Question 1

What is asserted by the principle of noncontradiction?
A) People who don't contradict themselves are rational.
B) A proposition and its contradiction cannot both be false at the same time.
C) A proposition and its contradiction can't both be true.
D) If two propositions don't contradict each other then both of them are true.

Accepted Answer

The principle of noncontradiction states that a proposition and its contradiction cannot both be true at the same time. This is a fundamental principle of logic and reasoning, as it allows us to make clear and consistent arguments without contradictions.

Question 2

For Aquinas, "what" a thing is (its essence) is not the same as "that" it is (its existence).

Accepted Answer

Aquinas believed in the distinction between essence and existence, with essence being what a thing is and existence being that it exists.

Question 3

Augustine thought that God was within time, which is an objective feature of the world.

Accepted Answer

Augustine believed in God as timeless and unchanging, outside of time and space. He argued that time was a creation of God and did not exist independently of Him.

Question 4

Which of the following views did Aquinas accept?
A) A physical thing is composed of matter and form.
B) All reality is material.
C) Forms exist independently of matter.
D) Nothing changes.

Accepted Answer

Aquinas believed in the Aristotelian notion that physical things are composed of both matter and form.

Question 5

Hypatia set forth the Ten Tropes, a collection of ten arguments by the ancient skeptics against the possibility of knowledge.

Accepted Answer

The Ten Tropes were set forth by Aenesidemus, a Pyrrhonist philosopher, not Hypatia.

Question 6

Sextus Empiricus believed that occasionally we perceive things as they really are.

Accepted Answer

Sextus Empiricus, as a Pyrrhonist skeptic, argued that we can never be certain about the true nature of things, including how they are perceived, because our perceptions can always be questioned.

Question 7

Those who think that universal terms like "man" denote something that exists outside the mind subscribe to _____.
A) conceptualism
B) realism
C) druidism
D) abstractionism

Accepted Answer

Realism is the view that the external world exists independently of our thoughts, beliefs, and perceptions. Therefore, using universal terms like "man" to refer to a certain type of being is seen as a reflection of an external reality that exists beyond the mind.

Question 8

What did Hypatia think about the study of mathematics and astronomy?
A) The study was useful in finding practical solutions to practical problems on earth.
B) The study was an amusing diversion and, like philosophy, just idle speculation.
C) The study was a way of proving the truth of Christianity.
D) The study was a way of checking metaphysical and epistemological features of Plato's, Aristotle's, and Plotinus's philosophies against the physical universe.

Accepted Answer

Hypatia was known for promoting the study of mathematics and astronomy as a way of testing the philosophical ideas of Plato, Aristotle, and Plotinus against the physical universe, rather than simply engaging in idle speculation. She did not view these subjects as a means of finding practical solutions to practical problems or proving the truth of Christianity.

Question 9

St. Augustine used the principle of noncontradiction to refute Academic skepticism.

Accepted Answer

St. Augustine argued that the principle of noncontradiction was necessary for any meaningful discourse or argumentation. He believed that the Academic skeptics' rejection of all knowledge and truth claims was ultimately self-contradictory, as their skeptical stance itself made a truth claim about the impossibility of knowing anything.

Question 10

Which of the following ancient traditions did Plotinus represent?
A) Stoicism
B) Epicureanism
C) Skepticism
D) Neoplatonism

Accepted Answer

Plotinus is known as the founder of Neoplatonism, an ancient tradition that combined elements of Platonic philosophy with ideas from other ancient traditions such as Aristotelianism, Stoicism, and Pythagoreanism.

Question 11

What did Aquinas maintain concerning the soul?
A) It is the passive potentiality of the body.
B) It is finite and destructible.
C) It cannot exist without the body.
D) It is a direct creation of God.

Accepted Answer

Aquinas maintained that the soul is a direct creation of God and is immortal. He believed that the soul has its own distinct existence and is not simply a passive potentiality of the body.

