On Philosophy

Introduction

Philosophy is one of the oldest forms of inquiry in almost all aspects in man's life; about the nature of life, death, truth, inquiry
about gods, politics and social norms, values and morality. Every man has a philosophy indeed; the actualization of his being can be
rooted through his philosophy. In this light, the meaning and the value of philosophy should be lucid to every person. This module will
examine the meaning and value of philosophy.

Objectives
At the end of the reflective journey,
1. the student will be able to identify the meaning, methods, branches, and value of philosophy;
2. students will be able to reflect on their philosophy of life, and be able to discern a philosophical attitude from an ordinary
thinking; and
3. the student awakens to the realization of the value of philosophy in their own personal endeavors .

Lesson Proper
A. Philo and Sophia
When we talk about philosophy, people usually tend to relate it with some jerky questions and reactions. They
commonly say that philosophers are weird and have a world of their own. The first impression that comes to the mind of
most people, especially those who do not have any background tend to conclude that the person who's asking or arguing
philosophically is out of his mind. They find it strange. Most people say that asking questions like what philosophers do are
bookish and sometimes they use to call those persons mentally ill, problematic and indifferent. But each person has a
philosophy of his own. Somewhere beneath the minds of every person there is a spot where philosophy sits.

Philosophy came from the Greek words Philo and Sophia, meaning to love and wisdom. Hence, its literal meaning
is the love of wisdom. Coming from the etymological perspective, philosophy involves wisdom. A philosopher is one who
loves wisdom.

Pythagoras, a self proclaimed philosopher, held that there are different types of people: those who love success,
those who love pleasure, and those who love wisdom. Pythagoras belongs to the third group. The lovers of wisdom are
gratified to be a spectator. They seek for knowledge and disdain fame and pleasure. But not all human beings who have
wisdom are to be called philosopher. There should be passion and eagerness to attain wisdom to be called a philosopher.
According to Plato, wisdom is philosophical if it can survive under critical discussion. A righteous or a virtuous act should
still have justifications. We do not act just because we want to. We do not do certain thing that pleases or even annoys us for
no reason at all; there are grounds for our actions, which influence us to act and to react to a certain thing. Inevitably,
justification is one of the concerns of philosophy.

Philosophy is about critical and rational thinking. It attempts to discover the ultimate nature of things. It is also
concerned with justification of our beliefs, also in the reflections of our experiences. Moreover, it tries to define and
conceptualize the underlying principles that we have. According to Armando F. Bonifacio, a philosophy professor from the
University of the Philippines, “Philosophy is the whole range of our intellectual presuppositions and may also mean a
reconstruction of our values and belief system”1. It is the sum-total of things and attempts to discover their relations to human
life in particular. We could say therefore that “philosophy is a quest for a view of the world and man’s place in it.”2

Generally, philosophers seek for ultimate explanation of things and they search for the foundation of knowledge.
Sometimes they ask for ultimate meaning and concepts of things. William James, a contemporary philosopher holds that
philosophy is a continuous process of reflection towards absolute understanding of reality.

B. Beginning Philosophy: Method and Approach

1
Bonifacio, Armando. Three Concepts of Philosophy. UP Philosophy Department, UP Diliman Quezon City
2
Milton K. Munitz. The Ways of Philosophy, (Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1979). p. 10

1
 It is important for us to be oriented with the methods and approaches of philosophy so we can afterwards formulate
our own.

Back to the ancient Greek philosophy, Plato held in his Theaetetus that philosophy begins in wonder. All we need is
just a faculty of wonder to start with and to formulate our philosophy. A speculative mind is required. Indeed, by speculating
such and such philosophy begins its journey.

Over hundreds of years, philosophers had conceptualized and presented different methods and approaches on how to
think, to judge, and even to live philosophically. There are a lot of philosophical methods that have evolved through the entire
history of philosophy. There is a dialectic method, method of doubt, phenomenological and existential, intuition, and many
others. But in spite of these varieties of method there is at least one feature that appropriately describes the method of
philosophy, such feature is analysis.

The most basic methods of reasoning are the inductive and deductive reasoning. The former refers to reasoning
whereby premises provide probable truth of the conclusion. The process here is conducting arguments from specific to
general (such that certain premise/s support/s the probability for the occurrence of the conclusion). This method of reasoning
is measured only through probabilities thus it can be strong or weak in a logical point of view. One the other hand, deductive
reasoning involves provision of conclusive proof for the conclusion (such that the truth of the conclusion is a logical
consequence of its premises). The process moves from general to specific. A deductive reasoning can be viewed as valid or
invalid.

Philosophy deals with clusters of problems and issues as what Professor Andersito Acuňa taught about. The best
approach to philosophy is none other than exposition to philosophical debates, such as asking question about the issue of
God’s existence, free will, how we ought to live? ‘What is the meaning of life?’,’What is good?’, ‘What is wrong with
killing?’. These questions are only few from the thousand concerns of philosophy. By formulating arguments, rational
analysis, and criticizing other views, one will be able to sharpen his ability to philosophize.

