definition of terms

When studying, it was drilled into the minds of my classmates and me, when you began a paper, you were to lay the terms upon which your argument would develop.


Thus, as we are at the beginnning, it would be wise to lay the framework from which we will continue our discussions.


We shall proceed on the basis that there is objective truth and man is a composite being made up of both a physical nature and a spiritual nature which informs the physical material. {if you are reading this and disagree with either point, stay tuned, there is evidence that shall be used to explain}

We shall also return to the roots of philosophy using as our foundation the three classic laws which are attributed to Aristotle and informed the scholastic tradition.

1) The Law of Identity which states that an object is the same as itself: A ≡ A.

2) The Principle of Non-Contradiction: contradictory statements cannot both at the same time be true, e.g.: "A is B and A is not B" are mutually exclusive.

3) Law of Excluded Middle: Everything must either be or not be.
We will use the following example: Sophia is married. The law of excluded middle would hold that either Sophia is married or Socrates is not married is true by virtue of its form alone. That is, the "middle" position, that Sophia is neither married nor unmarried, is excluded by logic, and therefore either the first possibility (Sophia is married) or its negation (Sophia is not married) must be true.

Additional favored principles:
4) Nemo dat quod non habet: Nothing can give that which it does not have.

5) Principle of Sufficient Reason: For everything that is, there is a reason why it should be as it is rather than otherwise.

More time shall be spent developing all of these themes as this blog is developed.