The Value of Doing Philosophy – Deepening Reflection is the ability to think and learn

about an action and experience, respectively.

Realizing the Value of doing Philosophy is necessary to one's life.
The practical values of doing philosophy in our lives are
enumerated below: Doing Philosophy means engaging oneself to consider
philosophical activities particularly in the use of holistic
1. It helps us develop our critical and analytical thinking skills.
perspective, asking questions, and reflection.
Ideas and information are validated in philosophy. We do not
immediately believe on any information, messages, news, etc.
2. It helps us present bargained concepts and ideas. Philosophy
can be both theoretical and practical in its approach. It is
therefore unlimited in its scope of study and because of that, it
enables us to know essentials from non-essentials, and holistic
from partial.
3. It helps us find our essence of purpose. Our rationality is
always attached to our purpose. Our rationality sets us apart
from other beings or existence.
Aristotle - according to him, we as humans should serve our
purpose to think. If we go against this purpose, we suffer the
consequences of erroneous ideal, poor health and unhappy life.
4. It helps us become a good person necessary
for self-development.
5. It helps us understand others and their way of thinking Ideas
of different people manifest the way they think.
6. It helps us understand God better. Doing philosophy helps us
know not only ourselves but most importantly the very nature
and attributes of God. Philosophy offers various arguments on
the existence and non-existence of God. This may help us
strengthen her faith and disregard invalid arguments.
Branches of Philosophy
1. Aesthetics – It is the branch of Philosophy which deals with
beauty and what makes things “beautiful”.
2. Logic – It is branch of philosophy which deals with correct
reasoning.
3. Epistemology – It discusses the nature of knowledge and
knowing.
4. Ethics – It is branch which deals with moral questions and
dilemmas.
5. Political Philosophy – studies governments and deals with
questions of justice, power and the rights and obligations of
citizens.
6. Metaphysics – It is a branch of philosophy which
deals with questions regarding reality and existence.
7. Philosophy of the Human Person – It is an area in philosophy
that
understand the human person from a philosophical
perspective.
Method Of Philosophizing Fact
Distinguish Opinion from Truth
• A fact is something that is true. real information.
Fact or Opinion It can be proven.
1. It takes me 30 min. to walk from my home to school. • Facts are the truth and accepted as such.
• You can find facts in legal records, scientific findings,
2. Living near the school is better because we do not have to encyclopedias atlases, etc.
spend much for transportation.
3. My sister ate last piece of pizza pie.
Opinion
4. My sister is a selfish person because she ate the last piece of
pizza pie and did not share W/ me. • An opinion is something that you think.
It is not true information. In other words, it is what someone
5. The policeman firmly pushed the suspect to his knees and believes or thinks, & is not necessarily the truth.
placed him in handcuffs.
Ex.
6. The aggressive manner by w/c the policeman arrested the
suspect is an example of the brutality that characterizes our 1. Ann can have the opinion that Italian food tastes best, while
police force. Joe has the opinion that French food is ideal.
2. Sue can have the opinion that reading is boring, while Mike can
have the opinion that reading is fun.
3. Pia can have the opinion that hot coffee is better, while Tim
1, 3, 5 factual can prefer iced coffee
2, 4, 6 opinion
Methods Of Philosophy
Lead to Wisdom + Truth
The Methods of Philosophy will help to learn the process of doing
philosophy in a systematic way.

1. Philosophizing
• Is to think or express oneself in a philosophical manner.
• Although philosophy is an organized body of knowledge, the
subject matter of philosophy is questions,
w/c have 3 major characteristics:
a. Philosophical questions have answer but the
answer remain dispute.
b. Philosophical question cannot be settled
by science, common sense or faith
c. Philosophical questions are of perennial intellectual
interest to human beings.

• The methodology or method that philosophers use to address

philosophical question is critical thinking.

2. Critical Thinking – the careful, reflective, rational and

systematic approach to questions of very general interest.

