Intro To Philosophy of The Human Person
Lesson 1 3. Philosophy analyzes and criticizes
Nature and Functions of Philosophy
● Etymologically speaking, Philosophy
came from two Greek words "Philos"
means love and "Sophia" means
wisdom. Thus, philosophy is defined as
the "love of wisdom"
● According to several accounts and
testimonies, the discovery of
philosophy may be attributed to
Pythagoras of Samos who was the
first to use the term "philosopher"
● It became a discipline and a field of
study that desires to understand and
comprehend the mysteries of reality
● It is the story of people who never
cease to wonder, inquire, and
investigate about everything and
anything under the sun
Nature and Functions of Philosophy
1. Philosophy integrates itself with other
disciplines to achieve a comprehensive
and coherent worldview.
○ Philosophy as a discipline is
encompassing. It never
confines itself to a portion of
human experience or to a
certain aspect of human
phenomenon. Philosophy
enables a person to
understand the various
intricacies of all disciplines
and paves the way for his/her
understanding of reality.
2. Philosophy analyzes the very
foundations of other disciplines.
○ Philosophy concerns itself
with the roots of disciplines
such as art, science, and even
religion. It explores and
examines all their
underpinnings.
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treasured beliefs and traditions.
○ Philosophy is always on the
lookout in putting things to
their proper perspective. It
always has this gift of logical
consistencies where it forces
to see the importance of
one's beliefs, attitudes, and
traditions. It weeds out all of
the insignificant traces of
inconsistency, superstition,
and irrationality.
Revealing the Whole
● To reflect philosophically in your life,
you may have asked difficult questions
through perhaps you never discussed
it to anyone.
● One of the things human being asked
○ "why am i here?", "why was i
even born?", "why am i here
for?" or "what is the purpose
of my existence?"
○ "why love when you only get
hurt?"
○ "what if there is no after-
life?"
The Universal and the Particular
Particular - refers to a part of a whole.
Universal - pertains to the whole.
Martin Heidegger (1889-1976)
● Born in the town of Messkirch in
Germany
● Published catholic articles in journals
as a result of his education in
seminary.
● His most influential book is "Being and
Time" which was published in 1927
● He is responsible for the term
"hermeneutic of facticity" which
simply means that people interpret
things as they encounter them in a
different way.
 Intro To Philosophy of The Human Person
● According to Heidegger, a scientific
question always confines to the
particular, whereas a philosophical
question "leads into the totality of
beings" and "inquiries into the whole"
● Beginning with a particular question
that unavoidability goes to the roots,
a philosophical question eventually
becomes a revelation about the whole
of reality.
Plato (427-347 B.C.E)
● One of the most famous philosophers
who ever lived this Greek Athenian
Philosopher was a student of Socrates
and a teacher to Aristotle.
● He founded a school in Athens known
as the Academy which served the
model of the universities.
● He wrote numerous dialogues in which
Socrates is the main character.
● His most famous works are the
Apology and the Republic where he
presents his famous theory of forms.
Truth and Dialects - philosophers rely on the
human faculty of reason as they philosophize
● Dialects - is an art of refutation that
dates back to ancient Greek.
● Philosophical discovery is seen as the
result of collaboration with partners
in dialogue or conversation.
● Dialogues - illustrate how dialects is
an effective means of examining and
evaluating truth claims. Errors and
inconsistencies of a claim are
demonstrated using rational abilities.
Socrates (469-399 B.C.E)
● His life is a puzzle because even three
recognize sources (Plato, Xenophon,
Aristophanes) on his life presented
differing accounts. However, they
agreed that Socrates was strange,
ugly, and philosophized in the
marketplace.
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● He left no writings but conversed with
people from all walks of life using
question and answer as a concrete
living out of his famous advice “know
thyself” his commitment to philosophy
was the reason he was condemned to
death.
G.W.F Hegel (1770-1831)
● Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel was
born in Stuttgart, Germany.
● He belongs to the period in philosophy
known as “German Idealism” which
shared Plato’s view that ideas are real
as opposed to matter.
● Hegel’s first major work,
“Phenomenology of the Spirit” is
linked to historical progress.
Karl Marx (1818-1883)
● Born on May 5, 1818, in Germany
● He was trained in philosophy but later
turned to economics and politics.
● He introduces the concept of
“historical materialism” which
embodies his theory that societies
rise and fall as a result of class
struggles.
