philosophical puzzle
Mind-bending question
A philosophical puzzle is a problem or paradox that resists easy resolution and often reveals tensions in our basic concepts or intuitions.
Classic examples include the ship of Theseus (is a ship that has had every plank replaced still the same ship?), the trolley problem, and Zeno's paradoxes of motion.
Such puzzles typically aren't solved so much as explored—they illuminate the limits of language, logic, or common understanding: The nature of consciousness remains a philosophical puzzle.
- paradoxSeemingly absurd truth
- logical paradoxSelf-contradictory valid reasoning
- riddlePuzzling question to solve
- conundrumPerplexing problem or question
- dilemmaForced choice between undesirables
moral dilemma · thought experiment · enigma · mystery · problem of evil · logic · Socrates · trolley problem · mind-body · free will · personal identity · existence · infinity · infinite regress · truth · illusion · reality · consciousness
philosophical puzzletruism
Statement needing no proof
common sense · no-brainer · certainty · common knowledge · axiom
philosophical puzzleclosed question
Query permitting only set responses
mathematical proof · known quantity · foregone conclusion · scientific consensus
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