LESSON 1: THE NATURE OF PHILOSOPHY Primary concern of Milesian thinkers

Philosophy of Man
 how to deploy reason in order to find the naturalistic explanations
 a course that delves into the origin of human life, the nature of on observable phenomena.
human life, and the reality of human existence.  They began to answer philosophical questions about the
 one’s desire to know who and what man is. beginning of the existence of every observable thing.
 crucial question about himself and gradually answers the  Due to their awareness of the things around them, they started
question himself. looking for the Urstoff, which is the primordial matter where all
 In general, is a course that deals with man, man is the superstar things came from. It was they who first asked the question”
in Philosophy of man. “where did everything came from?”
 philosophical inquiry into human being as a person and as an
Historical Development of Philosophy
existing being in the world
 study about the dignity of man, truth, freedom, justice, love,  acquisition of truth
death, and his relationship with other human beings and with  involves critical thinking.
God.  It deals basically with the systematic search about the origin and
nature of the world, the explanation of one’s knowledge and
Definition of Philosophy
belief, and the explanation regarding the manner of life.
Etymologically
Approaches in treating the human person
 the word “philosophy” comes from two Greek words, philo,
1. Cosmocentric/Ancient Period
meaning “to love”- strong desire for a particular object and
 human person as microcosm, a part of nature and a child of the
sophia, meaning “wisdom”- correct application of knowledge.
universe; started to wonder about the origin of the universe; Pre-
Philosophy originally meant “love of wisdom”,
Socratic philosophers broke away from mythological explanations
 , wisdom is the goal of philosophy.
of natural processes and started the methods of explaining these
 It is for this reason that philosophers are called “philosophos” a
processes in terms of observing and reasoning (scientific method).
Greek term which means “lovers of wisdom”; was first used and
2. Theocentric/Medieval Period
coined by Pythagoras and also the Greek word “philosophia.”
 seeing him/her as creature of God, and such still part of nature of
 Sophists are workers of wisdom and considered as the first
His creation; Philosophy contributed to the strengthening of the
teachers.
foundations of Christian theology.
Nominally 3. Anthropocentric, Humanistic or Existential/Modern Period
 seeing him/her as neither part of nature nor creature of God but
 science or discipline that studies of all things or beings in their an existent subject, a thinking and liberated being whose search is
ultimate cause by natural light of reason. only for the meaning in life; Philosophers (Descartes, Hume, Kant,
A. Science among others) helped solidify the foundations of science
 Because the investigation is systematic & it follows certain steps 4. Phenomenological/Contemporary Period
or procedures  seeing him/her as subject, a pure consciousness. Some
 it’s an organized body of knowledge like any other sciences. philosophers (like Frege and Russell, Wittgenstein, Quine,
B. Study of all things or beings Carnap, among others) clarified and justified certain features of
 (living and non-living things) Because philosophy is not one the foundations of mathematics.
dimensional or partial but rather holistic;
 philosopher does not limit himself to a particular object of Pre-Socratic or Ancient Greek Philosophers
inquiry.
As the Milesians/Ionians ask the question “Where did everything
 He questions almost anything like human beings, society,
come from?
religion, language, God, and plants, among other concerns unlike
sciences concern themselves with a particular object of 1. Thales (624-546 BCE)
investigation.
C. Ultimate principles and causes  primary stuff of all things is water.
 tells us all about asking and answering not only the facts and
causes but which conforms to reality. 2. Anaximander (c. 550 BCE)
D. Natural light of reason  a contemporary and pupil of Thales agreed with his teacher that
 investigates things not by using any other laboratory instrument there is a single basic stuff out which everything originates.
or investigation tools, instead  he disagreed with Thales ,For him, apeiron or boundless.
 philosopher uses his natural capacity to think or simply, human
reason alone-so called the unaided reason. 3. Anaximenes (585-528 BCE)

The Origin/ Beginning of Philosophy  all things was air “just as our soul, being air, holds us together,
so do breath and air encompasses the whole world.”
 began when human beings became aware of the things around
him. Because of their sense of philosophic wonder about the 4. Pythagoras (c. 570-497 BCE)
world, people started to reflect on their everyday experience.
 his curiosity on the things around him began to ask the  everything is made up of numbers
questions; “What is the ultimate material of universe?” And  he believed that since everything is measurable and can be
“How can we explain the process of change in things?” numbered, and then everything must have originated from
numbers.
Ancient Greece(Western Tradition)
5. Heraclitus the Ephesian (c.540-480 BCE)
 birthplace of philosophy particularly in the seaport town of
Miletus (a colony of Ionia).  He was known as Weeping Philosopher and Heraclitus the
 philosophy is believed to have started in Miletus Obscure
 the first philosophers were, therefore called wither Milesians or  all things is fire because everything passes through fire changes,
Ionians. For Aristotle, he called them as Investigators of Nature. and since what is observable in this world is that everything
changed.
6. Parmenides of Elea (b c. 510 B.C.) 2. Plato (428 – 348 BCE)