Question 12

St. Augustine regarded Plotinus and Plato as having prepared him for Christianity by exposing him to important Christian principles before he encountered them in scripture.

Accepted Answer

St. Augustine was heavily influenced by Neoplatonic philosophy, particularly the work of Plotinus, which helped prepare him for his later conversion to Christianity. He believed that the Neoplatonic concept of the One, the highest form of reality, was akin to the Christian God. Additionally, he saw similarities between Plato's theory of Forms and Christian theology.

Question 13

Plotinus believed in a personal God as the source of all reality and truth.

Accepted Answer

Plotinus, a 3rd-century philosopher, proposed a concept of the One or the Good as the ultimate source of all reality and truth, which is impersonal and beyond human understanding, rather than a personal God.

Question 14

Those who think that they can account for universal terms without invoking universals either as real things out there in the world or as concepts in the mind subscribe to _____.
A) nominalism
B) conceptualism
C) abstractionism
D) determinism

Accepted Answer

Nominalism is the philosophical view that there are no universals, meaning there are no real things or concepts that exist outside of particular objects or events. Nominalists would therefore reject the idea that universal terms can be accounted for without invoking universals. Conceptualism and abstractionism both involve the existence of concepts or abstract entities, which nominalists reject. Determinism is a completely unrelated philosophical concept dealing with the idea that all events, including human actions, are predetermined by causal laws.

Question 15

Regarding universals, conceptualism is the thought that universal terms refer to something that really exists outside of the mind.

Accepted Answer

Conceptualism holds that universals exist only within the mind and do not have an independent existence outside of it.

Question 16

The Academics and the Pyrrhonists are modified skeptics.

Accepted Answer

The answer of The Academics and the Pyrrhonists are modified...

Question 17

Which of the following views of Aristotle did Aquinas disagree with?
A) Physical things are always a blend of matter plus form.
B) The essence of a thing is the same as its existence.
C) One and the same form (universal) can be in more than one physical thing (particular).
D) Change is explained in terms of four causes: the formal, the material, the efficient, and the final.

Accepted Answer

Aquinas disagreed with Aristotle's view that the essence of a thing is the same as its existence. Aquinas believed that the essence and existence of a thing were distinct and that existence was a necessary aspect added to essence by God.

Question 18

Thomistic cosmology (theory of the universe as an ordered whole) is based on a geocentric view of the universe, and this is also true of Aquinas's psychology.

Accepted Answer

Thomistic cosmology and Aquinas's psychology are both based on a geocentric view of the universe.

Quiz 5: Philosophers of the Hellenistic and Christian Eras

What is asserted by the principle of noncontradiction?

For Aquinas, "what" a thing is (its essence) is not the same as "that" it is (its existence).

Augustine thought that God was within time, which is an objective feature of the world.

Which of the following views did Aquinas accept?

Hypatia set forth the Ten Tropes, a collection of ten arguments by the ancient skeptics against the possibility of knowledge.

Sextus Empiricus believed that occasionally we perceive things as they really are.

Those who think that universal terms like "man" denote something that exists outside the mind subscribe to _____.

What did Hypatia think about the study of mathematics and astronomy?

St. Augustine used the principle of noncontradiction to refute Academic skepticism.

Which of the following ancient traditions did Plotinus represent?

What did Aquinas maintain concerning the soul?

St. Augustine regarded Plotinus and Plato as having prepared him for Christianity by exposing him to important Christian principles before he encountered them in scripture.

Plotinus believed in a personal God as the source of all reality and truth.

Those who think that they can account for universal terms without invoking universals either as real things out there in the world or as concepts in the mind subscribe to _____.

Regarding universals, conceptualism is the thought that universal terms refer to something that really exists outside of the mind.

The Academics and the Pyrrhonists are modified skeptics.

Which of the following views of Aristotle did Aquinas disagree with?

Thomistic cosmology (theory of the universe as an ordered whole) is based on a geocentric view of the universe, and this is also true of Aquinas's psychology.