This assignment has several purposes
Basic Level: assesses how well you understand what Plato and Ryle said in our readings
Level 2: assesses how well you can use your understanding of Plato and Ryle to figure out how they might answer questions they don’t explicitly talk about
Level 3: assesses your ability to make and reply to objections to arguments
Directions
Answer the following questions in an essay of at least 5 paragraphs and at least 4 sentences per paragraph. (This is a suggestion.) Support your claims with citations from the Meno and from Ryle where appropriate.
When Meno provides his definition of virtue as a list on pp.60-61, what does Socrates think is wrong with this kind of definition? What kind of definition of ‘virtue’ does Socrates want instead?
Explain in your own words the distinction between know-how and know-that according to Ryle as represented in the readings and lectures. What’s an example of know-how that you yourself have, and an example of know-that that you yourself have. What makes the two kinds of knowledge seem different, from the point of view of your experience?
If virtue is a kind of know-how, would we learn it the same way we learn facts? Is there a difference between how we learn facts and how we learn skills? Could someone learn a skill just by learning facts alone? Why or why not?
If virtue is a kind of know-how, would we learn it the same way we learn facts? Why or why not? Would that explain why Socrates can’t find any teachers of virtue?
Is virtue know-that, as Socrates thinks it is, or is it know-how? Support your position by giving reasons to think it is true. Consider and reply to at least one objection to your position. (Note: saying that ‘virtue means different things to different people’ is a way of avoiding the question. You must try to figure out which kind of knowledge it is. That’s the exercise.)
Consider and reply to at least one objection that you think of yourself to your position.
IMPORTANT
You may not use any sources except your own brains and the course readings and lectures to write essays and assignments for this course. This includes: books and articles not assigned in the course, as well as paraphrase bots or other AI writing tools. This is because one of the goals of the assignments is for you to learn to read and think about the readings. If you include outside sources on an assignment during the semester, I will ask you to re-do the assignment.
FORMATTING and STYLE
Answer the questions in order.
Resist the temptation to include ‘outside’ information of any kind. These assignments are to be done with you and the reading (with the addition of my lectures and slides): that’s it. I do not want a standard ‘introduction’ or ‘conclusion.’ In fact, introductions are often where academic dishonesty takes place because of the temptation to ‘frame’ the essay.
Use ‘I’! It makes it clearer which thoughts are yours, and makes you sound less like a robot.
You may cite my lectures and slides but citations to the readings are better.
Please double space
Do not include a title/cover page–that’s unnecessary.
Use parenthetical citations to the text support your claims about the author’s work. Here is an example of how to format parenthetical citations:
“Meno calls Socrates a torpedo fish (Plato, Meno, p. 70).”
“Ryle says that a parrot does not have know-how” (‘Know-How and Know-That,” 40).
