RODUCTION TO THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE HUMAN PERSON

LESSON 2:
TOPIC: Branches of Philosophy

OBJECTIVES:
1. Identify the different branches of Philosophy.
2. Compare and contrast among the branches of Philosophy.
3. Apply each branch in real life setting.

Knowing only the meaning of Philosophy and some of its characteristics are not enough if
we are in search for true wisdom. For a narrow and partial mind is wholly incompatible with
the real philosophical attitude that manifests holistic point of view. The discussion below on
branches of Philosophy is intended to broaden one's perspectives and skills in doing
philosophical discourses.

There are 5 branches of Philosophy: Metaphysics, Ethics, Epistemology, Logic and

Aesthetics.

Metaphysical philosophy accounts on investigating the unreal entities in terms of the real
world that we experience through our senses. The well-known Philosopher, Plato,
enlightened the field of metaphysics by contrasting reality and appearance. He stated that
our experience with the real world is not real. Reality according to him is how we perceive
the world. Therefore, what is real is just products of our perception through the mind. For
example, we see a yellow chair because we perceive it as vellow chair. But others may
perceive a different color when light affecting the appearance of the chair is obstructed.

Ethics as another branch of Philosophy deals with the evaluation of human actions and the
nature of moral virtue. As such, ethical philosophy accounts for the nature of our moral
judgements and it also attempts to investigate our fundamental ethical ideas. From these
contentions arise the idea of right versus wrong and evil versus good. Discourses like
feminism (equal opportunities among genders) and law-making become areas where ethical
philosophy is employed. Socrates pointed out that knowledge is not merely theoretical nor
speculative but also practical. It means that knowledge on rules of right living is not
sufficient when it is not actually being practiced. One historical example that exemplifies
ethical philosophy is that issue laid down by William Du Bois. He argued that there must be
equal rights between black and white Americans.

Epistemology as philosophical perspective concerns its elf with the nature, sources,
limitations and validity of knowledge. Some of the basic questions raised by Epistemology
are: how do we know what we know, how do we know what we want to know and do we
distinguish true from what is not true. Knowledge, according to thiis perspective, can be
acquired through induction (empiricism) and deduction. Induction is a process of
knowledge-forming by investigating particulars (also known as empirical evidences) in order
 to arrive at general idea. Conversely, deductive process employs generally accepted ideas in
order to arrive at specific ideas. Advocates of deductive method are called rationalists. Rene
Descartes is well-known rationalist. Another method used under Epistemology is
pragmatism. William James and John Dewey are famous pragmatists.They believe that value
in use is the real test of truth and meaning.

Logic is another branch of Philosophy. Unlike any other philosophical perspectives, logic
does not concern itself in what we know regarding certain subjects. Thus, logic does not
provide us knowledge of the world directly. It only serves as tool to guide one's arguments
or discourses so as to keep them valid and true. Aristotle was the first philosopher who
employed logical method. He claimed that truth exists when there is agreement between
knowledge and reality. This can only take place when mental ideas correspond to the
objective world. This is where logical reasoning comes in. Reasoning is very important in our
everyday lives. Decision making can make or unmake Us. Thus the quality of our logical
capacity affects our well-being. A person equipped with logic can reason far better than
those who are not.

Finally, Aesthetics as philosophical perspective concerns itself with the notion of beauty.
Whenever we created a devise or equipment we consequently aim to improve (or beautify)
it after some time. It only goes to show that aesthetics accounts for the criteria of beauty.
Aesthetics can be used to explain matters regarding culture and arts. It is in these fields
where beauty can best be explained with the use of aesthetical philosophy. Embedded in
our culture is our capacity to distinguish beautiful from what is not Arts as part of our
cultural milieu manifests our ideas regarding beaury What benefits can students get from
aesthetical knowledge? As students, the importance of aesthetics are: it vitalizes our
knowledge making the world more useful and alive, it helps us live more deeply and richly
for appreciation of work of arts arises, and it keeps us in touch with our
culture.