Chapter 9 The Explosive Persian Gulf: Lessons Learned Discussion question: Page 164 Continued on next page Please note! The below questions are NOT the topic for the essays. The topics are found in the assignment instructions. From the list below, you will choose a question that relates to the article/topic you choose from the assignment instructions/topics. Is there a meaning to life? Is the meaning of life the same for animals and humans? What does it mean to live a good life? What should be the goal of humanity? Will religion ever become obsolete? What concept would have the biggest positive impact on humanity? Is suffering a necessary part of the human condition? Does hardship make a person stronger? If so, under what conditions and at what point is it too much hardship? Would things get better or worse if humans focused on what was going well rather than what’s going wrong? What benefits does art provide society? Does art hurt society in any way? Is humanity headed in the right or wrong direction? What is the best way for a person to attain happiness? Is it better for a person to have a broad knowledge base or a deep knowledge base? Are any beliefs not justified? In other words, are there any beliefs one cannot justifiably hold? Is it more important to help yourself, help your family, help your society, or help the world? What is the most important goal every person should have? Can human nature be changed? Should it be changed? Does knowledge have intrinsic value, or does it need to have a practical use to have value? Is a life that focuses on avoiding pain and seeking out pleasure a good and worthwhile life? What are the most important things to learn about one’s self? Is it possible for a human to fathom the true depths of reality and existence? What is the best path to find truth: science, math, art, philosophy, or something else? What in life is truly objective and not subjective? Can we define consciousness? Is it possible to prove that other people besides yourself have consciousness? How conscious are animals? Why are humans so confident in beliefs that can’t be proven? Why do humans have such a strong urge to distract themselves from the real world? Is the concept of “you” continuous or does past “you” continually fade into present and future “you”? In other words, what part of “you” sticks around over time considering that the atoms that make up your body are constantly being replaced and your memories are always changing? When, if ever, is taking a human life justified? Without religion would people become more, less, or be equally morally corrupt? Do animals have rights, and do those rights extend to all animals or do the rights change based on the complexity of the animal? If it was discovered that personality traits were partly genetic and could be removed with gene therapy, would it be ethical to edit out neg.

1. Chapter 9 The Explosive Persian Gulf:
Lessons Learned Discussion question: Page 164
Continued on next page
Please note! The below questions are NOT the topic for the
essays. The
topics are found in the assignment instructions. From the list
below, you
will choose a question that relates to the article/topic you
choose from the
assignment instructions/topics.
Is there a meaning to life?
Is the meaning of life the same for animals and humans?
What does it mean to live a good life?
What should be the goal of humanity?
Will religion ever become obsolete?
What concept would have the biggest positive impact on
humanity?

2. Is suffering a necessary part of the human condition?
Does hardship make a person stronger? If so, under what
conditions and at
what point is it too much hardship?
Would things get better or worse if humans focused on what
was going well
rather than what’s going wrong?
What benefits does art provide society? Does art hurt society in
any way?
Is humanity headed in the right or wrong direction?
What is the best way for a person to attain happiness?
Is it better for a person to have a broad knowledge base or a
deep knowledge
base?
Are any beliefs not justified? In other words, are there any
beliefs one cannot
justifiably hold?
Is it more important to help yourself, help your family, help
your society, or
help the world?
What is the most important goal every person should have?

3. Can human nature be changed? Should it be changed?
Does knowledge have intrinsic value, or does it need to have a
practical use to
have value?
Is a life that focuses on avoiding pain and seeking out pleasure
a good and
worthwhile life?
What are the most important things to learn about one’s self?
Is it possible for a human to fathom the true depths of reality
and existence?
What is the best path to find truth: science, math, art,
philosophy, or something
else?
What in life is truly objective and not subjective?
Can we define consciousness?
Is it possible to prove that other people besides yourself have
consciousness?
How conscious are animals?
Why are humans so confident in beliefs that can’t be proven?
Why do humans have such a strong urge to distract themselves

4. from the real
world?
Is the concept of “you” continuous or does past “you”
continually fade into
present and future “you”? In other words, what part of “you”
sticks around over
time considering that the atoms that make up your body are
constantly being
replaced and your memories are always changing?
When, if ever, is taking a human life justified?
Without religion would people become more, less, or be equally
morally
corrupt?
Do animals have rights, and do those rights extend to all
animals or do the
rights change based on the complexity of the animal?
If it was discovered that personality traits were partly genetic
and could be
removed with gene therapy, would it be ethical to edit out
negative character
traits that harm others like extreme aggression, compulsive
lying, or cruelty?