Lesson 2
The Philosophical Enterprise
Wonder, Knowledge, Ignorance
● human beings want to understand the
world and to know the truth for there
are so many things we have not figure
out.
● Plato Claimed That “Philosophy Begins
In Wonder”
● wonder is the beginning for it
stimulates us to venture into
philosophy it is beyond mere curiosity
as curiosity is usually directed to a
single, fleeting and momentary object
that captures our interest.
 Intro To Philosophy of The Human Person
● Our wondering here is directed
toward analogy and the relationships
of things
● Philosophers engaged in philosophy
because their goal is to become wise.
● To be wise is to know the truth
● Philosophy, therefore, may be
understood as an activity in pursuit of
wisdom – wisdom we attribute to
people who truly know.
● Wisdom for Aristotle, is of
two kinds: theoretical and practical
○ theoretical wisdom –is to know
the necessary truths and
their logical consequences
○ practical wisdom – deals with
knowledge in the realm of
action.
● To have practical wisdom is to know
truths that have to do with our
dealings with fellow human beings
● Theoretical and practical wisdom are
both desirable and valuable.
● philosophers believe that to be wise is
the best we can be.
● they devote their time to examining
their held beliefs and opinions to
arrive the truth and they called it as
intuitions.
● the answers they seek are not
dependent on the authority of their
emotions.
● views scrutinized by the reason which
according to Aristotle, separates us
from plants and animals
Philosophical Thoughts in Three Views
Theocentric View
Cosmocenric View
● ANCIENT PHILOSOPHY (600 B.C –
600A.D). ANCIENT PHILOSOPHERS
wondered about the world (kosmos).
“arche” the greek word for starting
point
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● they wanted to understand the world
for they found themselves ignorant
about the workings of the universe.
● their desire for truth was reflected
in the question that may be simply put
as “where did all things come from?”
● the answer they thought would be a
substance responsible for the
multiplicity of things
● In western philosophy, it is said that
the first among those who wondered
about the origin of the universe was
thales from Miletus, his observations
of nature and his philosophical
reflection led him to that view of
water is the underlying principle of all
things.
● Anaximander (612-545bc) – Thought
That Water Could Not Simply Explain
The Hot, The Cold, And The Dry So
He Claimed That The Answer Must
Bethe Boundless.
● Anaximenes (585-528bc) – Said That
The Fundamental Principle Must Be
Air Because It Can Better Account
For Change And For Life
● Pythagoreans, identified numbers as
the first principle because they
observed how the world is governed
by mathematical ratios.
● Atomists speculated that there must
be tiny, indivisible entities, invisible to
the naked eye that make up
everything. they called these as
“atoms”
● In the medieval period during which
church sustained man’s intellect, the
world became secondary to god
(theos) and Christianity greatly
influenced philosophy
● Medieval philosophers: Avicenna,
st.Augustine and st.Thomas Aquinas.
 Intro To Philosophy of The Human Person
● Avicenna (980-1037) – the first
Muslim philosopher who argued that in
this world, the existence of beings
can be traced to another being
responsible for its existence. since an
infinite chain is impossible, it has to
end at some point. the being in which
the chain ends must be self-sufficient
(that is not dependent on another
being for its existence) and whose
very essence is its existence. that
being which is the starting point of
the entire chain of existence is god
● ST. Thomas Aquinas(1100-1700) –
“Summa Theologica” Is Most
Remarkable For Its Exhaustive
Explanation Of The Christian Faith. It
Is Also The Source Of The Famous
“Five Ways” Of Proving The Existence
Of God
Anthropocentric View
● Modern period (1500-1900) in
philosophy is characterized by
subjectivity and individualism, hence
centered on man (anthropos)
● Was a result both of the rise of
modern science and the diminished
authority of church in the
seventeenth century.
● In this account of modern philosophy,
Bertrand russell explained that
progress in the scientific field made
man realizes the practical utility of
science as a technique rather than a
doctrine that explained the nature of
the world. the idea sheds light on the
philosophies characterized in this
period - rationalism and empiricism
● Rationalism - Is committed to the
view that knowledge is acquired
through reason independent of sense
experience.
● This view was not the original to the
modern period but is the view held by
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the foremost modern philosopher
Rene Descartes(1596-1650)
● Rene Descartes according to him,
clear and distinct ideas cannot be
doubled unlike the data of the senses.
such clear and distinct ideas are the
foundation of knowledge
● Plato - who belonged to the ancient
period, was also a rationalist since he
claimed that ideas alone are real
whereas things are illusory.
