What is Philosophy?

Philosophy of Man – is the philosophical study of

 Etymological Definition. It comes from two Greek man. It is an endless inquiry in his attempt to
words, “Philo” and “Sophia”, which mean love of understand himself and the world he lives in, his
wisdom. Thus, a philosopher is a lover of wisdom. dignity, truth, freedom, justice, love, death, and
 Real Definition. It is a search for meaning. The his relations with others and with God. It is a
word “search” means to look, to find, to seek. This course that delves into the origin of human life,
connotes something more serious and intense. It the nature of human life, and the reality of human
is a quest. existence.

Four Disciplines of Philosophy Purpose of Philosophy

1. Metaphysics - is the study about reality. One may find satisfaction and delight in
(What is the ultimate reality? Is reality one philosophical thinking or reasoning when
or many different things? he/she is able to:
A. General
a. Ontology- this is the philosophical  Understand himself/herself (sarili);
exploration for what reality is in the  Discover his/her inner self (loob);
final analysis.  Recognize his/her otherness (social being);
B. Special  Accept self as part of nature, of the world
a. Cosmology – metaphysical science (microcosm);
which studies the nature of the world.  Understand the eschatology of human life;
(how is the world related to human and
beings? Is the world created or has it  With the help of reasons, believe in the
been existing from all eternity. existence of Infinite Wisdom who is God.
b. Theodicy – a philosophical study of
God. (does God exist? what are the Meaning and Process of Doing Philosophy
proof of God’s existence? • Doing philosophy means engaging oneself
What is the problem of evil? in “matters of utility” and methodologies
to eliminate any practical problem or
c. Psychology – studies of man’s nature
abstract idea
as being endowed with reason and
• In the process of doing philosophy, it is
intellect.
critical to have a holistic point of view—
the perception of looking at all aspects of
2. Epistemology - is the study of validity of a situation first before making a
human knowledge. (What is knowledge? Is conclusion. Some other skills involved in
knowledge acquired exclusively through the doing philosophy are critical, logical, and
senses or by some other means? How do we analytical thinking, observation, and
know that what we perceive through our communicative skills.
senses is correct?

Holistic and Partial Points of View

3. Logic - the study of correct thinking and • Before engaging in philosophical inquiry,
reasoning. This is the basic tool that one must be able to distinguish between a
philosophers use to investigate reality. (What holistic and partial point of view. This is
makes an argument valid or invalid?) critical for anyone doing philosophy
because it sets a limit in coming up with
4. Ethics - the study on the morality of human conclusions about a given situation.
actions or moral philosophy.(what is morally
right? Are moral values absolute or relative?
 Aristotle, Immanuel Kant, Friedrich Nietzsche,
Martin Heidegger.

EPISTEMOLOGY:
 Investigates the nature of knowledge, truth,
belief, justification, and the limits of human
understanding.
Notable philosophers:
• Looking at the characteristics of holistic Plato, René Descartes, John Locke, David Hume,
and partial points of view, it can be Ludwig Wittgenstein.
concluded that using a holistic perspective
is more desirable in doing philosophy than ETHICS:
using a partial perspective. Partial points  Explores questions of morality, ethics, and
of view only promote limited knowledge on principles that guide human behavior.
the situation. This leads to wrong Notable philosophers:
conclusions. Aristotle, Immanuel Kant, John Stuart Mill,
• Learning philosophy requires learning to Friedrich Nietzsche, Jean-Paul Sartre.
look into all available perspectives and
work on their relationship to come up with LOGIC:
sound, logical, and valid conclusions. In the  Focuses on the principles of reasoning and valid
process, doing philosophy helps one to argumentation.
develop the skill of broadly looking at the Notable philosophers:
situation first before concluding anything. Aristotle, Gottlob Frege, Bertrand Russell, Alfred
North Whitehead.
Importance of Doing Philosophy
• Doing philosophy can be applied in day-to- AESTHETICS:
day activities and life perspectives.  Examines questions of beauty, art, and the nature
Because it involves an evaluative process,
of aesthetic experiences.
doing philosophy allows a person to make
Notable philosophers:
better decisions and act accordingly to
Plato, Immanuel Kant, Arthur Schopenhauer, John
situations with the help of various
Dewey.
philosophical skills.
• Furthermore, on life perspectives,
POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY:
philosophy enables reflective thinking
 Discusses concepts of justice, authority,
which greatly influences a person’s view of
government, and societal organization.
life, challenges, and relationships. Doing
Notable philosophers:
philosophy directs how a person will
perceive these factors in life and how Plato, Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Karl Marx,
they will be faced. In any setting, wisdom John Rawls.
is always gained when philosophy is applied
to formulate a conclusion about a certain PHILOSOPHY OF MIND:
concern.  Investigates the nature of consciousness, the
mind-body relationship, and mental phenomena.
METAPHYSICS: Notable philosophers:
 Examines the fundamental nature of reality, René Descartes, Gilbert Ryle, Daniel Dennett,
existence, and the relationship between the Thomas Nagel.
physical and non-physical.
Notable philosophers: PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE:
 Examines the nature of scientific inquiry, DOUBT
theories, and the methodology of scientific  Claims, evidence and experienced is
knowledge. SCRUTINIZED
Notable philosophers:  Helps DETERMINE TRUTH
Karl Popper, Thomas Kuhn, ImreLakatos, W.V.O. HOW DO WE KNOW IF SOMETHING IS TRUE?
Quine.  Can be JUSTIFIED and PROVEN
 Based on FACTS
PHILOSOPHY OF LANGUAGE:  Getting a CONSENSUS of many people
 Explores the nature of language, meaning,
communication, and linguistic representation.  Determining truth requires a person to prove a
Notable philosophers: Ludwig Wittgenstein, J.L. statement through an ACTION.
Austin, Saul Kripke, Noam Chomsky.  CLAIMS and BELIEFS should be SUBJECTED TO
TEST to determine truth and prove their validity
EXISTENTIALISM:  Discovering truth about ONESELF is the FIRST
 Focuses on questions of individual existence, step forward exploring knowledge and truth
freedom, and the human condition.
Notable philosophers: Søren Kierkegaard, Jean- OPINION
Paul Sartre, Albert Camus, Friedrich Nietzsche  Statements that provide conclusions or
perspectives regarding certain situations

