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METHODS OF

PHILOSOPHIZING
Introduction to the Philosophy of the
Human Person
“Unexamined
life is not
worth living”
- Socrates
problem in knowing
ourselves is

“how.”
how can we arrive at
the answers of

“Who am
I?”
What is the
appropriate
approach or
method we can
employ to find
meaning from our
Can we fully know
ourselves like
holding an apple
in the palm?
Basic Concepts Defined
Fact
-refers to something that
has really occurred or is
occurring, or is actually
the case
-It is external or something
“outside”of the person
perceiving it
Basic Concepts Defined
Proposition
- refers to a statement of
facts that may be asserted
or denied
Characteristic of a Proposition

 It
can be true or
false

 It
is expressed in a
sentence
Basic Concepts Defined
Belief
-refers to a firm assent of a
proposition or a firmly held
conviction
- belief is somehow subjective
–in terms of how much one is
convinced of what he
proposes
- belief is a
personal
conviction but
fortified/supporte
d by sufficient
evidence
Beliefs includes the
qualitative and quantitative
forms of the representations
of facts.
For example,“The table is
brown.”Its qualitative form
is the brown-ness of the
table and its quantitative
formis at least referring to a
Types of Belief
 Factual belief

 Religious belief
Factual belief

-is a firm conviction of a


proposition established by
facts.
Religious belief

-is a firm conviction of a


proposition established by
faith (not by facts)
Whereas belief is a
matter of conviction,
attitude is a matter of
taste about a certain
fact. Like belief,
attitude is subjective
but not grounded with
Basic Concepts Defined
Opinion
-is “an obligation to
withhold assent due to
lack of sufficient evidence”
(Descartes)
Basic Concepts Defined
Plato defined knowledge
as “justified true belief.”

-Knowledge is a belief, not a


matter of attitude,
which is justified and true
3 conditions of Knowledge
belief
–in the sense that one
has firm assent or
conviction in what he
claims as true
true
–in the sense that
what he claims is
what is really,
actually the case
Justified
–in the sense that
what he claims can
no longer be refuted
by other counter-
evidence
Knowledge vs Wisdom
 knowledgeable person
pretends he knows
everything
 those who pretend they
know themselves better
have the tendency to have
too much self-confidence
 They become braggart
 we need to accept the
fact that we cannot
know ourselves fully or
“as clear as holding
an apple in the hand”

 To realize such is
Wisdom
in Socratic sense, is
simply knowing of
one thing with
certainty –that is, we
don’t know
“O men of Athens, that
A God only is wise; and in
P this oracle he means to
O say that the wisdom of
L men is little or nothing;
O he is not speaking of
G Socrates, he is only using
Y my name as an
illustration, as if he said,
 To be wise is to
accept our ignorance
 It doesn't mean that
one has to give up his
desire to know or give
up his knowledge
to be wise like
Socrates is to
engage in
dialogue with
other seekers
 In attaining wisdom,
there is a need for
emptying
 To be “intellectually
empty”means that
one has still the
sense of wonder.

Some Approaches in
Philosophizing
Cosmocentric
 Ancient Period (Greek
civilization)
 Concerned with the
nature and order of the
universe
 Man was part of the
Cosmocentric
Common among
philosophers is the
belief that reality is in
order.
And there is a principle
that governs this order.
In man, this principle is
Theocentric
 Medieval Period (Christian
Era)
 God is the central aspect of
existence
 Man is understood from the
point of view of God, as a
creature of God, made in his
image and likeness, and
therefore the apex of creation
At the very core of this
approach is the belief
that God is creator and
giver of life
In Biblical times, (in
Genesis) man is created
in the image and
likeness of God.
God gives the reason
Anthropocentric
 Modern Period
 Man is the center of
philosophical research
 Man is now
understood on his own
terms, but basically
on his reason, thus
Common among
modern
philosophers is the
belief that
knowledge is
constituted by the
subject
Philosophical Doctrines

Essentialism
Existentialis
m
Essentialism
(based on its root essence
meaning its very nature or
its highest sense)
“real, true essence,
invariable, or fixed
property that define
what an entity is in its
truest sense”
“Ultimate reality”
Permanent
Unalterable
Eternal

- World of Ideas/ world of reason


Plato
“ The here and now is not
the real world.”

