they are not the things they represent (Wood, p. 95, 96).” 2.
“The Trouble with Wilderness” Has the value of wilderness been overexposed to the point of exaggeration and fabrication? Under constant appraisal, the wilderness is said to be a pristine place that has been left untouched by the human disease. Cronon’s work, The Trouble with Wilderness; or Getting Back to the Wrong Nature has a different definition in mind that suggests that wilderness is not exactly what it seems, but more so a creation that can be used as a place to go to ‘get away from it all’. Wilderness cannot be destroyed by the very thing from which it was created from, therefore humans have only added on to it rather than destroyed it. Ultimately, the sources behind the transformation of the wilderness lie behind the sublime and the frontier.
To say that the intricacies that lay in the nature of life, aging and romance are just that – the unreachable, incomprehensible condition of human existence – would be a discomfiting conclusion to the true essence of this story. In my opinion, the intricacies within the nature of life, aging and romance are untethered and unwound by the simple realities mirrored in this tale, brought across only by the persona projected by its author. The profundity of this persona lies within the utter distance between the character himself and the yearning he doesn’t know he feels. He is portrayed as what I, the reader, can only perceive as irreparably lonely. His wondering in the dark translates to a deeper sense of being lost, unknowing of what is missing, of what hole needs to be filled.
Behind any word there is a meaning. However, meaning is not a “transparent” representation for a definition. Meaning varies from culture to culture and differs between individuals. It is constructed and is interpreted by many contrasting views. What one chooses as a definition of democracy can cause a discrepancy for another with a conflicting point of view.
Even if unintentional, texts cannot present an even-handed, unbiased representation of conflicting perspectives due to the inherent bias and objectives of the composer. Controversial events are often filled with a variety of views and beliefs, and it is the emphasizing of a particular perspective over others that provokes a biased attitude. To a great extent the manipulation of textual structure and the influence of authorial context in David Guterson’s novel Snow Falling on Cedars enables the subjective construction of perspective representations to shape responder’s opinion. Guterson’s text clearly demonstrate the extent to which the use of structure creates a biased representation of events and situations. Snow uses a circular narrative structure, thus allowing Guterson great flexibility in the manipulation and construction of perspectives.
The first is the proclivity to ignore the physicality of the voice in order to extract its significance or the meaning of its words. To ignore the physicality of the voice, however, is to miss its entire purpose as a mysterious, inexplicable presence. The second tendency is the tendency to focus on the materiality or body of the voice while ignoring its significance and insistence. Both of these tendencies focus of one side of the duality of the voice and fail to appreciate it as a whole, thereby obscuring it (Dolar). In Memento Mori, it is the object voice and the two tendencies that attempt to understand it that drive the plot forward and eventually move the novel to climax.