PHILO L1

I. COMMON MEANINGS OF PHILOSOPHY

 Philosophy can be understood with the common meanings that we already know.
Although inaccurate, or flat-out wrong, it serves as a starting point to the definition of
philosophy.

COMMON DEFINITIONS OF PHILOSOPHY:

1. refers to ideas, views, principles, perspectives, or beliefs- philosophy is embedded

through OUR ideas, beliefs, perspectives, principles, and views.
o For instance, when someone asked you your "philosophy in life", that person is
referring to your beliefs and views that you have acquired through multiple
experiences, realization, or epiphany in life.
o Our so called IVPPBs is only used at a certain level, where it serves as a
framework for making judgments about the world.
2. refers to the activity of reasoning. It may also be getting yourself involved in the activity
of philosophizing (Lec, 2019).
o This can be correlated to how Filipinos use the term "pilosopo". While it is the
literal translation of a philosopher and a philosopher is one that engages in
philosophy and therefore a pilosopo is one that engages in thinking, how Filipinos
use the term are circumstantial.
o For instance, Pedro called Juan a pilosopo because Juan is reasoning out to cover
up an obvious truth. What he did can make him be considered as a pilosopo.
However, the term is used for calling out a covering of truth.
o Philosophy is not just reasoning in itself; it is also knowing what are the right and
wrong forms of reasoning and for knowing what is true.
3. refers to an academic course or degree (self explanatory)

o In this, people learn the different theories that many philosophers have proposed.
However, this is not sufficient in defining philosophy and the whole activity of
philosophy in general.
o Philosophy is not just about knowing different theories regarding morality, truth,
and all of that, it is also about knowing your own philosophy and experiencing it
through many circumstances in life.
II. LOVE OF WISDOM

 Philosophy, based on its etymology, is not just an intellectual activity, but also a kind of
emotion.
 Wisdom includes knowledge of the truth, but other than that, more can be seen in the
characteristics of a wise person.

WHAT MAKES A WISE PERSON?

1. aware of what one knows and doesn't/ aware of ignorance- is in an illusion of "I know"
2. has beliefs that one can justify
3. knows a lot of valuable things in life:
o Practical- essential to living/ needs of a person
o Personal Value-what makes you really happy in life
4. put knowledge in practical use
5. know what should be done (in a certain situation) and do it

III. HOW IS PHILOSOPHY DIFFERENT WITH OTHER DISCIPLINES?

 Philosophy is once considered an umbrella discipline since most of the other disciplines
are under it.
 Philosophy is sometimes called as the “mother of all disciplines”
 What distinct, however, philosophy with the other sciences is that philosophy asks about
the many things that it examines.
  These questions are referred to by philosophers as framework questions
 These questions are directed at our frameworks, or our belief systems that serves as
foundation for our interpretation of the world and how we make sense of it.

TYPES OF QUESTIONS: (Carnap,1992)

1. Internal- questions application and practical use of a framework (Capnap, 1992);

objective (Lec, 2019)
o For instance, if you ask "What is the cause of earthquakes?" you are putting the
nature of earthquakes, the framework, into practical use/question, which is how
does it happen?
o “Is it allowed to enter a cinema without paying for it?” is an example of an
internal question because it can be answered with rules regarding entering the
cinema.
o With internal questions, you can answer it using the different concepts in the
framework.
2. External- questions the framework itself (Carnap, 1992); subjective (Lec, 2019)
o For instance, if you ask "What is the nature of causation?" you are evaluating the
framework.
o “What makes something appropriate or allowed?” is an example of an external
question because it questions the framework of the nature of what is allowed and
what is not in life.

 Philosophical questions broaden an internal question (Lec, 2019)

 Thomas Nagel (1987) also explained the difference between internal and external
questions by using comparisons between what a philosopher would ask and what others
would ask.

IV. PHILOSOPHY AS AN ACTIVITY

 Philosophy is not a body of doctrine but an activity (Wittgenstein, 1974).

 There are two ways of understanding philosophy: knowing theories and engaging in the
very act of philosophy.
 There must be a combination of two.
 It's good to know the different theories of philosophy to know how other people in the
past perceived the world we live in.
 Still, philosophy is dynamic, meaning that it always change; we always strive for a better
answer or we always ask if a certain answer is still practical to use in the current time.
 Knowing the different theories of philosophy lets you have a background of the matter,
while engaging yourself in it lets you develop your own perspective regarding the nature
of life and the world around us.
FEATURES OF PHILOSOPHY:

1. Dynamic- constantly changing; does not stop with a certain answer

2. Critical- examines the assumptions of our framework or perspectives
3. Creative- philosophy leads to formulation of new and better frameworks; garnering a
different perspective

QUESTIONS:

1. How do you understand the remark “Man is the measure of all things?”
2. Do you agree with the sophists that truth is relative? Defend your answer.
3.