Course 15 of 18
Think for Yourself
Finish by using philosophy as a skill: steelman, critique, and apply.
What this course covers
Think for Yourself works through finish by using philosophy as a skill: steelman, critique, and apply. across 3 lessons. Each opens with a short teaching passage, then tests whether the idea actually landed — and explains every answer rather than just marking it.
The lessons are sequenced, not a menu. Steelman It comes first because argue the strongest version is what the rest of the course assumes; by the end you reach Apply It Today.
How it starts
Before you argue against a view, state it in its strongest form (the version its smartest defender would accept and applaud. That's steelmanning, the opposite of the strawman. It's how you earn the right to disagree: if you can't beat the best version, you haven't beaten it at all. In each of these, pick the STRONGEST form of the opposing view) not the easiest to knock down.
“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.”
Who you will be reading
Aristotle, René Descartes are the thinkers this course leans on. Each has a profile with their full set of passages in thinkr's library.