To many contemporary philosophers of science, the philosophy of Immanuel Kant is a necessary starting point. His thesis on epistemology is a sure reference for modern minds of the likes of Hans Reichenbach, T.S. Kuhn, Karl Popper and D. Shapere. This should not be a matter for disputation, more so when it is recognized that…

Opening Remarks As  a Lagos-born and bred boy, my studentship at University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) in the 70s was a vantage position to the gateway of Ondo State, then inclusive of the present Ekiti State. Back then, it was possible that out of every 10 fellow student-acquaintances one had, seven were…

Abstract The study makes attempt at understanding law within the positivist tradition which suggests a separation of law from all moral contents. And this is in contrast to the natural law theorists who insist that any imperative that must claim the obedience of man as a member of the civil community must coexist with moral…

Introduction The issue of the nature of beauty is a focal point in the philosophical inquiry into aesthetics. For some time, it has attracted the attention of aestheticians whose answer has remained largely unconvincing, either because of its idealistic assumption or due largely to its transcendental presupposition. Because of the scientific mode of cognition, historic…

Introduction  In social study, the conception of the human being with which we start out will influence our approach. But the same is true of our conception of society and this is the matter we turn to now.[1] Perhaps the most basic question and one that in a sense underlies all the other that we…

Introduction In this essay, we attempt in the pages that follow how philosophers have attempted, through rational means, to make the world intelligible. Today, science and scientific discoveries are taken for granted; so much is the world of science celebrated that hardly a thought is accorded to the thought system and the philosophical basis as…

Introduction Intellectual discussion within the liberal arts in Africa during the nationalists struggle for independence and thereafter have centred on the need for ‘authentic African intellectual disposition’. Of course, this seems understandable as a continent which has passed through the inglorious slave era and the traumatic colonial period with all its mental deprivation is not…

Abstract  After the clarification of key concepts that are central to the essay, i.e. ‘state’, ‘politics’ and ‘morality’ and after establishing relationship between politics and morality, I set out to examine how these two latter concepts have been conceived in history, using Plato and Machiavelli as parameters of study. Politics, so understood, is meant for…

We come into this world naked, albeit without our individual consent, but by the desire of biological bearers who essentially are driven by need for self-actualization as is often propelled by family expectation of lineage perpetuation. At least in Africa and specifically amongst the Yoruba people of southwestern Nigeria, married couples strive to bear children…

Background to Research  There has been a long standing debate on the existence or otherwise of African philosophy. In other words, there have been controversies among philosophers on whether thoughts in Africa can be considered philosophical or they are so worthless that they should just be simply examined and dumped into the dustbin of history…

Introduction  Man, compared to some machines, is a creature of very impressive powers. He can do almost anything conceivable – read, write, speak and understand. He can calculate, remember, selectively forget, he can imagine, ponder, solve highly difficult theoretical problems, he can create and enjoy music of all genres and so many other things.1 However,…

Introductory Remarks Plato (427-347BC) is a major example of a philosopher who undertook to formulate a comprehensive vision of the world and of man’s place in it. Plato’s impact on the history of Western thought is immeasurable. He has lived through the centuries; his writings have been studied and used in different ways by various…