3. Scientific Method – also leads to wisdom to truth because it

uses an evidence-based approach to come up w/ it's
conclusion.
also called "empirical method"
Types of Reasoning Example:
1. Deductive Reasoning DEDUCTIVE REASONING
• Top-Down Logic
It’s dangerous to drive on icy streets. (conclusion)
a. conclusion
The streets are icy now. (main point)
b. main points
So, it would be dangerous to drive on the Streets.
c. supporting data, facts examples and evidence
All birds have feather.
• in this type of reasoning, conclusions come first, followed by All robins are birds.
main points, and the last will be the supporting data, facts, Therefore, robins have feathers.
examples & evidences.
• General idea comes first before the specific or particular idea.
INDUCTIVE REASONING:
all cats I have seen are white.
2. Inductive Reasoning So, most of the cats are probably white.
• Bottom-Up Logic Three cats of 10% in the U.S. are white. (main point)
a. conclusion So, about 30% of cats in the U.S. are white. (conclusion)
b. main points
c. supporting data, fact, examples and evidence

• in this type of reasoning, supporting data, facts, examples and

evidences come first followed by the main points and
Conclusion will be the last part.
The Human Person as an Embodied SPIRIT
Embodied Spirit
• inseparable union of body and soul. It means that the body is
not separate from the soul, just as the soul is not separate
from the body.

Human Body Imposes

Limits & Possibilities for Transcendence
Transcendence
• is the ability to Change, be dynamic, & continually redefining
one's self w/c works with our "facticity" to create change.
• from Latin "trans" meaning beyond
& “scandare” meaning climb
Facticity
• refers to the things in our life that are already given.
• In English, it is the quality or state of being a fact/ truth

Ex.
1. life (we are free to define who we are and who we are to
be).
2. family
3. historical period, the country, where we were born
4. inevitable prospect of our "death"
Limitations of Human Person as an Embodied Spirit
What is the Human Person?
PERSON
• Has awareness of self
• Has self determination
• Is able to reach out & interact w/ other
• Has dignity

