lecture in philosophy- intro
TRANSCRIPT
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Lecture in Philosophy
Philosophyfrom the two Greek words: Philo (Love) and Sophia (Wisdom)It means love of wisdom. Thus a philosopher is a lover of wisdom
Wisdomis knowledge applied to practical life.. It is knowledge intended for a noble purpose.
Thus, wisdom is the height of knowledge
Real Meaning of Philosophyit is a science of all things studied from their view point of their
ultimate causes, reasons or principles, by the light of human reason alone.-It is a science which verifies all things in one world view
Subject matter of philosophy - All things( in their ultimate causes, reasons and principles)
Tools Usedhuman reason, reflection, process, insight etc.
Philosophy is a parent scienceit has given birth to natural and social sciences. Thesedisciplines provide philosophy with problems, questions and issues that need to be answered
Philosophy is an independent discipline and embedded there in is the foundations and an on-
going activities of these disciplines.Nature of Philosophyman search for the meaning of life, the meaning of himself and his
world.When does it start? The moment starts wondering about the things around him
In short philosophy simply means a search for meaning. The term search is just more than
seeking or looking. It is a critical examination to explore thoroughly in order to findsomething of great importance.
According to Aristotle; Philosophy is a science of beings in their ultimate reasons , causes and
principles, acquired through the aid of reason alone.
Beingsrefer to all things reachable by human mind. The philosopher seeks for the fundamentalor essential explanation of being based solely on his reasoning power.
Philosophy is the study of the ultimate, abstract, and very general problems which are concerned
with the nature of existence, knowledge, morality, reason and human purpose. To the earlyGreeks, Philosophy was a superstar of a subject. They looked with favor on a total world picture
in the unity of all truthswhether they were scientific, ethical, religious or aesthetics.Philosophy indeed is the Matrix of All Knowledge.
Three elements of Philosophical Search
1. Object of the search is of real value to the subject.Objectrefers to a thing under study
Subjectrefers to the person philosophizing
2. It consumes the whole person, his attention, concentration, interest and effort.3. It is continued without a let up, until:
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a) the answer is found b) the answer is not yet found but the convictionis reached
Major Fields of Philosophy
1. Epistemologytheory of knowledgedeals with the origin, structure, methods, nature, limit
and truth of human knowledge.Epistemknowledge LogosstudyType of knowledge
ApplicationFormulation and expression
Acquisition
2. Logicthe science of correct thinking and reasoning deals with syllogisms, fallacies, truth,argument etc.
3. Ethicsthe science of morality of human acts
4. Metaphysicsthe theory of reality (its nature, meaning, and existence)this is the foundationsubject of philosophy. It is also concern with the nature of mind as well as religion.
Metabeyond physicalPhysikon nature from which it was derived, Physics - the science that deals with matter,
energy, force, natural laws and processes, immortality of the soul, nature and reality of theuniverse as well as time, space, cause and chance.
5. Phenomenologycritical investigation of phenomenon or experiences.
6. Axiologythe study of valuesIt includes values on human conduct, the nature and
justification of social structures, political system, and the nature of art and its meaning in humanexperience.
Other Branches:
Cosmologythe study of the universePhilosophical Psychologyphilosophical study of God.
Social Philosophythe study of man in relation to society and social institutionsPhilosophy of Manan inquiry into man and his dimensions
Difference Between Philosophy and ScienceCriteria Science Philosophy
1. Scope and Nature Deals particularly with restricted
field, e.g. chemistry, biology, etc.
Deals with all aspect of human
experience2. Interest The interest of science is limited to
the physical world e.g. tangible,
empirical or concrete things
Concerns with issues on justice,reasons, conscience, soul and
God. (metaphysical andabstract)
3. Approach Uses experiments and hypothesis,science tends to eliminate personal
factor and values in its quest for
Uses reflection, abstraction andanalysis. Philosophy is
encompassing it is interested in
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objectivity personal values, human
experiences and purposes.
4. Objective/Goal Science works on the pursuits of
truth and stops there, It isinterested with the nature of things
as they are.
