Shaikh Muhammad Ali

Introduction to Philosophy and critical thinking

Social Sciences Department
Lecture no.1

MEANING AND NATURE OF PHILOSOPHY

INTRODUCTION:

The word philosophy is derived from the Greek words Philia (love) and Sophia (wisdom)
and means “the love of wisdom.” Pythagoras was said to have been the first man to call
himself a philosopher; in fact, the world is indebted to him for the word philosopher. It is
said that when Leon, the tyrant of Philius, asked him of who he was, he said, “a Philosopher”
and he likened the Philosopher to spectators at ancient games. Before that time the wise men
had called themselves a sage, which was interpreted to mean those who know. Pythagoras
was more modest. He coined the word philosopher, which he defined as one who is
attempting to find out. According to him, men and women of the world could be classified
into 3 groups: 1. those that love pleasure 2. those that love activity and 3. those that love
wisdom.

MEANING OF PHILOSOPHY:

Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with
existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is the rational attempt to
formulate, understand, and answer fundamental questions.

NATURE OF PHILOSOPHY:

Philosophy is a set of views or beliefs about life and the universe, which are often held
uncritically. We refer to this meaning as the informal sense of philosophy or “having” a
philosophy. Usually when a person says “my philosophy is,” he or she is referring to an informal
personal attitude to whatever topic is being discussed.

Philosophy is a process of reflecting on and criticizing our most deeply held conceptions and
beliefs. These two senses of philosophy— “having” and “doing”— cannot be treated entirely
independent of each other, for if we did not have a philosophy in the formal, personal sense, then
we could not do a philosophy in the critical, reflective sense. Having a philosophy, however, is
not sufficient for doing philosophy. A genuine philosophical attitude is searching and critical; it
is open-minded and tolerant—willing to look at all sides of an issue without prejudice. To
philosophize is not merely to read and know philosophy; there are skills of argumentation to be
mastered, techniques of analysis to be employed, and a body of material to be appropriated such
that we become able to think philosophically. Philosophers are reflective and critical.

Philosophy is a rational attempt to look at the world as a whole. Philosophy seeks to combine the
conclusions of the various sciences and human experience into some kind of consistent world
view. Philosophers wish to see life, not with the specialized slant of the scientist or the
businessperson or the artist, but with the overall view of someone cognizant of life as a totality.

Philosophy is the logical analysis of language and the clarification of the meaning of words and
concepts. Certainly, this is one function of philosophy. In fact, nearly all philosophers have used
methods of analysis and have sought to clarify the meaning of terms and the use of language.
Some philosophers see this as the main task of philosophy, and a few claim this is the only
legitimate function of philosophy.

Philosophy is a group of perennial problems that interest people and for which philosophers
always have sought answers. Philosophy presses its inquiry into the deepest problems of human
existence. Some of the philosophical questions raised in the past have been answered in a manner
satisfactory to the majority of philosophers. Many questions, however, have been answered only
tentatively, and many problems remain unsolved. “What is truth?” “What is the distinction
between right and wrong?” What is life and why am I here? Why is there anything at all?

IMPORTANCE OF PHILOSOPHY:

1. The study of Philosophy enables us to think carefully and clearly about important issues.
2. In studying Philosophy, we learn to take a step back from our everyday thinking and to
explore the deeper, bigger question which underpins our thought.
3. The focus in the study of Philosophy is to learn not what to believe, but how to think.
4. Studying philosophy sharpens your analytical abilities, enabling you to identify and evaluate
the strengths and weaknesses in any position.
5. It hones your ability to construct and articulate cogent arguments of your own.
6. It prompts you to work across disciplinary boundaries and to think flexibly and creatively
about problems which do not present immediate solutions.
7. Because philosophy is an activity as much a body of knowledge, it also develops your
ability to think and work independently.

Goals of Philosophy:

1. Wisdom is the main goal of philosophy.

 2. Discovering the nature of truth and the nature of knowledge.
3. It searches for what is basic value and importance in life.
4. Examining the relationship between individuals and the society as well as humanity and
nature.

Some Philosophical questions / What will we be studying?

 What is life and why am I here?

 Is life a dream (who am I?)
 What is knowledge?
 What is a person? Am I really Awake?
 Do we have free will?
 What is truth? (Reality)
 What is the distinction between right and wrong? What is evil?
 Does the world around us exist?
 Does God exist?
 What happens when you die?
 What is science?
 What is love? (Everything is fair in love and war?)