● Benedict Spinoza(1632-1677) and
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646-
1716) modern philosophers who are
also considered as rationalists.
● knowledge for all rationalists is based
on ideas or concepts
● Empiricism - holds that all knowledge
is ultimately derived from sense
experience. the modern philosopher
John Locke (1632-1704), George
Berkeley (1685-1753) and David Hume
(1711-1776) all held this view.
● John Locke for instance, claimed that
human mind at birth is like a blank
sheet of paper (tabula rasa) that is
later filled through sense of
experience
● The dialectics between these views
continue to this time. nothing is ever
concluded when one engages in
philosophy. the inquiries we make are
always fruitful because they produce
various perspectives that enrich our
understanding of the complexities of
this world
Lesson 3
The Value of Philosphical Reflection
"Where ignrance is our master, there is no
real place"
● Socrates
Socratic Legacy
 Intro To Philosophy of The Human Person
Three claims of Socrates from Plato's
Apology and Protagoras are worth noting:
1. "know thyself"
2. "the unexamined life is not worth
living" and;
3. "virtue is knowledge of good and bad"
Socrates
● Socrates professed that philosophical
reflection is necessary in the life of
every person
● Socrates philosophized where people
usually gathered (agora in Greek) and
compelled those he conversed with to
think, to defend their views, to
account for what they know and do
not know; he did this by asking
○ Socratic Method - series of
questioning and answering
that Socrates employed in
engaging in philosophical
reflection.
○ It is an effective method of
education that is valued even
to this time.
● What we believe to be true becomes
the basis for our actions
● An examination of beliefs or thoughts
provides us with opportunity to know
ourselves better; we need to know
ourselves because we makes choices
daily.
● Philosphical Reflection is indispensable
because we do not realize what we
truly believe in until we are challenged
to defend them.
● Socrates was an excellent teacher; he
was effective in making his "students"
think for themselves. Socrates knew
that his role as gadfly (annoys those
who do not bother to find the truth)
is important.
● He awakened those who were asleep
(literally and figuratively) by engaging
them in cross-examination of their
views.
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● He interrupted people in their daily
affairs because he truly believe that
the only way to find out who we are is
to pause, to really think, and then
share our thoughts by conversing with
others in the hope that we learn more.
● Every person must confront the
question "who am i?" because
knowledge of oneself is crucial in life
where we make choices daily; if we do
not know ourselves, we are bound to
make wrong life decisions.
○ If we do not ask ourselves,
which includes our strengths
and weaknesses, we would be
miserable.
● "virtue is knowledge of good and
bad" provides us with another useful
life advice; virtue is knowledge
because to truly know what is good
necessarily leads to the actual doing
of good.
○ A person who truly
understands what is good
chooses to do what is good.
One who pretends to know
what is good does not choose
what is good.
○ Philosophical reflection
enlightens us and makes us
better persons.
● What we think we know is reflected in
our life decisions. The quote from
Dalai Lama at the start ("I believe all
suffering is caused by ignorance..")
warns us of the dangers of ignorance.
○ When we hold on to views that
are narrow and selfish, we
cause suffering to others and
we will not find peace.
○ Philosophical activity is the
only cure to ignorance; when
we free ourselves from
ignorance, that is when our
life becomes meaningful.
 Intro To Philosophy of The Human Person
● We venture into philosophy to
discover truths about ourselves and to
be improved by our discoveries
"Pilosopo" as a Social Critic
Pilosopo - from the Spanish word "Filosofo"
which has Latin and Greek roots. So our locally
adopted word for philosophy has its affinity
to its Greek etymology.
● The term Pilosopo has come to be
understood as having a negative
meaning. Contrary to a lover of
wisdom, Pilosopo refers to someone
who reasons poorly.
● The Pilosopo's poor reasoning is not
necessarily condemned by society;
oftentimes, it is found to be
entertaining.
● A Pilosopo is one with skill in evading
arguments by pretending to address
them just like Sophists during the
time of Socrates who taught
rhetorics to their students; this kind
of reasoning is called Fallacy and is
studied in logic.
○ Fallacies are studied because
one has to be mindful of these
arguments as they are meant
o deceive.
○ Faulty reasoning or fallacious
arguments may be employed
undetected through language
or irrelevant issues
○ Example: Equivocation - use of
ambiguous language to conceal
the truth; use of word in two
different ways during an
argument.