“This is world is just a


shadow or a poor copy of
the really, real world.”
Human nature has more
than just a physical body
which is eternal and with
an unchanging human
nature.

“essence precedes
existence”
Existentialism
Soren Kierkegaard –
father of existentialism
Not a philosophical
system but a movement,
because existentialist
thinkers are against the
system
Existentialism
Existentialism is the
philosophical study that begins
with the human subject—not
merely the thinking subject, but
the acting, feeling, living human
individual
Its philosophy places emphasis
on individual existence, on
freedom, and of choice.
Their principle is that “existence
precedes essence” and its
ultimate reality is free choice
 it is the view that humans
define their own meaning in life
and try make rational decisions
despite existing in an irrational
world
 Existentialism
believes that
individuals are free
and must take
personal responsibility
for themselves
Phenomenology
Started by Edmund Husserl
whose aim was to arrive at
“philosophy as a rigorous
science” –
presuppositionless
philosophy
Dissatisfied with the
sciences of his time
because they start with
Phenomenology is the
philosophical study of the
structures of experience and
consciousness. 
an approach that concentrates
on the study of consciousness
and the objects of direct
experience.
In short, the study of experience
and how we experience
How does one arrive at that
philosophy?
 By transcending the “natural
attitude” (scientific attitude)
 The scientific attitude observes
things, expresses their workings
in singular judgments, then by
deduction and deduction,
arrives at concrete results
 Contains a number a
assumptions
1. It assumes that there is no
need to ask how we know
2. It assumes that the world
(the object) is out there,
existing and explainable on
objective laws, while man
the subject is pure
consciousness, able to know
the world as it is
3. It takes for granted the
world- totality
Steps in Phenomenological
Method
Epoche
- means bracketing
- bracket my natural
attitude towards the
object I am investigating,
my prejudice
 Eidetic Reduction
-refer to the
procedure by which
we places in the
“transcendental
sphere,” the sphere in
which we can see
things as they really
Derived from the
greek word Eidos
which means
essence.
In this step I
reduce the
HOW?
Start out with an
individual example
and investigate what
changes can be made
in the example
without making it
cease to be the thing
Phenomenological
Transcendental Reduction
Reduces the experience
further to the very activity of
my consciousness, to my
loving, my seeing, my
hearing, etc.
The object is seen in relation
to the subject and the subject
in relation to the object.
Distinguish Opinion from
Truth
Truth
-is something that has
actual and proven
existence regardless of
one’s opinion.
-It is undisputed, objective,
universal, constant, exact,
and factual.
-based on observable facts
Opinion
- is a personal belief of
judgment that is not
founded on proof or
certainty
-can be based on facts
or emotions and
sometimes they are
meant to deliberately
Realizing that the methods
of Philosophy lead to
wisdom and truth
One component of
philosophy that leads
to wisdom and truth is
CRITICAL THINKING.
Attributes of a critical
thinker
He looks for evidence to
support his assumption and
belief
He keeps on adjusting his
opinions and looks for proof
He examines the problems
and reject irrelevant and non-
factual information
Evaluating Opinions
Sources
Reliability
Purpose
Bias
Assumptions
Source
What is the source of information?
- Knowing the material
comes from will help
judge the accuracy,
correctness, and
soundness of the
information.
To evaluate a source
consider:
a) Its reputation
b) The audience whom it
was intended
c) Whether authentic
documents were
provided as proof
Reliability
How reliable is the person giving
the opinion?
- Asses how the person
has spent studying the
topic and how wide
his/her experience is in
relation to the topic
Purpose
Why was the information given?
-Identify the primary
purpose of the opinion.
Is the gist of the information to
convince or persuade?
- Make sure to evaluate a
particular viewpoint for
reasoning and evidence.
Bias
Is the person giving a viewpoint
biased towards or against the
topic?
- Does he/she give
partiality, preference, or
prejudice for/ against an
idea/ topic/ subject
matter?
Assumption
What are the assumptions
presented?
- An assumption is an
idea or principle that a
person accepts as true
but makes no effort to
prove or substantiate it

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