Human persons are naturally deficient beings. This means that we

are not prepared with the best physical aspects among all the
beings.
Ex.
human persons do not have the natural ability to fly.
Human persons cannot breathe underwater w/o the aid of
breathing device.
• As Spatial-Temporal Being – as temporal beings, our most
obvious limitation is our “finitude"
• Finitude – having limits or bound
• Spatial – refer to “space”
• temporal – “time”
• As spatial beings, we are limited by our bodies to be present in
2 or more places at the same time. We are limited by space
(spatial) and time (temporal)
Our body as “intermediary”
Having a body may prevent us from revealing What we really
want to express. It means that there are many physical
Limitations of our body
intermediary – means acting as a mediator
Examples of
BODILY LIMITATIONS:
- mental and emotional disorders (e.g. anxiety, intellectual
disability)
- disabilities (e.g. amputated leg, deafness)
- disease & illnesses (e.g. hypertension, cough)
- failures & experience (e.g. failing a subject)
Other Limitations: [Examples]
SOCIAL and ENVIRONMENTAL Limitations:
- Socio-Economic status (lack of economic resources)
- location of neighborhood (e.g. armed, disorganized or violent
neighborhood
- abusive relationships (e.g. emotional abuse) negative influences
(e.g. drug use)
OVERCOMING Limitations
Bodily limits can be tested by trying on new experiences and
working on challenges with increasing levels of difficulty. The
human body, if given enough exposure to any situation, can attain
a goal with efficiency.
Social and environmental limitations are more difficult to
overcome than bodily limitations because they involve the
influence of other people and the external world. However, with
a proper mindset, clearly defined goal, and motivation to rise
above challenges, one may successfully overcome his or her
limitations.
“POSSIBILITIES FOR TRANSCENDENCE"
3 types of transcendence:
1. EGO transcendence (self: beyond ego)
2. SELF-transcendence (beyond the self: the other)
3. SPIRITUAL transcendence
• developing a positive outlook in life
“Recognize and Evaluate Own Limitations and Possibilities for
Transcendence”
Some point to remember when going beyond your limits:
• you are connected to the external or eternal world
• Challenges are learning opportunities
• your goal is more important than your fears
• think "outside the box"
• recognizing that everyone has fears
Here are some limitations and possibilities for transcendence:
• may not occur to everyone
• does not come at a specified period
• varies across all people
• may coincide with physical limitations of the body
• Working towards reaching a goal
• learning from experience
• knowing your own limitation and possibilities helps you
transcend by providing a realistic understanding of your
capabilities.
• With a proper mindset, clearly defined goal, and motivation
to rise above challenges, one may Successfully overcome
his or her limitations.
The Human Person in their Environment Notice things that are not in their proper place and organize them
Environmental Philosophy in an aesthetic way
• the discipline that studies the moral relationships of human 1. Ancient Thinkers
beings w/ the environment and its non-human contents. a. Anaximander
• Philosophers believe that human person has the ability to • a pre-Socratic philosopher and scientist said about the
change the environment to suit his purposes. It will enable creation-destruction that according to him, "the sketch of the
them to become aware of their relationship and its related genesis of the word (cosmology), the evolution of the world
issues in our society and their impact on the lives of human begins w/ the generation of opposites in certain region
persons. Nature. Nature is indeterminate-boundless in the sense that
no boundaries b/w the warm and or the moist and dry regions
are originally present within
2 frameworks where humans can be related
(according to Payne 2010)
b. Pythagoras
1. Anthropocentric Model • according to him, universe is a living embodiment of nature’s
• humans are superior and central to the universe, thus, it is order, harmony and beauty.
"human centered" • He sees our relationship w/ the universe involving biophilia
(love of other living things and cosmo-philia (love of other
living beings).
2. Ecocentric Model
• It is the ecological or relational integrity of the humans that 2. Modern Thinker
provides meaning of our morals and values and it is • Immanuel Kant – according to him, beauty is ultimately a
nature centered. symbol of morality (goodness). He believes that the
• devoted to preserving the totality of Earth’s biodiversity and orderliness of nature and the harmony of nature w/ our
the functioning of its life supporting system. faculties guide us toward a deeper religious perspective.
• nature
• wild • Herbert Marcuse – concerned about the power of humans
• Holism over nature.
• body
• relational • George Herbert Mead – tackled about our duties and
• earth/ wisdom responsibilities
• ecology over/ against human
Show that care for the environment contributes to health, well-
being and sustainable development
Theories
1. Deep Ecology - an ecological philosophy
developed by Ame Naess (Norwegian philosopher in the early
1970's), that all life forms have an equal right to exist, and
human needs and desires have no priority over those of other
organisms, believes that the living environment should be
respected and regarded as having rights to flourish,
independent of its utility to humans.

2. Social Ecology – founded by Murray Bookchin (American

anarchist and libertarian socialist)
• conceptualized as a critique current social, political and
anti-ecological trend, it espouses a reconstructive,
ecological, communitarian and ethical approach to
society.

3. Ecofeminism – it is also called ecological feminism

Ecological Feminism – branch of feminism that examines the
connections b/w women and nature,
by French feminist Francoise D'eaubbonne in 1974.
• it is a philosophical idea that combines
feminism and ecology concerns, emphasizing that both
suffer from their treatment by a male dominated society.
• comes from the idea that women & nature have
significant connection since women most often have a
close association w/ nature in many societies due to the
nature of their traditional roles.
Demonstrate The Virtues of Prudence & Frugality Towards
Environment
1. Prudence
• the ability to have good judgement that allows
avoidance of dangers and risks.
• covers good judgement, considering the consequences of an
action, using common sense and discretion, exercising caution,
and conforming to reason and decency.

2. Frugality
• the act of using money or other resources
wisely and practically.
• The quality of being thrifty, sparing or economical in the
consumption of resources and avoiding waste, lavishness or
extravagance.
d. Neither statement 1 nor 2