1st SEM | MIDTERMS

PHILOSOPHY
Philosophy ● “love of wisdom”

Two Major Traditions of ● Western Philosophy – characterized by its rigorous way of doing
Philosophy philosophy
● Eastern Philosophy – used interchangeably with religion / treats
philosophy as a way of life

Western Philosophy ● Socrates – 470 B.C, Athens, Greece. Grotesque

● Plato – student of Socrates, serve as a transcriber of the past
● Aristotle – studied under Plato and later on, put up his school called
Lyceum

Socrates ● Making dialogues w/ various people

● “an unexamined life is not worth living”

Plato ● Famous stories “Allegory of the Cave”

● Real and unreal world
● Truth is often forgotten at birth
● Soul – rational soul – intellectual / focus of Plato, spiritual soul – heart,
appetitive soul - physical

Aristotle ● Opposed Plato’s Theory of Forms

● The path he took was different from is mentor’s interest
● Substance and accidents

Eastern Philosophy ● Confucianism – one of the greatest tradition in ancient China. It started
by Kongzi or Confucius over 2500 years ago.
● Buddhism – living tradition whose roots can be traced from the life and
teachings of Siddharta Gautama who is also known as the historical
Buddha. Anchored on the idea that human lives in suffering and that he
should overcome this.
● Indian Philosophy – concentrates on the spiritual. Conceives man to be:
spiritual in nature, spiritual in destiny,

Four Noble Truths ● Human life is pervaded by suffering

● Suffering is a result of craving
● There is a state of freedom from suffering called nirvana
● Right action – not killing living beings

Five Branches of ● Should not be conceived independent, or the other since overlap and
Phiolosophy intersect
● Distinction serves to demonstrate the diff branches of philo
● Aesthetic – deals w/ beauty, art, nature of value judgment. Greek word
‘aesthetikos’ = perception. “philosophy of art”
● Metaphysics – deals with being and reality. Greek word “meta” = after or
beyond. Greek word “physika” = nature
● Epistemology – deals w/ the nature of knowledge, its justification, and
certitude. Two Greek words “episteme” = knowledge, “logos” = reason.
Concerned w/ the production and source of knowledge
● Logic – concerned with argumentation. Deals w/ our reason behind
accepting a belief. Greek word “logos” = word, reason, speech, discourse
1st SEM | MIDTERMS

● Ethics – concerned w/ the question of how people ought to act in order to

live a good life. It is also called moral philosophy. It deals w/ principle of
morality, idea of goodness, and the good life. Greek word “ethos” = custom
or habit

Critic ● Greek word “kritikos” = able to judge, discern, and evaluate

Critical Thinking ● Active thinker who always speculates

● Characterized by a suspension of judgment and examination of one’s
reason to investigate beliefs and conclusion

Qualities of a Critical ● Analysis – deconstruction and decoding of meaning. Greek word

Thinker “analusis” – loosening, unraveling, unfastening, breaking down a certain
concept
● Evaluation – valuing or appraising – French word “evaluer”
● Argumentation – supporting ones convictions and claims through
evidences (convince a person to side w/ a certain position). Opinions –
expressions of beliefs and are usually colored w/ biases. Facts statements
that are true and verified.