UNIT 1 - INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY

CONSTRUCTIVISM

A PRACTICE OF RATIONALITY TAKING ACCOUNT A HISTORICAL-CULTURAL UNDERSTANDING OF THE FOUNDAMENTAL QUESTION. To understand "rationality" today in terms of social construction, thus defining truth (to be rational) as both historical and cultural.

RELATIVISM

A PRACTICE OF RATIONALITY WHICH DOES NOT ACCEPT ANY STANDARD IN ANSWERING FUNDAMENTAL QUESTION.

FOUNDATIONALISM

A PRACTICE OF RATIONALITY WHICH ESTABLISHED AN OBJECTIVE AND UNIVERSAL STANDARD OF RATIONALITY. Example: An appeal to written tradition, objective definition and accepted norms established by authority and legality.

PRINCIPLE OF NON-CONTRADITION by Aristotle

A Statement cannot be true and false, or valid and invalid at the same time. One must be true, the other is false. One must be valid, the other is invalid. Ex. I am a man. I am not a woman. I cannot say: I am a man and woman at the same time.

ETYMOLOGICAL DEFINITION OF PHILOSOPHY

A definition using the origin and root words of the term or "Finding the root words or origin of the term philosophy."

FUNDAMENTAL QUESTION

BASIC, PRIMARY, BUT RADICAL QUESTION ABOUT HUMAN EXISTENCE

WISDOM FOR SOPHISTS

EXCELLENCE (ARETE) IN SOCIO-POLITICAL-ECONOMIC DOMINANCE/ WINNING/ POWER

PRESOCTATICS THINKERS

FIRST THINKERS DURING 6TH CENTURY BEFORE SOCRATES

PHILOSOPHY (etymologically)

From 2 Greek words, PHILIA - LOVE and SOPHIA - WISDOM. Thus, Philosophy is Love of Wisdom.

HUMAN BEING FOR ARISTOTLE

HUMAN BEING AS RATIONAL, AS REASONED-SPEECH BEING, WHO CAN ONLY DO PHILOSOPHY.

"DOGMATISM" IN PHILOSOPHIZING

It is a form of reductionism when we say, "All philosophers are saying the same thing"; "Only Plato is an acceptable philosophy and nothing else", all ideas in philosophy are just interpretations of Plato" -are examples of what attitude in philosophizing. Not healthy, so limits the doing philosophy.

"SKEPTICISM" IN PHILOSOPHIZING

It is a form of reductionism when we say, "No philosopher is right"; "who is right among the philosophers after all?"; "all philosophers are partial in their ideas," are examples of what attitude in philosophizing. Not healthy, so limits the doing philosophy.

DOING PHILOSOPHY

It is the process of understanding of reality, that which philosophers in the past have tried to understand, their concerns become our concerns and their questions become our questions, their answers become our answers.

WISDOM FOR SOCRATES

KNOWLEDGE OF SELF/KNOW-THYSELF; AWARENESS OF PRETENSIONS OF KNOWLEDGE. KNOWING THAT HE KNOWS NOTHING.

WISDOM FOR PRE-SOCRATICS

Knowing the world and its fundamental stuff--asking the question: what is the foundation of existence in the most natural way--away from the supernatunal understanding. Hence, wisdom for them is KNOWLEDGE OF NATURE.

BRANCHES OF PHILOSOPHY

METAPHYSICS (What is really real vs appearance); EPISTEMOLOGY (what is knowledge vs opinion); ETHICS (what is right vs wrong); LOGIC (what is logical vs illogical)

PHILOSOPHICAL PERIOD

PERIOD OF LOGOS (study/science) NATURAL (reality understood in the light of natural process), REASON BASED (instead of adhering to superstitions, we used reason to understand). INTELLECT (source of knowledge)

PRE-PHILOSOPHICAL PERIOD

PERIOD OF MYTHOS (myths), SUPERNATURAL (reality understood in the light of faith), SUPERSTITIOUS (interpretation totally based on supernatural elements), FAITH (source of knowledge)

"APORIA" IN PHILOSOPHIZING

Philosophy encounters the seeming difficulty or dead-end in dealing with the fundamental questons wherein the answers may not be possible to achieve but the trying to understand, to answer and to to wonder is more important than the wondering, questioning and answering themselves. You can at least say, I TRY USING MY REASON IN FINDING THE ANSWER.

PHILOSOPHY FOR KESSLER

RATIONAL ATTEMPT TO UNDERSTAND FUNDAMENTAL QUESTION, FORMULATING RIGHT QUESTIONS, AND TRYING TO FIND ANSWERS TO THOSE QUESTIONS.

EXAMPLES OF EARLY PHILOSOPHERS

SOCRATES, PLATO AND ARISTOTLE

GREEK MYTHOLOGY AND SUPERNATURAL TENDENCY

Some important factors in promoting human curiosity or philosophizing in Greek context: Natural Ability of Reason, Cultural and social Status in Society, and Economic Status in society, except:

WHO ARE PHILOSOPHERS?

THOSE WHO WERE RECOGNIZED AS THINKERS IN THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY, GIVEN HONOR OF BEING SO. THOSE WHO TEACH, WRITE AND PRACTICE PHILOSOPHIZING, MAKING PHILOSOPHY AS PROFESSION.

RATIONALITY FOR WILLIAM JAMES

TO THINK CLEARLY.

VALUE OF PHILOSOPHY BY RUSSELL

That philosophy frees us from being practical man. That philosophy is always critical to sciences and other advancement today. That philosophy must liberate us from thinking that we are private and has personal concerns. That philosophy is concerned primarily to life's uncertainties.

PHILOSOPHER-KING

The Greek world and culture looked at philosophizing as leisure and entertainment of the upper class people,or as the activity of those in the highest strata of society in Plato's idea of:

CAPACITY OF REASON OR BEING RATIONAL

The following are something what Human Beings have in common with animals: capacity for procreation, capacity of sensations and appetitive capacity of survival, except:

CRITICAL SYMPATHY

The right attitude in doing philosophy amidst an experience of Aporia, by remaining rational and critical at the same time.

EXAMPLES OF FUNDAMENTAL QUESTIONS

WHY EXISTENCE, AND NOT NON-EXISTENCE? WHY DEATH? WHY IS THERE EVIL AND SUFFERING? DOES GOD EXIST? ETC

ONTOLOGY

from word, "ens" (being) and logos (study) or STUDY OF BEING (Part of metaphysics)