CONCLUSION
 A judgement based on certain facts but can still
be contested or questioned.
PPT 2
 TRUTH lies at the heart of any INQUIRY BELIEFS
 PHILOSPHERS consider truth as kind of quality  Statements that express convictions that are not
or value easily and clearly explained by facts.

PROPOSITIONS EXPLANATION
 Are statement about the world or reality or may  Statements that assume the claim to be true and
not carry truth provide reasons why.

KNOWLEDGE
ARGUMENT
 Clear awareness or understanding of something
 Series of statements that provide reasons to
 The PRODUCT OF QUESTIONING seeks for
convince the reader/listener that a claim or
clear answers provided by Facts
opinion is truthful.
 Our knowledge is comprised of ideas and beliefs
we know to be true
LOGIC
CLAIMS  A branch of Philosophy that focuses on the
 Statements that are not evidently or immediately analysis of arguments
known to be true
 Further examination to established truthfulness  When looking at an opinion, be aware of BIAS.
Biases are not necessarily errors in reasoning, but
TRUTHFUL STATEMENTS
refer to TENDENCIES or INFLUENCE which
 Based on FACTS
affect the views of people.
 Science consider truth as OBSERVABLE and
EMPIRICAL
HOW CAN UNDERSTANDING of the HOW TO EVALUATE OPINIONS
DIFFERENCE between TRUTH and OPINION LEAD 1. SOURCE - to evaluate a source, one must
US TO WISDOM? consider:
 Improve understanding and appreciation of varied a. reputation
views and ideas. b. audience whom it was intended for
 Help to form one's own personal point of view c. whether authentic documents were provided
 Help determine ideas that are truthful and as proof
acceptable
2. RELIABILITY - how reliable is the person giving
The Seeking of the Truth by the Human Person
the opinion? Asses how long the person has spent
Only the human person is capable of higher order
studying the topic and how wide his/her
thinking by relying on the following types of senses:
experience is in relation to the topic
1. External (seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and
touching) (Physical faculties)
3. PURPOSE - Why was the information given? Is
2. Internal (memory, imagination, consciousness, and
the gist of the information to convince or
instinct) (Physical faculties)
persuade? Make sure to evaluate a particular
3. The mind as its locus and thinking, its central
viewpoint for reasoning and evidence
activity (Spiritual faculty)

4. BIAS - Does the author give partiality,

THE ULTIMATE TRUTH
preference, or prejudice for or against and idea/
"The human person will always seek the truth,
subject matter?
specifically the ultimate truth, because that is what
he is bound to do in accordance with his nature"
5. ASSUMPTION - What are the ideas presented?
OPINION An assumption is an idea or principle that a person
 judgment, viewpoint, or statement that is accepts as true but makes no effort to prove or
considered to be SUBJECTIVE substantiate it
 It is formed based on the person's
understanding, feelings, or desires about matters,
topics, issues, or concerns

IMMANUEL KANT
 Considered as the CENTRAL FIGURE OF
MODERN PHILOSOPHY
 The human person has three ways of "taking-
something- to-be-true" (Fürwahrhalten) - a
judgment that a cognition which is presented is
true

Three Ways of Fürwahrhalten

1. OPINION - conscious ACCEPTANCE of a
CLAIMS without subjective or objective
grounds/foundation
2. KNOWLEDGE - conscious JUDGEMENT on the
BASIS of both subjective and objective grounds
3. BELIEF - conscious acceptance of a claim on the
basis of a subjective ground but WITHOUT ANY
OBJECTIVE GROUND