What is Philosophy?

Came from Greek words: Phileo – love ; Sophia – wisdom or LOVE of WISDOM
It is the academic study of anything.
Philosophy answers the questions: What is the world like? What gives it meaning, what makes it
beautiful, where its evils come from, and ultimately what is the very nature of reality itself.
Like, when you relate it to your personal self, you will be answering questions like, why do you do what
you do, why do you think what you think, why do you feel what you feel.
Well, science can answer that, it can definitely help explain and understand our thoughts, feelings and
actions. Studying philosophy goes beyond just hormones or hereditary explanations. Rather than just
looking at the world and describing what we see, philosophy evaluates it.
Going back to the question, what is the world like? Sounds simple enough to answer, right, just look
around and see all the stuff. But the philosophical approach isn’t just on observation, it has much more
complex questions packed inside – what’s the nature of reality? Is the world just made up of matter and
energy? Or is something else going on? If it is just matter and energy, where did it all come from? Is
there a God?
Personal questions like, do I have a soul, what really happens when I die? So all these questions are ways
of exploring what philosophers call metaphysics, one of the main branches of philosophy (next slide
and read). Its an effort to understand the fundamental nature of the world, of the universe and of being.
These being said, we also have the branch of philo that studies how we know the answers to any of these
questions – epistemology (next slide and read) – knowing about knowing, or literally, study of
knowledge. Asking questions like, is the world really what I think it is? Is everything I see, think and
experience really true? If it isn’t true, whats the best way in figuring out the truth? Is science the best
way? Or there are more better paths to truth – paths that science can never really travel.
And then after searching, you begin to develop some ideas, and we start to ask, how will I know if im
right or wrong? Makakasiguro ba ko na tama ako?
Here goes the 3rd area of philosophy that helps fame your thinking around what you actually do – how
you should act and what you should attach meaning to – Value Theory (next slide) . It usually has 2
main branches – the first one is Ethics – the study of how humans should live with each other. How
should I treat stratngers? Magkaiba ba dapat ang pagtrato ko sa strangers and sa family ko? Then, may
obligasyon dn ba ako sa paligid ko, sa animals, sa earth? If meron, saan galling tong mga obligasyon na
ito? Sino nagsabi? So ultimately kasi, how you decide what’s good or evil, as human behavior goes, is
determined by your values.
The second branch isn’t about what is right. It’s about what’s beautiful (next slide) – Aesthetics – the
study of beauty and art. For philosophers, the study of aesthetics involves considering what beauty is
and whether it even exist. Its part of Value Theory kc beauty and art are the things we value and
evaluate. So its studying the deeper meaning of beauty, not just what we find attractive but something
that is just objectively true.
Another aspect of philosophy that doesn’t ask questions – helps us find answers – LOGIC (next slide). It
is the philosophers toolbox, it has all the tools that they use to go about answering their questions in a
clear, systematic way. It’s about reasoning, giving strong arguments that don’t fall victims to fallacies.
Dito na papasok yung mga hypothesis or propositions then conclusion.
 So now let’s try to compare three major branches of study - Philosophy, Science and Art. (next slide).
Philosophy, science and art differ principally according to their subject-matter and also the means by
which they reflect, transform and express it.
(next slide and read)
To understand further, (next slide and read)
And then we have the philosophy and art (next slide and read)
(next slide and read) differences between the two
(next slide and read) Philo, Science and Art
(next slide and read) Pure and Applied Philosophy
Pure philosophy is philosophy applied to itself  –  that is, to philosophical problems such as the
fundamental nature of reality, knowledge, morality, and so on  –  whereas applied philosophy is
philosophy applied to non‐philosophical problems broadly construed.

SOME GREAT PHILOSOPHERS AND THEIR PHILOSOPHIES

Plato was a Greek philosopher known and recognized for having allowed such a considerable
philosophical work. As for him, his goal is “Helping people to reach a state of “Eudaimonia” (fulfilment).
He has 3 big ideas for making life more fufilled:
First: Think more. Rather than just going along with popular opinions or ung “nauuso” or gusto ng
karamihan, Plato wants us to think deeper of ourselves. Knowing yourself – examining your ideas before
making decisions. They called this “Socratic Discussion”.
Second idea: Let your lover change you. As for Plato, true love is admiration. The person you
need to get together with should have a very good qualities and in return, you will make an effort to be
better. Both of you should help each other to be the best version of urselves.
Third idea: Decode the message of beauty. Plato realized that we find things beautiful when we
unconsciously sense in them qualities we need but are missing in our lives. For example: Nagagandahan
sa isang scenery. So what are the characteristics of that particular scenery – Calm, Lively, gentleness.
Fourth idea: Reform Society. Plato studied how could a society get better at producing not
military power but fulfilled people. Celebrities should be role models who have good influences to the
society. Plato also thought that the politicians should become philosophers.

