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Edexcel A2 Philosophy and Ethics, UNIT4: Implications

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I am dreading this exam! Since I'm the only student turning up to lessons I feel like I have an obligation to do well.

I feel like, if they've put Ayer in the specification, it is actually ridiculous if they don't put him in this year (or next, at least!). Although, Edexcel don't seem that reliable – they told my teacher the reason the Developments paper is so short on time is that if it were longer students would lose concentration, despite the fact that their French paper is two hours thirty!

I have a feeling the reason Donovan and Westphal have come up so much is that they simply have so many more paragraphs they can ask about, but I don't know how they choose.

What structures have you all learnt on how to approach it?

Seems to me, making sure you know the key scholars and the implications, and just all the external knowledge seems to be the best thing to do at this stage... On the edexcel examiner commentary, it seems to say they don't expect you to really know the articles in much detail, just to know all the other stuff you can link it to.

Reply 221

klfc2035

I am so nervous for this exam!!! But I hope Ayer comes up, as he has not come up for years. Westphal is straightforward once the stages have been broken down but when you actually read some of the paragraphs, what they are saying is not as simple to identify as those of Ayer and Donovan!! :frown:

Reply 222

keshia786

Original post by klfc2035

I really don't understand Westphal! Do you have a simple way to learn about him?

Reply 223

apple1

I'm taking this exam, so scared! Does anyone have any notes for the third paragraph of Ayer? For some reason I'm really having difficulty getting my head around it!

Reply 224

klfc2035

Original post by keshia786

I really don't understand Westphal! Do you have a simple way to learn about him?

Well our teacher broke it down in 7 different stages.
stage 1: deism and scholaticism and age of enlightenment
stage 2: Kants moral argument
stage3: Schleiermacher and personal religious exp
stage 4: Hegel- knowledge via philosophy
stage 5: Hume- religion as a mean to cope with struggle
stage 6: Marx- opium
stage 7: Neitzche and his idea of slave morality
hope that helps!!

Reply 225

klfc2035

Original post by apple1

I'm taking this exam, so scared! Does anyone have any notes for the third paragraph of Ayer? For some reason I'm really having difficulty getting my head around it!

is that the one where he talks about the 'transcendent truths of religion'??

Reply 226

Redmayne

Does anyone do the Buddhism anthologies with Smart, De Silva and Griffiths? Seem to be the only one and it's stressing me out :L

Reply 227

khazara

Do you think you can get away with one single detailed essay plan structure each for donovan ,ayer and westphal that can be applied to any paragraphs because that's what I have done :-/

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 228

khazara

AYER better come up but yet again got a feeling it won't think the exam board is trying to trick us

Reply 229

khazara

Do you have to be really specific to the text ? Anyone ?

Reply 230

faon

Original post by khazara

Do you have to be really specific to the text ? Anyone ?

I think you're supposed to be very specific to the passage you're given, but I think this exam is more about contextualising and linking things you've learnt throughout the whole course.

Reply 231

iKnowAll

Its highly highly likely to be Ayer this year, it wouldn't be logical for him to NOT show up at all after a few years.

Reply 232

apple1

Original post by klfc2035

is that the one where he talks about the 'transcendent truths of religion'??

Noo it's the one where he talks about Jehovah being angry and sophisticated religions I'm finding it really hard to grasp and worried it could potentially come up as I personally see it as one of the more complex Ayer paragraphs!

Reply 233

Gee:)

is anyone risking not learning donovan seeing as he came up last year so will have come up 3 times in 4 years if he is in this one too?

Reply 234

iKnowAll

He won't come up 3 out of 4 years so yes I'm not learning him.

Reply 235

khazara

I want Friday to be over and done with time is just dragging now :-(

Reply 236

khazara

I like Westphal you can write alot about the passages ,whereas Donovan brags on about intuition the whole way through and Ayer just talks about everything being meaningless

Reply 237

khazara

Original post by klfc2035

That's the exact same structure I'm using

Reply 238

Sherlockedd

So long as it isn't Donovan I'll be happy.
Or Kierkeegard or whatever his name is from Westphal.

How are people writing Hume/Marx/Kierkeegard as I can't seem to get a lot on them :/

Reply 239

khazara

Original post by faon

I think you're supposed to be very specific to the passage you're given, but I think this exam is more about contextualising and linking things you've learnt throughout the whole course.

thanks for that I was wondering for part b does it have to be a one sided argument about what you think or can use both strengths and weaknesses ?my teachers are crap and no one in my class seems to be bothered that's I'm on here lol