Philosophy works not only in
the pursuit of truth, but of worthand meaning. It does not stop at
the discovery of truth.5. Aim Aims to observe nature and control
processes.
Criticizes, evaluates and
integrates the variousdimensions of human
experience.
Relationship between the two: Philosophy as a Science
1.Deals with the study of processes governing thought and conduct.2.Carefully examines and criticizes the premises and conclusion of all
sciences.
3.Synthesizes and compares the assumptions and conclusion of thedifferent findings of the science when they appear to be
contradictory.
4.Investigates principles and laws that regulate the universe and thosethat underlie all knowledge.
5.Applies interpretation and analysis to worldly phenomenon.6.Harmonizes and brings the sciences together to complement and
support one another.
Different Approaches to Philosophy
1.The Analytic Approachdefines and separates the variouselements as part of complete questions. It also considers all the
different possible interpretations of abstract concepts and answers
to the questions which can be asked about them.2.The Continental Approachconstruct the very general and
completely self-consistent theories which can explain the abstract
ideas.
Philosophical Inquiry and its Nature
Philosophical Inquiry refers to mans effort to integrate all of his
experiences as a responsible agent. The term experience signifies the
interactive process by which the human self is in dynamic relation with
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other persons. As a responsible agent, he, as the responder, is objectively
aware of the presence of others which comprises the characteristics ofman.
As defined by John Dewey, philosophical inquiry is a method ofexperimental intelligence. It is a matter of controlled thinking which is
concern with problem solving
Purpose or Goal of an Inquiry
1.To transform the indeterminate or a problematic situation into adeterminate situation where the problem is solved.
2.To lead from the indeterminate situation to the solved determinedsituation.
The Need for Philosophical Inquiry
Contemporary man is essentially the same as in the past,
noteworthy is the difference in how each man of each era tried to copewith the problems of the times. He stands and interacts with his
environment while he acts and interprets what is going on and what will
be its result. He is affected not only by present situations but also faces
the uncertain future.
Today, man is at the cross roads as his life becomes chaotic and
confusing than his life in the past. Faced with the vastness of these
problems, he is tasked in seeking for its solution. This discord state calls
for philosophical inquiry. Philosophy is used as a method of inquiry and
as an instrument for the solution of global problems.It is philosophy which probe deepest into the root cause of mans
problems and as such it is depended upon to discover the true solutionsand remedies of these human ills. Once a solution is reached, tensions
and conflict are eliminated and harmony and order are restored. Butthese harmonious states are not permanent since new conflicts arise fromtime to time so, there will be a need for further inquiry. Human inquiry
is not limited to mere discovery of means for pre-established ends.
Inquiry itself relates the actual life of man.
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The Matrix of Philosophical Inquiry
1.Human experience is a shared experience. There is cooperativeactivity, the cooperative self exist and functions only in a
community of selves.2.The share experience has a double purpose:
a)The importance of its role in the creation of the community.b)The shared tradition of the group members makes and keeps
the community and its members human.
3.The use of Common SenseCommon Sense is that generallyaccepted body of regulative meanings and procedures applied to
particular circumstances, to what we called here and now. It makes
a person aware of the problem but cannot do much about it.4.The need for Philosophical InquiryPhilosophy cannot divorceitself from the on going course of human life and the accrual
concerns of men. Because it bears the quality of life itself, it mustbegin there and end there. The purpose of philosophy therefore is
not to explain life but to constitute it, by making man aware of the
implications of his actions, of the range and scope of his life, it liftsthat life to a level that cannot be otherwise reached.
Three Steps or Modes in Philosophical Inquiry1.LogicTheoretical coherence is the first condition for an adequate
philosophy. Man as a responsible agent emerges to self awareness
through his participation with others in their common ways of
understanding the environment. With his capacity of self-direction,
he is in position to judge them critically as the whole community
cannot be exempted from critical scrutiny.
2.PhenomenologyA philosopher can become engrossed with histheoretical corrections that he forgets the real world. The agentsexperience lacks coherence as long as he cannot think of his life, so
is also coherence lacking when he cannot live his thoughts.