ARISTOTLE
Called “the Master”, and “the Philosopher”
Philosophy is about practical wisdom
4 Philosophical Questions He Answered:
 1. What makes people happy? – He suggested that good and successful people possess 11 distinct
virtues which should be nurtured in ourselves and honour them in others : courage, temperance,
liberality, magnificence, magnanimity, pride, patience, truthfulness, witiness, friendliness and
modesty.
2. What is art for? – to make profound truth about life
3. What are friends for? – 3 kinds of friendship: one who is seeking fun and the chief interest is in
their own pleasure; strategic acquaintances or taken-for-granted friends; true friend who cares as
much as you care about urself.
4. How can ideas cut through in a busy world? – Rhetoric: getting people to agree with you. Or How
to be persuasive in order for people to listen to you. In order to do that, you have to recognize,
acknowledge, soothe people’s fears, see the emotional side of the issue. Another is including
humor or making illustrations.

John Locke
He was a 17th century English Philosopher
1. How should we educate our children? – He believes that the learnings and ideas that we acquire
from childhood is very crucial and is the most important. It is the foundation of our education. We
need to study the in life practical assistance later in our life and not those which are useless
subjects to us.
2. Who should rule over us? – God gives that authority. The rule should make people comfortable in
society. The ruler has to respect everyone’s freedom and property. Beyond that, the people have
the right to overthrow their ruler.
3. What we should do about people who have different religious ideas to us? – He was an advocate
of freedom of belief. He pointed our in his book “Toleration” that a single true religion can’t be
compelled into belief through violence. Everyone should respect each other’s belief.

Adam Smith
Making a capitalist economy more humane and more meaningful.
4 Famous Ideas:
1. Specialization – He believes that national economies would become hugely richer the more
specialized their workforces are.
2. Consumer Capitalism – Smith defended consumer capitalism on the basis that it did more good
for the poor than societies devoted to high ideas.
3. How to treat the rich – honour and respect. Be liked and approved. Give the rich plenty of honour
and status – in return they would fund schools and hospitals and pay workers well.
 4. Educate Consumers – Consumers need to be taught to want better quality things and pay a
proper price for them, one that reflects the true burden on workers and the environment.

Karl Marx – German, most famous and ambitious critic in the ideas of capitalism, the type of economy
that dominates the western world.
Problems with Capitalism
1. Modern work is alienated – work can be one of the sources of our greatest joys. But as for Karl
Marx, in order to be fulfilled at work, the worker should see himself in the objects he created.
Sample chair: straightforward, honest, elegant – which is not present in the modern world -
specialized. Its alienated – no passion, not genuine.
2. Modern work is insecure – Capitalism makes the human being utterly expendable. For example, in
the production, the minute the costs rise or savings can be made through technology, one can be
ruthlessly let go. As per Karl, we should always feel that we have a place in the worlds heart and
not be cast out.
3. Workers get paid a little while capitalists get rich – Karl believes that capitalist shrink the wages of
laborers as much as possible to take more profit margin. He believes that profit is simply theft,
stealing the talent and hardwork of the workforce.
4. Capitalism is very unstable – Marx proposed that capitalist systems are characterized by series of
crisis. If only the rich, who gains too much profit would give the poor,
5. Capitalism is bad for capitalists – Karl made an example on marriage between two persons who
doesn’t love each other, but got married just for the sake of business or for financial reasons. He
believes that Capitalist system forces everyone to put economic interests at the heart of their
lives.
Thomas Hobbes – is an English Philosopher
Book: Leviathan – he expounds an influential formulation of social contract theory
According to Hobbes, society is a population and a sovereign authority, to whom all individuals in that
society cede some right for the sake of protection.
3 Key Concepts Emphasized in his book:
1. The natural state of mankind is a state of war of one man against another, as man is selfish and
brutish.
The state of nature would not have been a pretty place without a central authority to keep them
in control. There will be fighting, squabbling and bickering.
2. The way out of the state of nature is a social contract to be agreed upon by the people to be
governed and the government.
Out of fear and chaos, people were led to form a government – willingly (social contract).
3. The ideal form that government should take is an absolute monarchy that has maximum authority,
subverting mankind’s natural state and creating societal order in the process.
 and with only few rights to complain if they didn’t like it - they have the duty to keep obeying. The
only right the people might have to protest about absolute ruler, was if he directly threatens to kill
them.

Peter Drucker - father of management. He believes that managers should, above all else, be leaders –
leading the team to success while supporting and encouraging each individual.
Book: Managing Oneself
Drucker’s Approach – Implementing the Management Theory
a. Delegate equal power across the board – While it is important that employees respect you as
their manager, they shouldn’t feel that they are below you. Each should have the opportunity to
speak up and share ideas with their team. Talk to employees as though their role is as necessary
as yours. They will feel more confident and motivated.
b. Encourage collaboration – work together by sharing ideas, tips and guidance. Your staff should
work as a team, and you should serve as their coach.
c. Increase efficiency – work together to reach a common goal. Review goals, set objectives, monitor
progress, evaluate performance and reward employees. Goals should be SMART (specific,
measurable, achievable, realistic and time-oriented)
d. Boost innovation – Create an innovative atmosphere – employees to be confident and willing to
take risks. Show employees that mistakes are not shortcomings. Support ideas and never punish
creativity.