5. Are people ethically obligated to improve themselves?
Can morality ever be objective or is it always subjective? If it
can be objective, in
what instances? If it’s always subjective, how do we decide
whose concept of
morality is correct?
Are intentions or outcomes more important when judging
whether actions are
moral?
Should there be limitations on the right to free speech?
Are we obligated to help all people, if we are able, or only those
near us?
How much effort should an individual put into not offending
others?
How far should governments go to prevent its citizens from
causing harm to
themselves?
Do people in wealthier countries have a moral obligation to help
those in poorer
countries?
What boundaries and limitations should be placed on

6. governments?
Are we morally obligated to spend less time looking at screens?
On social
media?
Knowing what we do about the damaging effects of looking at
screens on
children, are parents who let their children spend too much time
looking at
them morally wrong?
If all humans want the same basic things, why is there so much
violence and
strife between people?
Is the human tendency to create groups an overall positive or
negative trait in
terms of general human flourishing?
What would happen to a society in which no one had to work
and everyone was
provided enough food/water/shelter/healthcare for free?
If everyone said what they were actually thinking, what would
happen to
society?
What are the benefits and drawbacks of diversity in society?

7. Is social media positive or negative for our society? Why?
Is hierarchy necessary for all successful human communities?
Is some degree of censorship necessary?
At what point is a technologically enhanced human not a human
anymore?
What is a fair society?
Why do we create art?
Have we become less happy in this age of technology?
Are humans obligated to better themselves, and will doing so
make them
happier?
Is the most important purpose in life to find happiness?
Does life require a purpose and a goal?
What is happiness?
Are we the biggest threat to humanity?
Do we control technology or is technology controlling us?
The above questions are from this site:
https://conversationstartersworld.com/philosophical-questions/

8. Essay 2
NB: Before starting your essay, you should read this entire
document.
For this assignment, you will choose one of the three topics
below and write an
essay of at least 4 pages, double-spaced, in Times New Roman
12 point font;
your paper should be written in Standard English and done in
MLA format. You
must include a MLA works cited page that includes all sources
used in your
essay, including the article related to the topic you choose.
To submit your paper, click on ‘Essay 2.’ You should attach a
file that can be
opened with Microsoft Word (doc or docx); do not submit a pdf
or type in the
submission box.

9. Any instance of plagiarism will be punished by a minimum of
an F on the
assignment and a report to the associate dean of the humanities
division.
Further punishment could include failure in the course,
suspension, or
expulsion.
The articles given below as topics are all from The New York
Times. Non-
subscribers are limited to the number of articles they can read,
but the Richland
Library has full access to The New York Times. You can access
The New York
Times via this DCCCD Library web page.
Topic #1: “Would Human Extinction Be a Tragedy?”
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/06/opinion/athens-plato-
academy.html?login=email&auth=login-email
Topic #2: “Why Mortality Makes Us Free”
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/opinion/why-mortality-
makes-us-
free.html
Topic #3: “Would Human Extinction Be a Tragedy?”

10. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/06/opinion/athens-plato-
academy.html?login=email&auth=login-email
After choosing an article/topic to write about, you should
choose one of the
philosophical questions from the list of questions included with
the assignment
handouts. The question should be one that you think relates to
the article/topic
you choose. The focus of your essay will be an analysis of the
philosophical
question you choose from the list. Please note! Do not simply
choose any
question on the list; you should choose a question that you think
relates to
the article/topic you choose. In your essay, you will need to
explain how
the question relates to the article/topic.
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/24/
http://libguides.dcccd.edu/c.php?g=701415
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/06/opinion/athens-plato-
academy.html?login=email&auth=login-email
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/06/opinion/athens-plato-
academy.html?login=email&auth=login-email
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/opinion/why-mortality-
makes-us-free.html

11. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/opinion/why-mortality-
makes-us-free.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/06/opinion/athens-plato-
academy.html?login=email&auth=login-email
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/06/opinion/athens-plato-
academy.html?login=email&auth=login-email
Your essay should follow the below outline and should include
the
following:
A heading done according to MLA
An original title (hint: ‘Essay 1’ is not an original title; nor is
the title of the
article you choose to write on)
First Paragraph: Introduction
In the introduction, you should set up the topic of your essay in
a way that
engages your reader. Since the essay is an analysis of a
philosophical question,
your introduction should convey this; your introduction should
contain your
thesis (if you are unsure of how to write a thesis, read this
advice on developing
a thesis), should let the reader know the philosophical question
you intend to

12. analyze, and should mention the article you are writing about
(the article
related to the topic you choose).
Here is some VERY helpful advice on how to write your
intro/begin your essay:
https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/beginning-academic-
essay
Second Paragraph: Summary of the article given with the topic
you chose
When you refer to an article, you should give the title, author,
and publication.
A summary should be a brief, objective overview (meaning no
opinionated or
evaluative comments) of the main ideas of the original. In the
summary
paragraph, you should periodically use author tags to indicate
that you are
summarizing, that you are conveying someone else’s views. So
you should say
things such as, “According to Jane Doe…” or “The author
points out that…”
Also, in a summary, use transitions to convey to the reader the
order of ideas

13. presented in the original, to connect the summary’s ideas and
make it coherent,
things like, “First, the author discusses the problem of….”,
“Furthermore, he
addresses the issue of….” “Doe concludes by pointing out
that…”
The summary should be written as such, meaning you are
continuously
referring to the text and the author.
A few more things about a summary: it should not contain
quotations, it should
be only one paragraph, and it should accurately give the main
ideas of the
original.
Read this helpful advice on how to correctly summarize a text.
Third Paragraph: A thorough discussion/explanation of the
philosophical
question and how it relates to the article you chose
Here are some points you should address in this paragraph; they
do not all have
to be addressed, but most should be:
https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/developing-thesis
https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/developing-thesis

14. https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/summary
question?
words, what is
at stake in this question? Why do we care about it? Why is it
important for
everyone, not only philosophers?
mention
those you intend to discuss in your essay) What philosophical
theories or
positions might help us discuss this question? (also, only
mention those
you intend to discuss in your essay)
Body Paragraphs
The number of body paragraphs is your decision as the author,
but each
paragraph should thoroughly discuss the philosophical question
you are
analyzing. Possible ways to go about this: one or more

15. paragraphs about how
another/other philosophers have answered/written about this
question; one or
more paragraphs about a philosophical concept, problem, or
theory that relates
to this question and perhaps helps us look at this question.
You may also include a paragraph on your response to the
philosophical
question you are analyzing, but the majority of content in your
body
paragraphs should be from your research.
You must include research (incorporated through quotation,
paraphrase, or
both) from at least 2 philosophical journals found in the
DCCCD Library
databases; Internet/other sources will not count. You may also
use our text as a
source, but you must still have at least 2 sources from
philosophical journals in
the DCCCD databases; all research must be cited according to
MLA.
If you need help using the databases, you can get help in person
in the library

16. or online using the ‘Ask a Librarian’ tool. When incorporating
sources into your
work, they must be present so as to serve your
position/argument/discussion.
In other words, they should not be there just to be there; they
should be
incorporated AS part of the discussion/argument, in a
meaningful, substantial
way.
Conclusion
Since your essay is an analysis of a philosophical question, your
conclusion
should effectively bring that discussion to a close. Avoid simply
repeating
yourself in the conclusion.
Here is some VERY helpful advice on how to conclude your
essay:
https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/ending-essay-
conclusions