3. LESSON OBJECTIVES
•RECOGNIZE HUMAN ACTIVITIES THAT EMANATED FROM DELIBERATE REFLECTION
•REALIZE THE VALUE OF DOING PHILOSOPHY IN OBTAINING A BROAD PERSPECTIVE ON
LIFE
•DO A PHILOSOPHICAL REFLECTION ON A CONCRETE SITUATION
4. KEY QUESTIONS
•WHAT IS THE IMPORTANCE OF PHILOSOPHY?
•HOW DOES PHILOSOPHY WORK IN OUR DAILY LIFE?
5. MEANING OF PHILOSOPHY
“PHILOSOPHY” CAME FROM THE TWO GREEK WORDS:
• PHILO – WHICH MEANS “TO LOVE”
• SOPHIA – WHICH MEANS “WISDOM”
PHILOSOPHY ORIGINALLY MEANT “LOVER OF WISDOM”
PHILOSOPHY IS ALSO DEFINED AS THE SCIENCE THAT BY NATURAL LIGHTOF REASON STUDIES THAT BY NATURAL LIGHT OF
REASON STUDIES THE FIRST CAUSES OR HIGHEST PRINCIPLES OF ALL THINGS.
• SCIENCE
• IT IS AN ORGANIZED BODY OF KNOWLEDGE .
• IT IS SYSTEMATIC.
• IT FOLLOWS CERTAIN STEPS OR EMPLOYS PROCEDURES
6. MEANING OF PHILOSOPHY
• NATURAL LIGHT OF REASON
• IT USES A PHILOSOPHER’S NATURAL CAPACITY TO THINK OR HUMAN REASON OR THE SO-CALLED UNAIDED
REASON.
• STUDY ALL THINGS
• IT MAKES PHILOSOPHY DISTINCT FROM OTHER SCIENCES BECAUSE IT I S NOT ONE DIMENSIONAL OR PARTIAL.
• A PHILOSOPHER DOES NOT LIMIT HIMSELF TO A PARTICULAR OBJECT OF INQUIRY.
• PHILOSOPHY IS MULTIDIMENSIONAL OR HOLISTIC
7. MEANING OF PHILOSOPHY
• PRINCIPLE OF IDENTITY – WHATEVER IS; WHATEVER IS NOT IS NOT. EVERYTHING IS ITS OWN BEING , AND
NOT BEING IS NOT BEING.
• PRINCIPLE OF NON-CONTRADICTION – IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR A THING TO BE AND NO TO BE AT THE SAME
TIME.
• PRINCIPLE OF EXCLUDED MIDDLE– A THING IS EITHER IS OR IS NOT; BETWEEN BEING AND NOT BEING,
THERE IS NO MIDDLE GROUND POSSIBLE.
• PRINCIPLE OF SUFFICIENT REASON – NOTHING EXIST WITHOUT SUFFICIENT REASON FOR ITS BEING
EXISTENCE.
The four principles are called first cause or highest principle
8. MEANING OF PHILOSOPHY
• EARLY GREEK PHILOSOPHERS STUDIED ASPECTS OF THE NATURAL AND HUMAN WORLD THAT LATER
BECAME SEPARATE SCIENCES - ASTRONOMY, PHYSICS, PSYCHOLOGY AND SOCIOLOGY.
• BASIC PROBLEMS LIKE THAT NATURE OF THE UNIVERSE, THE STANDARD OFJUSTICE, THE VALIDITY OF
KNOWLEDGE, THE CORRECT APPLICATION OF REASON, AND THE CRITERIA OF BEAUTY HAVE BEEN THE
DOMAIN OF PHILOSOPHY FROM ITS BEGINNINGS TO THE PRESENT.
• THESE BASIC PROBLEMS ARE THE SUBJECT MATTER OF THE BRANCHES OF PHILOSOPHY.
