Who wants to be a millionaire (philosopher's edition)?

[Veritass]

So I had this weird dream last night that I was hosting a game show. It wasn't really based on "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" It was more like a cross between Jeopardy and Family Feud. Anyway, on my show, the contestants were various philosophers, thinkers, religious leaders, etc. trying to answer the tough questions such as "What is the meaning of life?", "If a tree falls in the forest,..." etc.

So my dream sort of rambled and got fuzzy, but I had everything from Nietzsche answering the "meaning of life" question with "Nothing" to Tom Leykis answering with "Live fast, die young, and leave a good-looking corpse."

I was thinking of turning this ridiculous idea into a small skit for church, but I need help coming up with ideas for questions, contestants, and their answers. So I thought I would put it out to you amateur philosophers:

• What questions should be asked?
• Who are the contestants?
• What are their answers?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Sidhe]

So I had this weird dream last night that I was hosting a game show. It wasn't really based on "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" It was more like a cross between Jeopardy and Family Feud. Anyway, on my show, the contestants were various philosophers, thinkers, religious leaders, etc. trying to answer the tough questions such as "What is the meaning of life?", "If a tree falls in the forest,..." etc.

So my dream sort of rambled and got fuzzy, but I had everything from Nietzsche answering the "meaning of life" question with "Nothing" to Tom Leykis answering with "Live fast, die young, and leave a good-looking corpse."

I was thinking of turning this ridiculous idea into a small skit for church, but I need help coming up with ideas for questions, contestants, and their answers. So I thought I would put it out to you amateur philosophers:

• What questions should be asked?
• Who are the contestants?
• What are their answers?

Thanks in advance.

That's a great dream, but since philosophy is alot like reading ancient greek to most people, I'm not sure it'd catch on.

Besides the answers to the questions would not be absolute so you'd have such questions as.

Does God exist

A)Yes B)No C) it is impossible to know D) by knowing then faith becomes irrelevant

And all the answers could be correct if you could back up your argument.

And imagine questions about morality, I think it'd be a nightmare for all the myriad of different adherents to different ethical practice.

Do you think that Kant's idea that the moral imperative was the most important moral concept in forming our sense of ethics out of what he termed duty?

A) Yes B) No C) it's impossible to know without examining a more pluralist approach D) erm who knows really E) All of the above

Do you want to phone God, ask the cynics? Or take an arbitrary 50/50? Which may reveal a logical inconsistency?

I'm sure though if they kept to what we can answer about philosophical ideas it would work, but there'd be a million and one arguments about that too.

 

[Brighteye]

The contestants are Plato, Aristotle, Thomas Aquinas, Nietzsche, Russell, Rousseau, Kant and Narz.

You should ask them about abortion, religion, justice, Discworld characters, Israel and morality.

Their answers? Anyone's guess.

 

[StarWorms]

Does God exist

A)Yes B)No C) it is impossible to know D) by knowing then faith becomes irrelevant

And all the answers could be correct if you could back up your argument.

God either exists or he doesn't. He can't exist and not exist at the same time. All of the answers cannot be correct. You can't prove god exists in an argument. You can't disprove god exists in an argument either. You also can't be sure if it's impossible to tell...

 

[newfangle]

I think you seriously misinterpreted the point Sidhe was trying to make.

 

[.Shane.]

I would conduct the entire show in Esperanto.

 

[Abaddon]

Ask the Question: Who wants to be a Millionaire...

 

[Cheezy the Wiz]

Is anyone else reminded of the Monty Python football match between the German and Greek philosphers?

 

[Eran of Arcadia]

Yeah, my first thought was the game show one.

Host: The struggle of class against class is a what struggle . . . a what struggle?
Marx: It is a political struggle.
Host: That's right. And now, Lenin, Coventry last won the FA Cup in what year . . . in what year?
Lenin: I don't know.
Host: I'm sorry, that is a bit of a trick question, as Coventry have never won the FA Cup.

 

[Cheezy the Wiz]

Yeah, my first thought was the game show one.

"The struggle of class against class is a what struggle . . . a what struggle?

Oh yea, that's a good one too, with Marx and Che Guavara.

"That is in fact a trick question..."

 

[Eran of Arcadia]

Oh, it was Che? I remember Marx for the first but I haven't heard it in a while, and Che's name would have meant little to me last time I heard it.

 

[Elta]

A life line could be phone a modern college professor.
Phone some sort of poster held in high regaurd on a modern forum (remember this is supposed to be like a greek or roman forum)