Empiricism & Rationalism

In order to understand Kant, we have to know the philosophers before him. Therefore please research on these two terms "Empiricism" and "Rationalism", and write explanations for each term before Thursday March 31.
Key question: their different accounts of knowledge, regarding the relationship between thinking beings (subjects) and existing things (objects). Do you agree with their explanation of knowledge?
Major philosophers: Hume for Empiricism and Leibniz for Rationalism
Methodology: Research on internet or in library
Format: explain each term with at least 100 words respectively and hand them in on Thursday March 31.
It counts as one journal.

Descartes: Discourse on Method

Descartes: Discourse on Method,(Part I-IV)
Text available at: http://www.gutenberg.org/files/59/59-h/59-h.htm
Journals due on March 24.
Questions for reading guidance:
What’s Descartes’ criterion for truth and knowledge?
What’s Descartes’ method to get such knowledge?
Do you think his method can guarantee the truth?

Augustine: Confessions

Augustine: Confessions
Read Book XI
text available at http://www.ccel.org/ccel/augustine/confessions.xiv.html
Focus on
1. How can we perceive past, present and future?
2. Why is it difficult to describe time?
3. What's the relationship between God and time?
Journals due on March 17.

Aristotle: Nicomachean Ethics II

Aristotle: Nicomachean Ethics II
Read Book X
text available at: http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/nicomachaen.html

Guidance question: Why contemplation is the best life? (Relate it to Book I)
journals due on March 10.