It Might not be Important

Introduction Aesthetics is the philosophical evaluation of art and the theory of beauty and opposite phenomena namely the ugly, the grotesque, the comical and the ironic. It comes from the Greek word aisthesis, meaning sensual perception. For decades, the discussion of art and of beauty in Western philosophy were considered as two very distinct matters. All …

Fortunes on Both Sides?

The slave trade that linked Africa, Europe, and the Americas brought a gruesome torture, death as well as profit. As the slave trade boomed in the middle of the 18th century, some European intellectuals saw it as a model of free enterprise and of liberty. They were not slave traders or slaveship captains but very …

It Doesn’t Have to be Perfect

Are our lives worth living? Are humans live worth living? If the answer is positive, the follow-up question then: Is life worth living unconditionally, or are there conditions attached? The philosophical debate about these questions has a long history, going back to ancient Greek and Roman philosophy. Much of what the ancients had to say about …

The Garden

People were invited to stay in this place, including women and slaves. They were staying in, as people called it, the Garden, to discuss about life, as well as to live a simple and self-sufficient life in the company of friends and fellows. They were guided by a thirty-five-year-old man who was living on the …

Stories as Therapy

Ancient Greek philosophy is filled with beautiful and interesting discussions of the soul. From the tripartite soul of Plato and Aristotle, to the intellectualism of the Stoics, ancient philosophers were fascinated by the foundations of human motivation and behaviour, and aimed to understand the structure of the mind. Reference to these thinkers has always been …

Knowledge Enhancement with Coffee

Introduction Many people these days consume coffee at cafes or malls with friends, family, or colleagues while discussing business, future projects, or merely to hang out. Twenty-first-century people gather around coffee and it becomes a culture. Many, however, do not realise that coffee drinking has its own history that can be traced back to Europe …

Social Change and the Enlightenment

The Enlightenment is defined as the period of rigorous scientific, political, and philosophical endeavour that characterised European society during the eighteenth century, even from the late seventeenth century to the ending of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815. This was a period of massive change in the way people live. Centuries of custom and tradition were …

Life is Preferable to Death

Who does not think about death? I bet everyone does, even if only in passing. The same goes with the afterlife. Human history always deals with the theme of death and the afterlife. People of different culture and religion ponder human life as we strive to make sense of our existences as well as our …

Understanding Humanity through Arts

Let us now take a look at the work of Sophocles. “Antigone” is arguably the most popular of ancient plays. It plays a beautiful in an intense touching manner, where Sophocles tells the story of Antigone, daughter of Oedipus and sister of Polynices and Eteocles. After a violent war over the city of Thebes, the heroine’s brothers …

Blood (does not Call) for Blood

“All corruptors have to be sentenced to death!” “Rapists and child molesters have to be put to death!” “Terrorists and murderers have to face capital penalty!” We commonly hear people invent their anger many times. How do we deal with this kind of situation? Let us now look at the ancient Greek people, perhaps they …