Egoism (Hobbes)
- “egoism” derives from “ego,” the Latin term for “I” in English
- In philosophy, egoism is the theory that one’s self is, or should be, the motivation and the goal of
one’s own action.
- Egoism is a theory, in ethics, that human beings act or should act in their own interests and
desires.
- Egoism is Esteem, Importance, respect, etc, an individual expects from society or individual in a
routine life.
- Selfishness is thinking about yourself first and try to take maximum advantage in terms of Money,
Fame and Comfort.
- Not sharing because last time he did not share with you, is EGO. Not sharing with him because
you want to have it alone, is SELFISH.
a. Psychological egoism or descriptive egoist’s theory describes human nature as being wholly self-
centered and self-motivated. It asserts that people always act in their own interests, and, cannot but
act in their own interests, even though they may disguise their motivation with references to helping
others or doing their duty.
 b. Ethical Egoism - Unless each duly cares for himself, his care for all others is ended in death, and if
each thus dies there remain no others to be cared for.”
Altruism
 French altruisme, derived from Latin alter, “other”
 a theory of conduct that regards the good of others as the end of moral action
 refers to behavior that benefits another individual at a cost to oneself
 Selfless concern and action in behalf of others.
Altruism refers to behavior that benefits another individual at a cost to oneself. For example, giving
your lunch away is altruistic because it helps someone who is hungry, but at a cost of being hungry
yourself.

Stakeholder theory
 a theory of organizational management and business ethics that accounts for multiple
constituencies impacted by business entities like employees, suppliers, local communities,
creditors, and others.
 It addresses morals and values in managing an organization, such as those related to corporate
social responsibility, market economy, and social contract theory.
A company’s stakeholders include just about anyone affected by the company and its workings - all of
whom need to be considered and satisfied to keep the company healthy and successful in the
longterm.
Stakeholder theory says that if it treats its employees badly, a company will eventually fail. If it forces
its projects on communities to detrimental effects, the same would likely happen.
Contract Theory
 the study of how people and organizations construct and develop legal agreements.
 It analyzes how parties with conflicting interests build formal and informal contracts. Contract
theory draws upon principles of financial and economic behavior as different parties have
different incentives to perform or not perform particular actions.
In an ideal world, contracts should provide a clear and specific understanding of responsibilities and
requirements, eliminating the risk of disputes or misunderstandings occurring later. However, that
does not always happen.
Contract theory covers the implied trust between the different parties and investigates the formation
of contracts in the presence of asymmetric information, which occurs when one party to an economic
transaction possesses greater material knowledge than the other party.
One of the most prominent applications of contract theory is how to design employee benefits
optimally. Contract theory examines a decision maker’s behavior under specific structures.
Utility theory
 Utility refers to the satisfaction that each choice provides to the decision maker. Thus, utility
theory assumes that any decision is made on the basis of the utility maximization principle,
according to which the best choice is the one that provides the highest utility (satisfaction) to the
decision maker.
bases its beliefs upon individuals’ preferences

Example:
Ordinal: 1 Ice cream, 2 Chocolate, 3 Candies
Cardinal: Beef = 70, Chicken = 80 or Pork = 65

Capitalism and Communism

Differences between Capitalism and Communism

Capitalism

 System of government is democratic

 Property is privately owned
 Driven by free enterprise
 Wealth distributed unevenly
 Education and health care provided by private entities
 Freedom of the press Class distinctions: upper class, middle class and working class
 Focus is on the individual and his/her own progress in life

Communism

 System of government is totalitarian (oppressive or autocratic)

 Property is owned by the state
 No free enterprise is allowed
  Wealth distributed equally
 Education and health care provided by the state
 Press controlled and owned by the state
 Classless society: all members of society are considered to be equal
 Focus is on the progress of the community as a whole

Following this Capitalism and communism have the following opposing sets of ideas:
The ideology of capitalism

 People need freedom

 When people compete against one another, they achieve greater things
 Some people have more than others because they make better use of their abilities
 Governments should not interfere with the rights of individuals to make their own living
 The government should interfere in the economy as little as possible

The ideology of communism

 People need one another

 When people work together as equals, they achieve greater things
 No-one should have more than anyone else - everybody's needs are equally important
 Governments should make sure that everyone's needs are being met
 There is central control of the economy

The capability approach is a normative approach to human welfare that concentrates on the actual
capability of persons to achieve their well-being rather than on their mere right or freedom to do
so. its focus is on what people are effectively able to do and to be, that is, on their capabilities - to
undertake the actions and activities that they want to engage in, and be whom they want to be. To
be fulfilled.

Dialectical materialism is a philosophy of science, history, and nature developed in Europe and
based on the writings of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. Marxist dialectics emphasizes the
importance of real-world conditions, in terms of class, labor, and socioeconomic interactions.