What is philosophy? That is the question.
Some of you have a general idea of what the word "philosophy" means, but most of you don't. The most common usage of the word is probably when someone expresses their “philosophy” of something; e.g. their “philosophy of life,” or their “philosophy of football,” or their “philosophy of using make-up.” This usage, however, does not explain what the concept of “philosophy” actual is. We will unpack the word philosophy here to find out what it really means. Philosophy is more of an activity than a field of study. In the above examples, it kind of means a person’s “conclusions about an issue AND their reasons for believing it to be that way” – so their philosophy of life might be to “take it easy” or “don’t sweat the small stuff” or “just do it,” and they can readily explain to you why they believe these things. But their conclusions, or opinions, do not make it philosophy – their rational attempts to discover their conclusions and opinions DO make it philosophy. So philosophy is more of a systematic approach to finding the truth about something.
“Philosophy” is even more than that; philosophy seeks the ultimate truth about things; it tackles BIG questions. These questions often seem simplistic at first: Why are we doing what we’re doing? What is important to us? What political type of government works best? What do we know? What is real? What's the purpose of living? We automatically tend to answer these questions with responses that we’ve been conditioned to give, such as, “I’m taking this class because it’s required by the school and once I finish school I can get a good job,” or, “Supporting my family is most important,” or “I know what my name is because it’s on my birth certificate,” or “The things around me are real because I can see them.” Philosophy encourages us to go beyond these quick-response answers.
Why do you want a good job? What is a “good” job? One that pays $75,000 per year? What if you hate the job? What if you’re required to work 90 hours per week and be away from home for two weeks out of each month? You might not like these responsibilities even though you are receiving $75k per year. Is it really the good job that you want or is it what the good job will provide for you, namely, an income and job experience? Why do you want money? Is it the money or what money will help you acquire? The point here is that there is more that meets the eye with these questions. Asking why you’re taking this class might seem simple until you really think about it – and that’s what the field of philosophy does – really tries to figure these BIG questions out.
Philosophy asks non-rhetorical questions like these then seeks the truest answer --yet does not rely solely on opinions, tradition, or authority. Philosophy relies on good reasons to support opinions. This is one of the most difficult concepts to grasp when first entering the world of philosophy. When a student makes a statement then I ask, “Yes, but how do you know that?” the student often interprets my question as if it were a statement. The student often thinks that I am saying “You don’t know that” but I am not. I am asking the question “How” do you know something. It’s important in philosophy to know how and why we believe to know things.
Philosophy is the field that questions assumptions people have in order to gain a better understanding of things -- of every thing. Why are you here? How do you know you're here? How do we know when something is true or false? Why do you believe what you believe? Why do you think one action is good and another bad? We try to answer these questions as best as possible.
Other fields teach you facts, histories, routines, and techniques -- established things. Philosophy itself doesn't really do this -- learning the history of philosophy in an academic setting does, but not philosophizing in itself -- it teaches you to question assumed facts, truths, & methods in order to understand the "facts" better.
Philosophy also demands that good reasons be presented for making conclusions. A philosopher asks: How so? Can you prove it? Can you show me? Are you sure? How do you know? And then listens closely to the answer. He or she does not simply accept a "truth" or "fact" except during informal socializing.
Philosophers make some people extremely annoyed and even furious. They make others bored to death. What is "death," by the way? What happens after death? What is "life"? When does life start? How do we know that "time" exists for us to live within? This is what philosophers do, they question everything – but with the purpose of understanding, not just to destroy assumptions. It's a difficult concept for many.
Some of the other issues Philosophy investigates are: What is love? knowledge? justice? morality? beauty? These are all abstract ideas -- beliefs, theories, assumptions -- very general conclusions we assume are real and sometimes true.
Philosophy is an activity, an active process; it asks questions that can't satisfactorily be answered by science or religion. You may ask: What is a Southern Baptist? or What is a Roman Catholic? or What is Atheism? and be able to arrive at a clear answer because those questions pertain to convention or agreed upon terminology. But what is "religion"? What is "God"? What does having a "belief" mean? Knowing the "truth"? These are more difficult topics that philosophy tackles; these are more philosophical questions.
The KEY in Philosophy: support your opinions with defensible statements. Opinions that have more weight to them, because they have more evidence or logical validity, are going to be considered more true than those opinions that cannot hold up to questioning.
So why do we do philosophy? Because it is what we are meant to do; philosophizing is what sets us apart from every other thing on Earth, and ultimately, it makes us happy. "To be happy," or “feeling satisfied,” or “experiencing pleasurable feelings” are often concluded as our ultimate purpose. To think about things; to think about ourselves; to think about others; to think about why we are the way we are; to think about the consequences of our actions and adapt; to think about ideal ways to live; to anticipate what might happen if we did such and such, so not do it if we conclude it would not be good.
Philosophy is all about a process of thinking, a certain manner of thinking, a method of thinking; it helps you think more clearly. It helps you recognize what you value. It helps you to understand yourself and your world better. Philosophy is not an alternative to other fields but can enhance any other field.
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What questions do philosophers ask" Questions such as these: What is a philosophical question? Is there a purpose to living? Why are we here? What makes something right or wrong? What is real? Is this just an illusion, a dream? Does God exist? How do we know? Why do so many people consider a certain painting beautiful?
These are the types of things philosophy tackles and what a student of philosophy will hope to understand better.
