An Introduction to Philosophy

Study Guide based on Mariano Artigas, An Introduction to Philosophy (Manila: Sinagtala, 1990)

(Questions may need explanation from a teacher, especially those marked with an asterisk [*]. Don't hesitate to ask!)

First question: (Make a survey of the Table of Contents of the book. Note that the book is divided into parts.) What are the three parts of the course?

Note that there are three big questions here: What is Philosophy? What are its divisions? How is it related to Christianity and the Faith?

PART I: THE NATURE OF PHILOSOPHY

What does the word "Philosophy" mean?
Does Philosophy have anything to do with our day-to-day knowledge? Is it in touch with the world in which you and I live? If that is so, why is it that the philosophers I know seem to be living in another world?
Is Philosophy an art or a science? What is an art in the first place? And science?
In the definition of Philosophy, what do we mean by "ultimate causes"?
Why do we have to state that this knowledge is acquired through the use of reason?
What do we mean by "material object"? And "formal object"? [*]
Should each person have "his" Philosophy?
Isn't the study of Philosophy difficult? I heard people go nuts when they study Philosophy.

PLEASE READ: Doug McManaman's "What in the World is Philosophy?"
What do you mean here by "wisdom"? Does it have anything to do with smart alecks?
Is wisdom, according to this definition, important for human life?
Do the types of wisdom have anything to do with the different fields of Philosophy?
How do you relate "wisdom", "science" and "Philosophy", then?
Is ignorance bad? If a man is wise, is that enough to make him good?

What do we mean by "science"?
Is Philosophy, according to this definition, a science? Why or why not?
Why do we say that Philosophy is a science composed of different sciences? What makes these different from each other, and what makes them similar to one another?
How is Philosophy different from the so-called "particular" sciences, such as Chemistry, Biology, Physics, and so on?
What do we mean when we say that the particular sciences have a basis or are founded on Metaphysics? (Hey, what happened to "Philosophy"? Why are we talking now of "Metaphysics"?)
Does that mean that the particular sciences are completely dependent on Metaphysics?

Where does it all begin? Is there a magician's hat?
From observation, how does one proceed? What do you mean by abstraction? [*]
What do we mean when we say that Philosophy has to rely also on intellectual evidence? Does that mean that the intellect is considered as a sort of witness? [*]
Is it important to understand philosophical terms? (This is a bonus question!)

What is Metaphysics? How did this name come about?
Does Metaphysics play a special role in Philosophy (that is, with respect to the other branches of Philosophy)?
Metaphysics studies ens qua ens, being qua being. Duh.... What's that?
Aside from General Metaphysics, what are the other fields of Metaphysics? [Note: I personally would not follow this kind of division. Please see Thomistic Division of Philosophy, according to me, that is!] For a deeper treatment, read Robert Brennan's The Mansions of Thomistic Philosophy.
What is Theodicy or Natural Theology?
What is Gnoseology, or Epistemology, or Critique, or Philosophy of Knowledge, or .... (sigh!)?

This course goes by many other names as well: Philosophy of Living Beings, Rational Psychology, Philosophical Psychology, Philosophy of Man, Philosophical Anthropology. What does it study? (Hmmmmm, that's a give-away question.)
But don't the particular sciences study man--like medicine, psychology, psychiatry, sociology, and so on?

Ethics is a practical science. Sure. What does that mean?
What does Ethics study?
Is this study further subdivided into different fields? (Hah! You guessed right!) So what are those fields?
What does General Ethics do? And Social Ethics (a.k.a. Social and Political Philosophy)?
What role does Philosophical Anthropology play in Ethics?
How about Metaphysics--does it have an impact on Ethics?

What's the whole point in studying the History of Philosophy? I thought we're interested in being, and not in what other people have said?
What are the principal periods in the history of Philosophy? Can you characterise each one?

What is the relationship between faith and reason? (Does Fides et Ratio ring a bell?)
What does Theology study?
What is its method? Is that the same as the philosophical method?
Does reason play a role in Theology? Can you enumerate some? [Try also an advanced reading of the next chapter.]
Why are the two extremes (complete divorce versus absorption of faith by reason) untenable?

Prepared by JMO Mandia

Macau, 9 March 2006

Revised Hong Kong, June 2012