Lesson 2:

APPROACHES
IN DOING PHILOSOPHY:
Reductionist and
Holistic
Prepared by: MS. JEAN G. ACOSTA,LPT
 Learning Outcomes:
01 02 03
Differentiate Deliberate Appreciate the
reductionist from smallest details of
reflections in
holistic approach life and the larger
holistic
in philosophy picture as a
perspective whole
 S
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ANALYTICAL SPECULATIVE
analyses statements approach looks for creative
to break down the observation in the fact that
through observing things
concept to make it
not that thoroughly but
understandable
simply observing since
there are no why questions
FIGURE 1

FIGURE 2
 Reductionism Holism
is the belief that human is a theory that parts of a whole
are in intimate interconnection,
behaviour can be
such that they cannot exist
explained by breaking it independently of the whole, or
down into simpler cannot be understood without
reference to the whole, which is
component parts.
thus regarded as greater than the
sum of its parts.
 What would be
the relevance of
the wholeness of
being?
 RENE
DESCARTES
• father of modern philosophy
• he first introduced Reductionism

• “he likened the world to a

machine with pieces
working like a clockwork
mechanism.” (Vinzonz)
ARISTOTLE
• summed up the idea of
Holism, in his metaphysics
• he had been using the holistic
approach and it wasn’t popularized
not until 1926 that the idea was
presented by Jun Smuts
HOLISM
“the idea that
something can be
more than the sum of
its parts”
According to Vinzons, “the
fundamental assumption
underpinning the holistic
perspective is that the properties of
the parts contribute to the
understanding of the whole.”
How are we going to
use reductionism and
holism in the
philosophy of human
person?
 (Reductionism) Latin Maxim:
“Minima Maxima Sunt”
the smallest things
are most
important
Holistic Philosophy:

--focus on the
wholeness, not by part
--being open-minded to
all possible realities.
THANK
YOU!