 Greek philosophy and younger contemporary of Heraclitus  classical Greek philosopher

 argued that change and motion are only delusions. All things are  founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher
constant; change is an illusion learning in the western world. Along with his mentor, Socrates,
 One reality: finite, uniform, motionless, and fixed. Knowledge and his student, Aristotle, Plato helped to lay the foundations of
comes only through reason. Everything for him is permanent Western philosophy.
because the world consists of one indivisible (inseparable, united)  Plato’s philosophical ideas are found in his Dialogues which are
thing. One is motionless and in a perfect sphere. accounts of what he is concerned with as influenced by his
teacher, Socrates.
7. Anaxagoras (500-428 BCE)  The Republic, one of the Plato’s most famous works, discusses his
 first vitalist. social and political philosophy.
 He was proposed an infinite number of elements called “seeds”  Theory of Forms (Allegory of the Cave) proposes that that
from which all things were created. Seeds do not exist in isolation everything that exists is based on an idea or template that can
every element contains all other elements. The characteristic of only be perceived in the mind; these non-physical ideas are
something is determined by the proportion of the elements eternal and unchanging.
present.  dialectic method, is a method of inquiry where two opposing
 One exception – the mind is pure, contains no other elements. ideas are discussed in an attempt to arrive at new ideas.
Mind is part of all living things, but not a part of non-living things 3. Aristotle (384 BC – 322 BC)
8. Empedocles of Acragas (c. 495-435 B.C.)  student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great
 disciple of Pythagoras was known as a poet, statesman, and  Father of Logic and founder of Lyceum.
physician, as well as philosopher.  He was the first to create a comprehensive system of Western
 Empedocles encouraged people to look upon him as a miracle philosophy, encompassing morality and aesthetics, logic and
worker science, politics and metaphysics.
 These four changeless elements out of which everything was  According to Aristotle, “All men by nature desire to know.”
made and everything came from are earth, air, fire, and water. Branches of Philosophy
9. Leucippus (490-430 BCE)  divided into several branches in order to occupy the questions in
 the founder of Atomist school, and Democritus of Abdera (430- the mind of human person.
360 BCE), who supplied an elaboration of the idea of Leucippus  Philosophical reflections may be classified into five (5) such as
 held that everything is made up of atoms moving in empty space. philosophy of thought, philosophy of reality, philosophy of
According to them, everything was the product of the collision of morality, philosophies of discipline, and philosophies of subjects
atoms moving in space. Democritus even added that if God really  3 main divisions.
exists, then, He too, must be Democritus (460-370 BCE) who was
Philosophy of Morality - Ethics, Aesthetics, and Philosophy of Man
first completely naturalistic description of the universe
Philosophies of Discipline – Science, Mathematics, Education, Law, and
10. Protagoras (490-420 BCE)
Biology
 Truth depends on the perceiver. Perception varies from person to Philosophies of Subjects – Mind, Culture, History, Spirit, Love, and
person because each perceiver has different experiences. Truth is Women
partially determined by culture. To understand why a person
believes as a person does, one must understand the person. Man Major Branches or Disciplines of Philosophy
is the measure of all things.
1. Metaphysics
From the point of Pythagoras, each philosopher has a point in their
respective point of view.  reality and existence of all beings.
 Greek words “meta” which means beyond or after and “physika”
Socratic Philosophers/ Socratic Period which means physical nature.
 things beyond physical nature; concepts or things that can’t be
 The second period in the history of Greek philosophy is
experienced.
comparatively short but is considered the most flourishing and
 deals with the study of the nature of beings, reality and existence.
greatest philosophers in history of western philosophic thought.
It answers the query “What is?” Moreover, it’s commonly
 This period was dominated by three philosophers – Socrates,
understood as foundation of philosophy where in fact Aristotle
Plato, and Aristotle and known as triumvirate.
calls it as first philosophy.
1. Socrates
a. General Metaphysics or known as Ontology
 forefathers of Western philosophy
 Greek words “onto” means being or that which is or everything
 primary moral philosopher of the western ethical tradition of
that exists.
thought
 study of first principle and the essence of all things.
 He is best known for elenchus, or the Socratic Method. It is a
method of question and answer which aims to provoke the one b. Special Metaphysics:
being asked to think for himself or herself and to clarify his or her
conceptions about what is asked. i. Cosmology
 regarded as the one who urged self-examination and claimed
 metaphysical science which studies the nature of the world.
that “the unexamined life is not worth living.”
 He also believed that philosophy could enable a man to live a life ii. Theodicy
of virtue.
 wisest man in Athens according to Oracle of Delphi  is also known as Natural Theology or the Philosophy of the
Religion; studies the nature, existence and attributes of God.
Theodicy is different from Theology because the former deals with
the study of God under the light of natural reason, while the latter
deals with the study of God under the light of faith. Theodicy
upholds the principle fides quaerens intellectum, i.e., faith follows
reason
iii. Philosophy of Psychology LESSON 1.3 VALUE OF DOING PHILOSOPHY