3.Meta-PragmaticsPhilosophy must self-consciously place itself inthe context and service of human life as it functions, control its own
conduct of inquiry and measure the adequacy of its results.
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Philosophy must formulate ideal human wholeness which is the
reflection of coherence that man inherently aspires. It also means awork of continuous criticisms, not only of common sense, beliefs,
and practices but also of the shape and results of the philosophical
efforts as well.
In the process of inquiry, man has to think, however there are two
limits of thinking units:1.Pre-reflectivethe first situationone which sets the problems to
be solved and out of it grows the question that reflection has to
answer.2.Post-reflectivethe final situation when the doubt has been
dispelled, there results a direct experience of mastery, satisfactionand enjoyment.
All knowledge that is the outcome of the process of inquiry belongs
to the continuum of inquiry. But inquiry is an on-going process oraffair with no single final or supreme end.
Philosophical Methods of InvestigationA method is usually a means or procedure followed in achieving
an end. It is a systematic procedure, technique and mode of investigation
use to study a phenomenon. The key element in a scientific method is a
deliberate thinking and planning.
Steps in Philosophical Investigation:
1.Sensing the problem2.Assembling the data3.Organizing and evaluating data4.Proposing hypothesis5.Testing the hypothesis6.Discovering the truth7.Applying the principles to specific uses.
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Common Methods
1. InductionA method of drawing conclusion from particular orindividual experience, a process of estimating the validity of observation
of a part of a class of facts for a proposition of the whole class.
2. Deductionrefers to the process whereby our minds, by way ofreasoning, proceeds from general to specific terms.
3. Dialecticreferred to as the process refers of arriving at knowledge,
through the question and answer technique. It describes a procedurewhereby a thought (thesis), necessarily leads to or changes into its
opposite or contradictory idea (anti-thesis), and henceforth a new
synthesis is achieved.4. AnalyticThis is a concept which consist of theories that are
developed by inductive procedures and begins with imaginativequestions for the world to see if they can be falsified or refuted. It is notinterested in speculating on matters that cannot be proven to be true.
This is particularly useful in the study of mathematics, chemistry and
physics.5. Romanticthis is described as the tendency to base a world view on
feelings and instinct. Under this method the immediate sensation and
feelings brought about by nature and events in the environment are
valued over reason.
6. Synopticthis method according to Plato is the grasping of anything
in one comprehensive view. He argued that I order to have complete
knowledge and education, it is a must that we should bring into synopsis
all the sciences our minds are capable of disregarding.
Importance of Philosophy
1.Philosophy as a body of knowledge together with English,Literature, and History, are aimed to make man a full-man, cultured,
refined and well-rounded.2.The role of philosophy in liberal education is to provide the students
the ability to synthesize, criticize, systematize, assimilate and
evaluate a variety of and huge mass of knowledge. It is an important
part of the students total development that will provide
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opportunities for him to live a life worthy of human dignity as an
individual and as a member of society.3.The philosophies of the various thinkers exposed the students to the
different philosophical thoughts and help them developed his
personal philosophies.4.Philosophy will provide an individual a strong foundation in
meeting the demand of his profession and in coping with the
problems brought about by multifarious activities of man.5.Philosophy will guide us in coming up with the right decision from a
broader perspective because philosophy provides an individual with
the wholistic view that will undoubtedly be an integral part ofhuman development.
6.The study of philosophy therefore serves as a bulwark againstmental servitude and provides a framework within which we canthink and act intelligently.
7.From J. A. Nicholson, There is no other knowledge that so widensour intellectual horizons and that deepens thereby both ourunderstanding and sympathies.
8.Undoubtedly the study of philosophy will always be an importantfeature of human experience and its importance in the development
of the complete social being, ready to take up his responsibility in
this rapidly changing world, cannot be overemphasized.
9.Philosophy makes man think about basic foundations of his outlookin life, his knowledge and his beliefs. It makes an individual inquire
into the reason for what he accepts and does and into the importance
of his ideas and ideals, in the hope that his final convictions will
change as a result of this examination.