9. BRANCHES OF PHILOSOPHY
• METAPHYSICS
• IT IS AN EXTENSION OF A FUNDAMENTAL AND NECESSARY DRIVE IN EVERY HUMAN BEING TO KNOW WHAT IS
REAL.
• A METAPHYSICS’ TASK IS TO EXPLAIN THAT PART OF OUR EXPERIENCE WHICH WE CALL UNREAL IN TERMS OF
WHAT WE CALL REAL.
• WE TRY TO MAKE THINGS COMPREHENSIBLE BY SIMPLIFYING OR REDUCING THE MASS OF THINGS WE CALL
REALITY.
• THALES
• HE CLAIMS THAT EVERYTHING WE THAT WE EXPERIENCE IS “REALITY” AND EVERYTHING ELSE IS “APPEARANCE”
10. METAPHYSICS
• WE TRY TO EXPLAIN EVERYTHING ELSE “APPEARANCE” IN TERM OF WATER “REALITY”.
• IDEALIST AND MATERIALIST
• THEIR THEORIES ARE BASED ON UNOBSERVABLE ENTITIES: MIND AND MATTER
• THEY EXPLAIN THE OBSERVABLE IN TERMS OF THE UNOBSERVABLE.
• PLATO
• NOTHING WE EXPERIENCE IN THE PHYSICAL WORLD WITH OUR FIVE SENSES IS REAL.
• REALITY IS UNCHANGING, ETERNAL, IMMATERIAL AND CAN BE DETECTED ONLY BY THE INTELLECT.
• PLATO CALLS THESE REALITIES AS IDEAS OF FORMS
11. ETHICS
• IT EXPLORES THE NATURE OF MORAL VIRTUE AND EVALUATES HUMAN ACTIONS.
• IT IS A STUDY OF THE NATURE OF MORAL JUDGEMENTS.
• PHILOSOPHICAL ETHICS ATTEMPTS TO PROVIDE AN ACCOUNT OF OUR FUNDAMENTAL ETHICAL IDEAS.
• IT INSISTS THAT OBEDIENCE TO MORAL LAW BE GIVEN A RATIONAL FOUNDATION .
• SOCRATES
• TO BE HAPPY IS TO LIVE A VIRTUOUS LIFE
• VIRTUE IS AN AWAKENING OF THE SEEDS OF GOOD DEEDS THAT LAY DORMANT IN THE MIND AND HEART OF THE
HUMAN PERSON WHICH CAN BE ACHIEVED THROUGH SELF-KNOWLEDGE.
12. ETHICS
• TRUE KNOWLEDGE = WISDOM = VIRTUE
• COURAGE AS VIRTUE IS ALSO KNOWLEDGE
• WILLIAM EDWARD BURGHARDT DU BOIS
• AN AFRICAN-AMERICAN WHO WANTED EQUAL RIGHTS FOR THE BLACKS.
• HIS PHILOSOPHY USES THE SAME PROCESS THAT OF HEGEL’S DIALECTIC (THESIS – ANTITHESIS – SYNTHESIS ).
13. 3. EPISTEMOLOGY
• IT DEALS WITH NATURE, SOURCES , LIMITATIONS , AND VALIDITY OF KNOWLEDGE .
• IT EXPLAINS :
• HOW WE KNOW WHAT WE CAN CLAIM TO KNOW
• HOW WE CAN FIND OUT WHAT WE WISH TO KNOW
• HOW WE CAM DIFFERENTIATE TRUTH FROM FALSEHOOD
• IT ADDRESSES VARIED PROBLEMS: THE RELIABILITY, EXTENT, AND KINDSOF KNOWLEDGE; TRUTH;
LANGUAGE; AND SCIENCE AND SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE.
