Embedded Files
"Tell me why?": Why do we study philosophy?
What sort of reasons do we study philosophy for? Why does it matter to us? What sorts of reasons do we find attractive or compelling? Why or why not?
What sort of application do philosophical questions and problems have? Where does philosophy touch our lives and our understanding of our world?
Big Questions:
Big Questions:
Philosophy is broken up into several fields of study, each having a specialization. Interestingly this does not correspond to traditional academic and scientific disciplines and often crosses these boundaries often and with ease. If addressing the question of human experience, physics, psychology, theology and biology will all likely need to be considered and addressed in order to come to a better understanding.
Below is a listing of some of the categories used to structure philosophical thought.
1) Research the meaning of each field
2) Come up with 5 questions within each field. What sorts of ideas might you explore? What issues might they attempt to address? What problems might they attempt to address? See the headers below for examples.
Metaphysics
Metaphysics
Metaphysics addresses the nature of our world.
Example question: "If you're consciousness were uploaded to Meta, is that actually you, or only a perceptual recreation for other people to interact with?"
Epistemology
Epistemology
Epistemology address the nature of truth, knowledge, and information
Example question: If we claim to really "know" someone, what do we mean by that?
Ethics / Moral Philosophy
Ethics / Moral Philosophy
Ethics deal with the question of morality and the "good life"
Example: When we insist on "freedom" as a good thing, what do we mean by that? What are its limits?
Political Philosophy
Political Philosophy
Political Philosophy examines the organizing principles underlying how we live together, construct societies and determine justice.
Who are the most effective people to charge taxes to in order to maintain and build our society?
How do you foster innovation in a society?
Aesthetics
Aesthetics
Addresses the question of beauty, wonder or appreciation
"What makes Ryan Reynolds attractive?"
"Why do we want to listen to some people over others?"
"Why is heavy death metal so fixating?"
Philosophy of the Mind
Philosophy of the Mind
Philosophy of Mind addresses the concepts of identity and experience
"Where do I acquire my sense of self from?"
What aspects of my self are essential, and what are variable attributes?
How does my conception of myself, shape who I am?
Terminology and Tools:
Terminology and Tools:
Interlocular: a person who contests or challenges an idea in a philosophical inquiry
Premise: "A premise or premiss[a] is a true or false statement that helps form the body of an argument, which logically leads to a true or false conclusion.[1] A premise makes a declarative statement about its subject matter which enables a reader to either agree or disagree with the premise in question, and in doing so understand the logical assumptions of the argument. If a premise is logically false, then the conclusion, which follows from all of the premises of the argument, must also be false——unless the conclusion is supported by a logically valid argument which the reader agrees with. Therefore, if the reader disagrees with any one of the argument's premises, they have a logical basis to reject the conclusion of the argument." (Wikipedia)
Conclusion: "Logical consequence (also entailment) is a fundamental concept in logic, which describes the relationship between statements that hold true when one statement logically follows from one or more statements. A valid logical argument is one in which the conclusion is entailed by the premises, because the conclusion is the consequence of the premises. The philosophical analysis of logical consequence involves the questions: In what sense does a conclusion follow from its premises? and What does it mean for a conclusion to be a consequence of premises?[1] All of philosophical logic is meant to provide accounts of the nature of logical consequence and the nature of logical truth.[2]" (Wikipedia) also known as a logical conclusion.
Dialectic: One person proposes an idea, and another responds
Socratic Method: Driving a discussion and inquiry by asking questions, learning and exploring through the act or questioning
Timeline of Philosophical Inquiry
Timeline of Philosophical Inquiry
Many of these distinctions and fields have emerged as a result of the evolution of Western thought over the last 2700 years, and much of this emerged as Western philosophers came into contact with diverging ideas around the world.
https://www.philosophybasics.com/general_timeline.html
Wikipedia: Timeline of Western Philosophy
New fields and distinctions are still being created and mapped, as new questions issues or considerations arise. For example the Philosophy of Language and the Philosophy of Religion are two areas which have recently become delineated as sub-topics within the field of philosophy.
Page updated
Report abuse