C. Philosophical Thinking

Thinking philosophically is different from usual or ordinary thinking. It is of deeper level of reasoning such as
conceptualizing and making abstracts. It examines the underlying structure of human mind. Philosophical thinking also
clarifies concepts and definitions, and the use of language.

Philosophical thinking also generates more analytical views in life, on how you will perceive life and how you
would live with it. Through deeper conception of life we become more receptive and intellectually capable to judge critical
issues about life.

In philosophical thinking, we do not accept things the way they are. We do not just sit down and absorb things the
way they are being taught to us. Instead, we analyze them to be able to understand not only the primary meaning but also the
underlying presuppositions. It tries to clear up the fundamental concepts into refined state as it could be and determine the
relations of such concepts to a particular argument or in a scenario being given. Ideally, it assumes a complete understanding
of the nature of things.

Moreover, having philosophy does not guarantee a philosophical life or attitude. It needs a critical analysis by further
examination of what is being considered. This critical analysis will only be successful by putting out all the prejudices and by
opening our minds to all possibilities or by allowing ourselves to look at all sides of the matter. By looking at the world open
to all possibilities, we make an impartial justification not only in ourselves but also in the universe as a whole. It is only
through this mean that we can free ourselves from dogmatism. By fixing ourselves against obstinacy we can have a wider
perspective. Indeed, liberation from our dogmatic tendencies will allow us to broaden our horizon.

D. Branches (Traditional) of Philosophy

1. Epistemology – branch of philosophy that deals with knowledge, its nature and possibility. It also deals with the scope
and limits of knowledge, and the process of acquiring it.
2. Metaphysics – the study of the ultimate reality. It is an inquiry that leads into the understanding of the reality beyond or
behind nature, or sensory experience. It deals with the most fundamental mental concept such as God, existence, reality,
substance, etc.
2
 3. Ethics – (or Moral Philosophy) a rational inquiry into the standards of right and wrong, good and evil. It answers the
question ‘how ought we to live?’

4. Logic – the science of reasoning. It studies the proper methods of thinking and reasoning.

Value of Philosophy

A. Everyman's Philosophy

Everyone has a philosophy of his own but one may not be aware of it. As human beings, certain principles guide our
actions and mold our attitudes. It seems that the best way to approach philosophy of the common people is to ask them of
their personal values, likes and dislikes, the ideas of good and bad, and so as the beliefs about gods and destiny. By
examining such fundamental assumptions, we are able to discern philosophy. This analysis and reflections of life will indeed
give light to Everyman's Philosophy.

Life is the most important of all in this universe. Without life, it would be impossible to see how the world changes,
how sunny day turns to rainy and cloudy days, how winter becomes spring, summer and eventually will become fall. You
will not be able to see how strange the world is or rather the world will not exist at all without you perceiving it. It is in our
existence or the existence of our life that we are able to define that there is a universe, and that there is a world, and there is
“I” who gives meaning to it. Given this life, man does not just sit under a tree and see how the world changes, indeed, he
examines it. He tries to explain why nature behaves in its own manner. In other words, he examines what he perceives and
experiences. Maybe some are not aware of this but precisely this is the principal source of Everyman's Philosophy. Hoernlé
holds that "There is a deep-seated need in the human mind, the roots of which strike far beneath all other needs and interests.
This is a need to feel at home in the universe. From this source spring all philosophies." 3 This means that all men are
inherent philosophers, for underneath our being is a profound hankering to fathom the mysteries of our existence.

Also inherent to man is his capacity to experience: to explore, learn, dream, love, and even to fight. These
experiences generate the foundation of Everyman's Philosophy. Personal observations, beliefs, and dispositions are essential
in philosophy of life, without any doubt these primarily constitute his philosophy. In fact, Everyman's Philosophy "is the
sum-total of all the prejudices, superstitions, maxims, hasty generalization, proverbs, ideals and aspirations which actually
operate in an individual's reactions to the situations of everyday life." 4 Philosophy indeed is the soul of man’s life for it is
where we find reasons for life. Without assumptions and beliefs, life will not be worth taking. It is in our assumption and in
our systems of beliefs we find reasons to continue the journey to life.

Although it has been said that every man has a philosophy of his own it does not mean that we should stop there.
Personal philosophy or rather everyman's philosophy needs to be “further examined." It should be examined
comprehensively. This can only be done through an in-depth study. "Philosophy as a discipline is to deepen your views, to
refine, sharpen, and make them increasingly solid."5 Since layman's philosophy or what we called everyman's philosophy is
influenced by lots of prejudices, I supposed that it should be treated critically in a manner of opening the mind of the
particular person concerned. He or she should have a course of philosophy that will help increase his or her knowledge. Our
philosophy needs a careful study; knowledge does not stop when your what, where and when questions have been answered.
It should be supported how it has arrived in such a manner.

B. Importance of Philosophy

Some may find philosophy boring. Others may consider it interesting. But whatever reason they may have,
philosophy has an enormous role to each one of us. We use philosophy in our everyday lives, in making simple and complex
decisions, value judgments. It also enlarges our world beyond our personal interests.

