For Sinnott-Armstrong "What is Philosophy?"
(1) The author says that philosophy is defined by a goal and a method. What are the defining goal and the defining method of philosophy?
(2) What is the method of conceptual analysis and what does it try to achieve?
(3) What do you think about the puzzle of freedom discussed in the article? How would you personally address this puzzle?
(4) What are the main branches of philosophy? What subject matter does each include?
For Plato, "The Allegory of the Cave"
(1) In this allegory, who do you think the prisoners represent? What does the state of the prisoners (only being able to see shadows on a cave wall) represent? There may be several good answers-can you think of more than one?
(2) Who does the escaped prisoner represent, and why do you think this?
(3) What message would the escaped prisoner have for those who are still being held prisoner in the cave?
(4) How, do you think, does this all relate to the nature and practice of philosophy?