Gst 102 Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE
GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY
By
Dr (Fr) Mark Omorovie Ikeke
Department of Religious Studies and Philosophy
Delta State University, PMB 1, Abraka, Nigeria
[email protected]
1.1 INTRODUCTION
• Philosophy began in wonder.
• Philosophy is the ground and foundation
of all human knowledge.
• PhD (Doctor of Philosophy) is the highest
degree in previous times.
• Other forms of doctorates most often
professional (DSc, DMin, etc).
1.2 The Meaning of Philosophy
-Origin
• Western Philosophy originated in ancient Greece
• The earliest Greek philosophers-Thales,
Anaximander and Anaximenes. They moved away
from mythological explanation of the universe.
• For Thales all things are made of water, while for
Anaximander all things come from a boundless or
indeterminate source, and for Anaximenes all
things come from air.
1.2 The Meaning of Philosophy (Etymology
and definition)
• Etymologically, philosophy comes from two Greek words
– “Philos” (love) and “Sophia” (wisdom). From its
etymological derivation, philosophy is love of wisdom.
And a philosopher is a lover of wisdom.
• From the lay person’s notion- philosophy is opinions,
beliefs, positions, ways of life, orientations, worldviews
and sayings.
• The professional definition of philosophy is that it is
critical rational enquiry into all realities. It probes into
everything in existence. There is nothing that is outside
the purview of philosophy.
1.3 The Method of Philosophy
• The primary method of philosophy is critical
thinking.
• Critical thinking can be reflective thinking.
• Critical thinking requires rational enquiry.
• All human beings have the ability of rationality.
• Conscious deliberate and intentional use of this
ability to enquire about the universe and cosmic
realities constitute the core method of
philosophy.
1.4 The Branches of Philosophy
-Metaphysics
• The four (4) main branches of philosophy are-Metaphysics,
Epistemology, Logic and Ethics.
• “Meta” (after) and “Physika” (Physics) are designation by
Andronicus of Rhodes on Aristotle’s works. After classifying
Aristotle’s works that treat physical matter, he was at a loss
on what to name the others that he discovered.
• Metaphysics deals with issues beyond physical visible realities.
Metaphysics is the science that deals with being as being.
• Ontology and theodicy are main branches of metaphysics.
Ontology probes into the nature and essence of being.
• Theodicy concerns the issue of the existence of God, the
problem of evil and other suprasensible realities.
• Cosmology, another branch deals with origin, nature and
structure of the universe.
-Epistemology
• Epistemology comes from two Greek words,
“episteme” (knowledge) and “logos”
(discourse or study).
• Epistemology is concerned with the theories
of knowledge.
• It is concerned with the possibility or non-
possibility of knowledge.
• All of philosophy is epistemological.
- Ethics
• Ethics, comes from the Greek word, “ethos,”
which means conduct.
• Ethics is examination of human behaviours in
terms of right and wrong.
• Ethics is also called moral philosophy.
• Some scholars speak of axiology as the
branch, and ethics and aesthetics as sub-
branches of axiology.
-Logic
• Logic is the branch of philosophy that deals
with rules and laws guiding thinking and
thought.
• It concerns itself with correct and incorrect
thinking .
• It studies sound and unsound arguments.
• It deals with formal reasoning processes and
methods of argumentation.
-Sub-branches
• Outside the four (4) main branches there are other sub-
branches.
• There are philosophies of various disciplines such as
philosophy of religion, philosophy of education,
philosophy of social sciences, philosophy of science,
philosophy of law, philosophy of engineering, philosophy
of language, etc. There is philosophy of every discipline.
• There are also regional or cultural philosophies such as
African philosophy, Indian philosophy, Chinese philosophy,
Japanese philosophy, European philosophy and British
philosophy.
1.5 Some Benefits of Philosophy
• It fosters virtue and happiness of individuals and human
society.
• It can be used for social and political reconstruction, especially
in its social political and ethical dimensions.
• Great social and political philosophers- Socrates, Plato,
Aristotle, Marx, Saint Augustine, Rousseau, Locke, etc have
contributed to the social, economic and political development
of their societies.
• It helps to clarity human knowledge, beliefs, ideas, concepts,
etc.
• It helps us in reasoning and presenting better arguments. It
helps us to overcome fallacies.
1.6 Conclusion
• Philosophy is necessary for re-examination of
all human realities
• Human development is driven by
philosophical theories.
• Human political and economic theories are
driven by philosophy.

Gst 102 Chapter 1

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Gst 102 Chapter 1

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Gst 102 Chapter 1

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

CHAPTER ONE

GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY

You might also like