 Psychology come from the two Greek words (psuche, Latinized as  Doing philosophy means engaging oneself in “matters of utility”
psyche), meaning “soul,” and (logos), meaning “study.” and methodologies to eliminate any practical problem or abstract
 Etymologically speaking, it’s the study of the soul- as the principle idea.
of life by the philosophers.  it is critical to have a holistic point of view—the perception of
 It studies of man’s nature as being endowed with reason and looking at all aspects of a situation first before making a
intellect; conclusion.
 studies of human behavior and mental processes. It is also known  Some other skills involved in doing philosophy are critical, logical,
as Rational Psychology. and analytical thinking, observation, and communicative skills.
 look into all available perspectives and work on their relationship
2. Epistemology to come up with sound, logical, and valid conclusions. In the
process, doing philosophy helps one to develop the skill of broadly
 Greek word “episteme” which means knowledge or truth and
“logos” which means study. looking at the situation first before concluding anything.
 applied in day-to day activities and life perspectives. Because it
 This is a philosophical theory that deals with the origin of human
knowledge; hence it is also known as Theory of Knowledge. involves evaluative process, doing philosophy allows a person to
make better decisions and act accordingly to situations with the
 seek for the criterion of truth, it also became known as
help of various philosophical skills.
Criteriology. It answers the question, “How do we know?”.
 philosophy enables reflective thinking which greatly influences a
3. Logic person’s view of life, challenges, and relationships. Doing
philosophy directs how a person will perceive these factors in life
 Greek word logike, and was coined by Zeno, the Stoic and how they will be faced.
 treatise on matters pertaining to human thought.  In any setting, wisdom is always gained when philosophy is
 deals with correct thinking, reasoning and principles of valid applied to formulate a conclusion about a certain concern.
reasoning and arguments.  Engaging in philosophy means being aware of the self and of the
 Logic is to be considered as the Scientia Scientiarum, the science world, and making sense of or understanding what is from what is
of sciences. It answers the question, “Is there correct aanswers?” not.
 Doing philosophy involves active questions and contemplation
4. Ethics
about the mystery of life.
 Greek word “ethos”, which means “customs,” “usage,” or
To Distinguish Wisdom and Knowledge:
“character.”
 study of moral judgments; it tries to study the human acts and 1. Knowledge
searches for the means on how to obtain wisdom regarding how
life should be lived.  is something we gain from experience.
 It is also known as Moral Philosophy which studies on the  Reading a book, watching movies, attending seminars, listening to
morality of human actions. It answers the question, “What I ought the radio are those experiences. And from those experiences we
to do?” gain knowledge. It is the accumulation of facts, information, and
data gained through study, research and actual experiences.
5. Aesthetics  These are the particulars and specifics that may have been
observe detail
 Greek word “aisthetikos”, which means “sensitive,”
“perceptive,” or “harmony.” Example:
 provides meaning on arts and beauty; hence, it is also known as
the philosophy of art. Money – Knowledge is knowing how “Manage your money” by
 It deals with the questions about the meaning of beauty and tries budgeting, spending and saving.
to determine whether beauty is in the subject or in the object. It
2. Wisdom is deeper than knowledge
answers the question, “Is art subjective?”
 after gaining knowledge of something from experience, a correct
LESSON 1.2 HOLISTIC PERSPECTIVE FROM A PARTIAL POINT OF VIEW
and right application of this knowledge must be done.
holistic perspective--the perception of looking at all aspects of a  Wisdom is the mother of morality.
situation first before making a conclusion. holistic perspective on the  It is the gift or ability to detect, distinguish and decide – which
subject is always required. Failure to do so or only using a partial point among those gathered facets of knowledge are true and beneficial
of view may lead to illogical or incorrect conclusions. for you.
 The primary aim of wisdom is a deep understanding of reality as it
holistic thinking which is a mental activity of recognizing the correlates to giving a good life. The realization of wisdom
interconnectedness of systems and procedures to form a general picture comprises reflection, vison, and learning experiences includes
of an issue. (good or bad experiences).
Table 1. Holistic and Partial Point of View Example:

 Wisdom is the ability to recognize and understand in what they

will money influence the quality of your life and future.
Ex: A teachers listens first
to both stories of her two  question is by far more important than the answer. but also
arguing students before answer is more important than question.
making conclusions about Take the following situation or illustration as example:
the issue.
Ask the difference between knowledge and wisdom.
Ex: A teacher scolds
students after student B Tomato Knowledge is knowing…Wisdom is knowing…Philosophy is asking
accused him of stealing
Illustration:
his/her pencil case.
However, the teachers only Knowledge is knowing that tomato is a
listened to student B, and fruit. Wisdom is knowing not to put it
not to student A, before in a fruit salad. Philosophy is asking if
deciding to scold the ketchup is a fruit shake.
students
3. Level of Inquiries Let us consider this argument as an example:

1. Practical Inquiry Premise 1: All human beings are mortal.

 anchored on common sense or good sense in everyday affairs. Premise 2: But the President of the Republic of the Philippines is a
 a basic ability to perceive, understand, and judge things that are human being.
shared by (common to) nearly all people without need for debate.
Conclusion: Thus, the President of the Republic of the Philippines is
Concrete Illustration for Practical Inquiry vis-à-vis Common Sense mortal.

1. Waste Management: In this argument we can see if the premises are soon to be true. The
conclusion must also be true. If we reject the conclusion then we are
Paligid ko, Linis ko, Tapat ko Linis ko. making illogical error.
Basura ko, Paghihiwalayin ko In doing philosophy one needs to master an important skill that is
philosophical reflection.
Kalinisian at Kalusugan ng Pamilya at Bayan May Pananagutan AKo
According to Gabriel Marcel in his philosophical reflection is first and
2. Water Conservation:
foremost the act of giving time to think about the meaning and purpose
Tipid Tubig sa Pamilya ko, Tipid din ng Bayan at Mundo of life is so important.

Tubig na Pinag-aaksayan ng Ibang Tao, Pakikialaman ko The approaches to doing philosophy includes two things, namely,

Tubig Gamitin Lamang kung Kinakailangan 1) philosophical reflection and

Tubig ko, buhay mo at ng Mundo 2) constructing and evaluating arguments

2. Scientific Inquiry- is based on or characterized by the methods and Two (2) Types of Philosophical Reflection
principles of science.
 There are two types of philosophical reflection according to
Example: Gabriel Marcel, namely, primary reflection and secondary
reflection.
Experimenting medicine
1. Primary reflection
3. Philosophical Inquiry- relating or devoted to the study of the
fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence. Its function is  is a kind of thinking that calculates, analyzes or recounts positive
to solve the discrepancy ends.
 It is a fragmented and compartmentalized thinking. Thus, for
Example: Marcel primary reflection cannot be a genuine thinking because it
1.Why should we dispose our waste properly? makes to fail a walk on a mystery of life.
 Primary selfish thinking or instrumental thinking – “means-end”
2.Why we should conserve water? kind of thinking and applies to human relation. It thinks only what
can practically get in a relation.
3.Why we should conserve energy?
For Example:
LESSON 1.4 PHILOSOPHICAL REFLECTION
One may establish a relationship or friendship with somebody who is
 asking questions, contemplating about the mystery of life, and rich so that he/she may be able to borrow money in times of need.
constructing arguments and be able to rationally evaluate them
in the end. 2. Secondary reflection
 doing philosophy means to ask questions, to reflect, and to
formulate and evaluate arguments.  characterized by the act of recapturing the unity of original
experience by gathering back together what has been
Philosophizing is formulating separated by the primary reflection. Thus, it allows us to think
holistically. In this way the latter enables us to integrate the
 assumption or theories about basic and/or major issues in an fragmented and compartmentalized experience into a
intricate or challenging approach. coherent whole.
 This gives an impression that secondary reflection is a genuine
Philosophical reflection
and unselfish thinking and apply to human relation does not
 process by which a person undergoes a reflective state or thinking of what not can practically get in a relationship
evaluates his or her experiences first before making any related
When Marcel speaks about philosophical reflection, he specifically
action. In effect, actions are directed towards greater sources of
refers to secondary reflection for the reason it provides a whole picture
wisdom and truth.
of reality.
 as a tool in doing philosophy, enables us to see the
interconnectedness and interdependence of people, actions, and Indeed, both philosophical reflection and construction of evaluation of
events as well as direct relations to others. argument is the necessary skills needed in doing philosophy.
 Indeed, philosophical reflection allows us to deepen our
understanding of ourselves as well as our role and place in the Philosophical reflection enables us to look deeper into our experiences
world. and see the bigger picture of reality
 Marcel’s notion of philosophical reflection can be expressed as
construction and evaluation of argument allows us to express our ideas
ability to think logically - the ability of the mind to construct and
in a systematic and logical way; allows us to examine the ideas of others
evaluate arguments
in a meaningful way.
Important tool in doing philosophy

 ability to express and support one’s claim rationally.

 We must learn how to construct and evaluate arguments
properly.
 For it is with the use of the arguments that we are enable to
express our thoughts in a clear and logical manner.