Philosophy

by Kamal

Wednesday, March 13, 2013 Mostafa Kamal Mokhtar 1

Philosophical Question

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Philosophical question?

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Philosophical Question!

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Etymology

 Middle English philosophie, from Old

French, from Latin philosophia, from
the Greek word Φιλοσοφία (philo
[love] –sophia [wisdom] ), which
means "love of wisdom."
 Synonyms: doctrine, school of
thought, ism
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Attitude of a philosopher!
 Philosophy means LOVE of WISDOM
 Love is an emotion
 Wisdom is a cognitive dimension
 The act of striving (love) to attain knowledge
(wisdom)
 Thus philosophy is a state of mind
(inquisitive) rather than a particular kind
of knowledge. It is not the possession of
wisdom but a search for it.
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What philosopher does?
 An act of thinking by a use of logical
argument about certain sorts of question
 Questions fundamental issues (why we die?)
 Never takes thing or matter for granted (no
common sense!)
 Thinks clearly and precisely
 Believes with reason

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Why do we study Philosophy?
 An unexamined life is not worth living! It’s
man is a thinking animal!
 Learn to think? Art of Skills
 Clear thinking
 Able to conceptualize
 Valid argument
 Convincing statement
 Persuasive power

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Definition
 Love and pursuit of wisdom by intellectual means and moral
self-discipline.
 Investigation of the nature, causes, or principles of reality,
knowledge, or values, based on logical reasoning rather than
empirical methods.
 A system of thought based on or involving such inquiry (the
philosophy of Hume)
 The critical analysis of fundamental assumptions or beliefs.
 The discipline comprising logic, ethics, aesthetics,
metaphysics, and epistemology.
 A set of ideas or beliefs relating to a particular field or activity;
an underlying theory (an original philosophy of advertising)
 A system of values by which one lives (has an unusual
philosophy of life)

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Philosophy, Theology & Sciences
 Philosophy is distinguished from theology in that philosophy
rejects dogma and deals with speculation rather than faith.
 Philosophy differs from science in that both the natural and
the social sciences base their theories wholly on
established fact, whereas philosophy also covers areas of
inquiry where no facts as such are available. Originally,
science as such did not exist and philosophy covered the
entire field, but as facts became available and tentative
certainties emerged, the sciences broke away from
metaphysical speculation to pursue their different aims.
Thus physics was once in the realm of philosophy, and it
was only in the early 20th cent. that psychology was
established as a science apart from philosophy. However,
many of the greatest philosophers were also scientists, and
philosophy still considers the methods (as opposed to the
materials) of science as its province.
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Philosophical Topics

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Traditional Branches of
philosophy
 Metaphysics inquires into the nature and
ultimate significance of the universe.
 Logic is concerned with the laws of valid
reasoning.
 Epistemology investigates the nature of
knowledge and the process of knowing.
 Ethics deals with problems of right conduct.
 Aesthetics attempts to determine the nature
of beauty and the criteria of artistic
judgment.
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Reference
 Warburton, Nigel. 1992. Philosophy: The Basic. London:
Routledge (p. 1-9) Warburton, Nigel. 1992. Philosophy:
The Basic. London: Routledge (p. 1-9)
 Pojman, Louis P. Introduction to Philosophy: Classical
and Contemporary Readings. California: Wadsworth
Publishing Company (p.1-30)
 Kessler, Gary E. Voices of Wisdom: A Multicultural
Philosophy Reader. California: Wadsworth Publishing
Company (p.5-17)
 Stewart, David & Blocker, H Gene. 1996. Fundamentals
of Philosophy. 4th Edition. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. (p.
1-44)
 http://www.pioneer.net/~mchumor/philosophy_toons.html
 http://www.answers.com/topic/philosophy
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