BRANCHES/APPLICATIONS OF PHILOSOPHY:

Historically, philosophical concerns have been treated under these broad categories:

1. Logic 2. Metaphysics 3. Epistemology 4. Value theory (Axiology)

LOGIC: Logic is the systematic study of the rules for the correct use of these supporting
reasons, rules we can use to distinguish good arguments from bad ones. Most of the great
philosophers from Aristotle to the present have been convinced that logic permeates all other
branches of philosophy. The ability to test arguments for logical consistency, understand the
logical consequences of certain assumptions, and distinguish the kind of evidence a philosopher
is using are essential for “doing” philosophy

METAPHYSICS: Another traditional branch of Philosophy traditionally known as metaphysics.

For Aristotle, the term metaphysics meant “first philosophy,” discussion of the most universal
principles; later the term came to mean “comprehensive thinking about the nature of things.” It
means, usually, the study or theory of reality. The question of metaphysics is: what is reality?
What is real? Is reality some kind of “thing”. Is it one or is it many? If it is one, then how is it
related to many things around us? Can ultimate reality be grasped by five senses, or is it
supernatural or transcendent? Metaphysics undoubtedly is the branch of philosophy that the
modern student finds most difficult to grasp. Metaphysics attempts to offer a comprehensive
view of all that exists. It is concerned with such problems as the relation of mind to matter, the
nature of change, the meaning of “freedom,” the existence of God, and the belief in personal
immortality.

EPISTEMOLOGY: The technical term for the theory of knowledge is epistemology, which
comes from the Greek word episteme, meaning “knowledge.” In general, epistemology is the
branch of philosophy that studies the sources, nature, and validity of knowledge. There are three
central questions in this field:

(1) What are the sources of knowledge? Where does genuine knowledge come from or how do
we know? This is the question of origins.
(2) What is the nature of knowledge? Is there a real world outside the mind, and if so can we
know it? This is the question of appearance versus reality.
(3) Is our knowledge valid? How do we distinguish truth from error? This is the question of the
tests of truth, of verification.

Traditionally, most of those who have offered answers to these questions can be placed in one of
two schools of thought—rationalism or empiricism.
 The rationalists hold that human reason alone can discover the basic principles of the
universe.
 The empiricists claim that all knowledge is ultimately derived from sense experience and,
thus, that our knowledge is limited to what can be experienced.
 It should be clear that there is a necessary relation between metaphysics and epistemology.
Our conception of reality depends on our understanding of what can be known. Conversely,
our theory of knowledge depends on our understanding of ourselves in relation to the whole
of reality.

VALUE THEORY (AXIOLOGY): Value theory is the branch of philosophy that studies
values. It can be subdivided into ethics, aesthetics, and social and political philosophy. In broad
terms ethics concerns itself with the question of morality. What is right and what is wrong in
human relations? Within morality and ethics there are three major areas: descriptive ethics,
normative ethics, and metaethics. Descriptive ethics seeks to identify moral experience in a
descriptive way. We seek to identify, within the range of human conduct, the motives, desires,
and intentions as well as overt acts themselves.

ETHICS: Descriptive ethics consider the conduct of individuals, or personal morality; the
conduct of groups, or social morality; and the culture patterns of national and racial groups.

 A second level of inquiry is normative ethics (what ought to be). Here philosophers try to
work out acceptable judgments regarding what ought to be in choice and value. “We ought
 to keep our promises” and “you ought to be honorable” are examples of normative
judgments— of the moral ought, the subject matter of ethics.
 Third, there is the area of critical or metaethics. Here interest is centered on the analysis and
meaning of the terms and language used in ethical discourse and the kind of reasoning used
to justify ethical statements. Metaethics does not propound any moral principle or goal
(except by implication), but rather consists entirely of philosophical analysis. What is the
meaning of “good?” and can ethical judgments be justified? are typical problems for
metaethics.

AESTHETICS: Concerns the theory of art and beauty. Questions of art and beauty are
considered to be part of the realm of values because many philosophical problems in aesthetics
involve critical judgments. There are wide differences of opinion as to what objects call forth the
aesthetic response, and what beauty really is. Our concepts of beauty may differ not because of
the nature of beauty itself, but because of varying degrees of preparation in discerning beauty.
Therefore, if we cannot perceive beauty in objects that others find beautiful, it may be wise to
withhold judgment until we are capable ourselves of making a competent analysis of the
aesthetic experience.

SOCIAL AND POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY: Social and political philosophy investigates

value judgments concerning society, the state, and the individual’s relation to these institutions.
The following questions reflect the concerns of social and political philosophy:
 Why should individuals live in society?
 What social ideals of liberty, rights, justice, equality and responsibility are desirable?
 Why should anyone obey any government?
 Why should some individuals or groups have political power over others?
 What criteria are to be used in determining who should have political power?
 What criteria are to be used in determining the scope of political power, and what rights or
freedoms should be immune from political or legal control?
 To what positive goals should political power be directed, and what are the criteria for
determining this?