In making decisions, one does not just sit and decide to choose a certain thing against the other. We make value
judgments in order to come up with a decision that could attain our ends. It enhances our mind and makes us understand the

3
D.S. Robinson. An Introduction to Living Philosophy: A General Introduction to Contemporary Types and Problem, (New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company
Publishers, 1932), p. 9.
4
D.S. Robinson. An Introduction to Living Philosophy: A General Introduction to Contemporary Types and Problem, (New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company
Publishers, 1932). p. 11.

5
Milton K. Munitz. The Ways of Philosophy.(Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1979) p.5.
3
 issues that we encounter everyday, issues that have significant roles in our lives like our ethical judgments (choosing what is
good from what is bad), religious beliefs (justification on our spiritual lives), and many other significant decisions.

As we get through our lives, we become reflective and observant of the world. Conscious or not we examine our
own life and the environment in our own different ways. The mysteries behind our existence, just like magic tricks, push us
to examine how life works, how the world works and how it came into being. Some may ask themselves what is his purpose
in this world; some could think of what is his goal; sometimes one might see himself asking what he wanted to be five years
from now; what do God wants him to be; and so many other different questions concerning man particularly his values.

As we go along with our philosophical attitude, we become more imaginative. Albeit philosophy does not give us
concrete answers to every question, it removes our dogmatic tendencies, and suggests lots of possibilities that broaden our
thoughts and perspectives. Bertrand Russell is noted for this kind or remarks for he held that “Philosophy is to be studied not
for the sake of definite answers for there is no definite answer that can be known to be as true, rather for the sake of the
question itself because it enhances one’s conception of what is possible”.

According to Theodore Greene, a professor from Yale University, “We can insist that philosophy alone, in its
humane, synthetic role, can give what is so desperately needed today, that is, the wider perspectives which are the only
possible correctives for the multiple provincialisms which, in combination, are a major source of our misery” 6 . Through
philosophy we are able to come up with alternatives and justify what actions to be taken in order to have a good outcome that
will exhibit common good.

Summary:

Man in his own nature seeks for justification of life. Sometime in life, he will come to a point of wondering the reason for
living. Life is a course of philosophy where we try to answer issues arising from it such as morality, religious faith and beliefs, issues
about the meaning of life and so on. We, also try to find ways on how to survive not only physically but also mentally. This is where
philosophy functions, by means of searching for wisdom, especially in a critical manner, analyzing and finding ways on which we
could be able to live accordingly, and to develop ways on how we can hone our potentialities for the actualization of our being.
Through philosophy, we are able to clear up certain issues that we encounter in our everyday lives, and able to examine life as a whole.
Perhaps, philosophy could free our minds from prejudices, and through living in a philosophical way, we become at least closer to the
truth.

“Unexamined life is not worth taking.”

-Plato

Discussion Questions:

1. What is philosophy? Discuss why we should study philosophy.

_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________

2. What are the branches of philosophy?

_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________

3. Explain why it is said that we are all philosophical by nature.

_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________

6
Harold Titus and Maylon Help. The Range of Philosophy: Introductory Readings.(New York: American Book Company, 1964). p. 3.
4
 _________________________________________________________

4. What does it mean to say that ‘Unexamined life is not worth living’?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________

Small Group Activity:

Ask your student to make a list of things that they know and things they do not know. Make sure that there are justifications for
the items they have mentioned.

Individual Weekly Activity:

To observe students critical thinking-participation, ask them to make a journal of their everyday philosophical endeavors.

References:

Acuña, Andersito E. Philosophical Analysis, (3rd Edition). U.P. Diliman Philippines, 1995.
Bahr, L., and Johnson, B., and Bloomfiel, L. Collier’s Encyclopedia. Vol. 9 and 18. P.F. Collier, L-P.
Edwards, Paul Ed. The Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Vol. 6. Macmillan Company and Free Press, New York, 1967.
Gaarden, Jostein. Sophie’s World. Phoenix, Orion House, London, 1996.
Garth Kemrling. The Origins of Western Thought. © 1997, 1998, 1999 Garth Kemerling. http://people.delphi.com/gkemerling,
July 10, 2000.
Honer, Stanley and Hunt, Thomas and Okholm, Dennis. Invitation to Philosophy: Issues and Options, (7th Edition). Wadswrth
Publishing Company, USA, 1996.
Milton K. Munitz. The Ways of Philosophy, pg. 10. Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc. 979.
Paulsen, Fredrich. Introduction to Philosophy. Henry Holt and Company, New York, 1895.
D.S. Robinson. An Introduction to Living Philosophy: A General Introduction to Contemporary Types and Problem, pg. 9. Thomas Y.
Crowell Company Publishers, New York, 1932.
Harold Titus and Maylon Help. The Range of Philosophy: Introductory Readings. American Book Company N.Y., 1964.
Harold Titus, Marilyn Smith, and Richard Nolan. Living Issues in Philosophy, 9th Edition.(Wadsworth Publishing Company:
California USA 1995)
The Encyclopedia America (International Edition). Grolier Incorporated, Dan Bury, Connecticut, 1996.
White, James E. Introduction to Philosophy. West Publishing Company, 1989