○ The fallacy of relevance; Ad
Hominem - attacking the
person instead of their
argument
"Pilosopo" in Rizal's Noli Me Tangere
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● Pilosopo Tasyo is a social critic; he is
similar to Socrates being a social
godfly.
● He walked around public talking about
politics and society; he expressed
views that are hard to understand and
take seriously.
● Socrates and Tasyo are uncommon in
society because of their wisdom; they
proclaim thoughts that are unsettling
and radical. While ordinary people find
comfort in mere acceptance of the
status quo (the current situation)
● The philosopher, or Pilosopo, observes
and thinks, sees clearly, and speaks
the truth.
○ The common run of people are
not in search of the truth
because they are content with
what they think they know;
looking for the truth is
inconvenient.
Lesson 4
An Exercise for truth-making
Reality as phenomenon
● When we philosophize, we are thinking
about something - we think about
reality. What makes up reality are the
things that appear to us in the world;
they are objects we try to figure out.
● The world is constituted as lives, as
experienced, thought of, understood,
and investigated as phenomenon.
○ Example: to know what is true
love, our investigation involves
the phenomenon of love; love
is a non-physical phenomenon
with physical manifestations.
● Both science and philosophy seeks to
understand the world; the difference
is how they proceed to treat
phenomenon.
 Intro To Philosophy of The Human Person
○ In science, observations
through experiments and
calculations are the data used
to arrive to a conclusion. -
science narrows its analysis to
know something
○ Philosophy, on the other hand,
uses phenomenon or raw
experience to form the basis
of truth. - the phenomenon is
studied, not by isolating from
others, but by examining the
relations it has with other
phenomena; philosophy
broadens its analysis to arrive
to wisdom.
● The difference mentioned above
counts for the fact that science can
never fully explain the phenomena of
love; it can always objectively reduce
it to biological explanation, but love
can never be fully tackled unless it is
explored from the standpoint of
philosophy.
Immanuel Kant (1724-1804)
● Wrote several works that are
discussed in epistemology, ethics,
metaphysics and logic.
● His revolutionary contribution lies in
his position regarding the empirical
and rational debate.
● Unlike Plato, he taught that
phenomena is not really accessible to
us; we can only know phenomena or
things as they appear to us.
● When we speak about reality, we are
in no way claiming that our views is
the only correct view. Immanuel Kant
pointed this out when he synthesized
empricism and rationalism.
○ He claimed that the data we
get from sensory experience
(empiricism) are not things-in-
themselves or things as they
really are but as things-they-
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appear to us. Our mind then
uses it categories
(rationalism) to understand
phenomena.
Seeing the World in a New Perspective
● Due to the development of the
internet, mankind is now enjoying easy
and unlimited access to information
that all the libraries combined on
earth;
● There is no excuse for ignorance now,
● We notice the irony that despite the
vastness of the information we can
readily have, we do not automatically
become knowledgeable or wise.
○ It is not enough to have
information if we do not know
how to make sense of that
information.
○ On the other hand, too much
information can also be bad; it
can get in the way of making
good decisions;
○ That is why getting relevant
information is one of the
basics in knowing or learning.
● There is always a gap to be filled by
the human mind as we perceived data;
altogether these make up our
humanity.
● The democratization of information is
a very good thing. However, it has also
brought some very bad things;
students mistake downloading as
research and every information from
the web to be factual
○ It is difficult to find the
truth and wisdom if we are
not skilled in getting the
right, if not essential,
information.
● Advances in technology such as that
of the internet have influenced our
habits. Because we are used to getting
instant information
 Intro To Philosophy of The Human Person

○ Writing as a way of taking

down notes is rapidly
diminishing among students;
○ Learning does not work that
way at all. In order to learn,
one has to be more involved
and more stimulated;
○ We learn best by doing
something correctly. It would
require much effort in our
part but the result pays off.
● Another phenomenon brought about
by the internet is the selfie
generation.
○ We voluntarily surrender our
privacy without noticing it.
○ Our notions of keeping in
touch has changed both in
terms of quantity and quality.
○ It takes a wise person to
realize that social media is
not going to amount to
deepening relationships.
● It takes philosophical reflection to
enable us to see through the things
that we do and see the person that we
become because of what we do; that is
the only way we gain insight.
The persons we are is ever-changing,
who we are is never fixed. We create
who we become through the decisions or
choices we make.