14. EPISTEMOLOGY
• SOURCES OF KNOWLEDGE
• INDUCTION
• GIVES IMPORTANCE TO PARTICULAR THINGS SEEN, HEARD , AND TOUCHED
• FORMS GENERAL IDEAS THROUGH THE EXAMINATION OF PARTICULAR FACTS
• EMPIRICIST – ADVOCATES OF INDUCTION METHOD
• EMPIRICISM IS THE VIEW THAT KNOWLEDGE CAN BE ATTAINED ONLY THROUGH SENSE EXPERIENCE .
• DEDUCTION
• GIVES IMPORTANCE TO GENERAL LAW FORM EACH PARTICULAR FACTS ARE UNDERSTOOD OR JUDGE.
15. EPISTEMOLOGY
• RATIONALIST – ADVOCATES OF DEDUCTION METHOD
• FOR RATIONALIST, REAL KNOWLEDGE IS BASED ON THE LOGIC, THE LAWS, AND THE METHODS THAT REASON DEVELOPS.
• PRAGMATISM - THE MEANING AND TRUTH OF AN IDEA ARE TESTED BY ITS PRACTICAL CONSEQUENCES
16. 4. LOGIC
• REASONING IS THE CONCERN OF THE LOGICIAN .
• IT COMES FROM THE GREEK WORDLOGIKE, COINED BY ZENO, THE STOIC (C.340-265BC), WHICH MEANS
A TREATISE ON MATTERS PERTAINING TO THE HUMAN THOUGHT.
• IT DOES NOT PROVIDE US KNOWLEDGE OF THE WORLD DIRECTLY AND DOESNOT CONTRIBUTE DIRECTLY
TO THE CONTENT OF OUR THOUGHTS.
• IT IS NOT INTERESTED IN WHAT WE KNOW REGARDING CERTAIN SUBJECTSBUT IN THE TRUTH OR THE
VALIDITY OF OUR ARGUMENTS REGARDING SUCH OBJECTS.
17. LOGIC (INFLUENTIAL PHILOSOPHER)
• ARISTOTLE
• FIRST PHILOSOPHER TO DEVISE A LOGICAL METHOD
• TRUTH MEANS THE AGREEMENT OF KNOWLEDGE WITH REALITY.
• LOGICAL REASONING MAKES US CERTAIN THAT OUR CONCLUSIONS ARE TRUE.
• ZENO OF CITIUM
• ONE OF THE SUCCESSORSOF ARISTOTLE AND FOUNDER OF STOICISM
• OTHER INFLUENTIAL AUTHORS OF LOGIC
• CICERO, PORPHYRY, AND BOETHIUS
• PHILOPONUS AND AL-FARABI, AVICENNA,.
18. 5. AESTHETICS
• IT IS THE SCIENCE OF THE BEAUTIFUL IN ITS VARIOUS MANIFESTATIONS– INCLUDING THE SUBLIME,
COMIC, TRAGIC, PATHETIC, AND UGLY.
• IT IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE OF THE FOLLOWING;
• IT VITALIZES OUR KNOWLEDGE. IT MAKES OUR KNOWLEDGE OF THE WORLD ALIVE AND USEFUL.
• IT HELPS US TO LIVE MORE DEEPLY AND RICHLY. A WORK OF ART HELPS US TO RISE FROM PURELY PHYSICAL
EXISTENCE INTO THE REALM OF INTELLECT AND THE SPIRIT.
• IT BRINGS US IN TOUCH WITH OUR CULTURE . THE ANSWER OF GREAT MINDS INN THE PAST TO THE GREATER OF
HUMAN LIFE ARE PART OF OUR CULTURE.
19. AESTHETICS
• HANS –GEORG GADAMER
• A GERMAN PHILOSOPHER WHO ARGUES THAT OUR TASTES AND JUDGEMENTS REGARDING BEAUTY WORK IN
CONNECTION WITH ONE’S WON PERSONAL EXPERIENCE AND CULTURE .
• OUR CULTURE CONSISTS OF THE VALUES AND BELIEFS OF OUR TIME AND OUR SOCIETY.
