Discussion Question Category: Metaphysics

On the Verandah

When you are reading a really good book, do you sometimes feel like your mind is transported to the land of the story? If your body remains in the same time and place, where are you really? Is a mind the same thing as a brain, or are they different? What kinds of things are On the Verandah

Obstinate Pen

Where do thoughts come from? Do we always do what we intend? What is the relationship between what we intend and our actions? Do we have control over our thoughts? Over our actions? What is the mind? What kinds of things have minds? Can a pen have a mind? A table? A plant? An ant? Obstinate Pen

Morris the Moose

Why does Morris believe that the cow is a moose? Does Morris have good reasons for believing this? Does the cow have good reasons for insisting she is not a moose? What are these reasons? When the animals see their reflections in the stream, what makes them conclude that they are not the same after Morris the Moose

Magic

What does a fortune teller claim to know? How could she know that? Do you think we could know what the future holds? If so, how? If not, why not? Would it be easier to predict the immediate future, or the distant future? Why? Is human behavior more difficult to predict than other behavior (maybe Magic

Little Blue and Little Yellow

What it is that makes us who we are? Once little blue and little yellow are green, are they no longer blue and yellow? Can something change and still remain the same? If you change, are you still the same person? Is the way things appear to us a good basis for believing something? Do Little Blue and Little Yellow

Let’s Do Nothing!

What do we mean when we say we are doing nothing? Is there a difference between doing nothing and not doing something? What would it mean to do nothing? Is it impossible to do nothing if you’re alive? What exactly is nothing? Can “nothing” exist? Contributed by Gobe Hirata

Hermit Crab

Is the hermit crab a hero? Is he responsible for saving the flounder, even if he didn’t mean to? Do we sometimes get credit for doing things that are really more lucky than intended? Should we? Are we only responsible for the things that we control, or can we be responsible for other things as Hermit Crab

Hello, Red Fox

Why do we perceive colors the way we do? Why is red red? Green? Yellow? Black? White? Who do you think is seeing the party guests correctly, Mama Frog or Little Frog? Why? How can we be sure that the colors that we are seeing are the correct ones? How can we be sure that Hello, Red Fox

Harold and the Purple Crayon

Is Harold pretending? Is what Harold draws real? How can what Harold draws scare him? Is the moon we see more real than Harold’s moon—if so, why? Is Harold dreaming? Can we create our own reality, or do we do so without even know it? Would we want to create our own realities?