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PHILOSOPHY
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WHAT IS THIS MODULE ALL ABOUT?
TOPIC
Approaches in Doing Philosophy: Reductionist and Holistic
CONTENT STANDARD
The learner understands the meaning and process of doing philosophy
PERFORMANCE STANDARD
The learner reflects on a concrete experience in a philosophical way
LEARNING COMPETENCY
PPT11/12-Ib-1.2: Recognize human activities that emanated from
deliberate reflection
3. Appreciate the smallest details of life and the larger picture as a whole
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PRE-TEST
A. Analytic
B. Speculative
C. Reductionist
D. Holistic
A. Focus
B. Topic
C. Tools
D. Action
A. Hallway
B. Holiday
C. Whole
D. Wonder
A. Time
B. Wholeness
C. Parts
D. Space
A. John Locke
B. Immanuel Kant
C. René Descartes
D. Charles Darwin
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6. A philosopher that introduced holism in metaphysics
A. Plato
B. Socrates
C. Thales
D. Aristotle
A. Time
B. Wholeness
C. Parts
D. Space
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REWINDING THE PAST
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and being speculative to the right. Philosophizing doesn’t end with just
two approaches. Let us continue our journey deeper into the realm of
philosophy!
REAL TALK:
Reductionism is the belief that human behaviour can be
explained by breaking it down into simpler component
parts.
Holism is a theory that parts of a whole are in intimate
interconnection, such that they cannot exist independently
of the whole, or cannot be understood without reference to the
whole, which is thus regarded as greater than the sum of its
parts.
Fig.1 fig.2
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assembled toy model; it is so important that you need to know every
single detail of each parts to understand the whole. Holistic in a sense
that what matters most is the significance of the wholeness of this
gunpla, yet it can only be understood as a whole if we look closer to its
parts. Makes sense? Let’s an activity!
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c. Is there a connection among the parts of your face?
Explain why yes or no.
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
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Kidding aside, the ultimate question for this module is this…
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not work without the pieces within
it – it will not function as a whole,
part by part is essential.
Holism is the “idea that This approach in philo-
something can be more sophy was summed
than the sum of its parts.” up by Aristotle in his
Meaning to say, we shall Metaphysics. He had
understand everything, been using this holistic
all in reality, all that is approach and it wasn’t
comprehensible, as a popularized not until
WHOLE. Just like 1926 that the
its origin – holos term “holism”
- a Greek word was presented
which means ‘all’, by Jan Smuts.
‘total’, or ‘whole’. This approach is
indeed contrasted
from reductionism.
But it doesn’t mean that we are going to neglect or set aside the
other approaches that we learned. Just like what reductionism is
telling us; each approach in philosophy is relevant and can be used to
philosophize – we can always be analytic in every manner as we seek
knowledge; we can also be speculative at thoughts being perceived;
and we are capable now to reduce a certain topic into its parts for us
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to comprehend. Finally, we look at the bigger picture of all things
intelligible – the wholeness as one, interconnected with all around.
o We look into the wholeness of the person, not just in one piece of
his/her being.
o Holism helps us to take away our prejudices – in such a way
that we focus on the wholeness, not by part. Example, we will
not discuss EDSA revolution as our sole jumping board towards
the concept of freedom. It will definitely create biases if we do.
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o When we practice a holistic perspective, we can deliberate ideas
philosophically because being holistic is congruent with being
open-minded to all possible realities.
POST-TEST
A. Analytic
B. Speculative
C. Reductionist
D. Holistic
A. Hallway
B. Holiday
C. Whole
D. Wonder
A. Time
B. Wholeness
C. Parts
D. Space
A. John Locke
B. Immanuel Kant
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C. René Descartes
D. Charles Darwin
A. Plato
B. Socrates
C. Thales
D. Aristotle
A. Time
B. Wholeness
C. Parts
D. Space
A. Focus
B. Topic
C. Tools
D. Action
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LET’S REPLAY!
The difference between these two ideologies is their focus – the truth
of the matter. The former focuses on the properties of each part while
the latter’s emphasis is on the relationship between them.
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Answer Key
Pre-Test
1. C
2. A
3. C
4. B
5. C
6. D
7. C
8. A
9. B
10. A
Post-Test
1. C
2. C
3. B
4. A
5. C
6. A
7. D
8. C
9. B
10. A
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REFERENCES
Vinzons, M. P. (2016). Introduction to the Philosophy of the Human Person. Quezon City: Vibal Group,
Inc.
Media Sources
https://www.123rf.com/photo_31726720_stock-vector-brain-left-analytical-and-right-creative-
hemispheres-sketch-concept-vector-illustration.html
http://www.klemens.sav.sk/fiusav/doc/filozofia/2013/2/114-123.pdf
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/rene-descartes-science-photo-library.html?product=greeting-
card
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This module maybe adopted, modified and
reproduced for educational purposes with appropriate
credit to the author.
For inquiries, feedback and suggestions, please
contact the author through the Division Learning
resource Supervisor at Tel. No. _________________ and/or
email address ________________ @deped.gov.ph
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