PHILO

• Philosophy's etymology: "Phylos" - to love; "Sophie/Sophia" - wisdom
• Wisdom is the expression of knowledge, while knowledge is used to achieve wisdom
• Misconceptions of Philosophy:

  • Belief that one's philosophy is as correct as the next person's
  • Philosophy is just an opinion, not supported by good reasoning
  • Truth is absolute, not relative
• Philosophical questions:

  • Seek answers
  • Based on human experiences
  • Pressing, fundamental, and can lead to infinite regress
• Methods for answering philosophical questions:

  • Construct well-reasoned arguments
  • Use the Socratic Method, Thought Experiments, and Reductio ad Absurdum
• Core Branches of Philosophy:

  Metaphysics:

  • Deals with the true nature of reality
  • Focuses on existence and ultimate reality
  • Investigates whether the world is real or an illusion
• Epistemology:

  • Study of knowledge and justified beliefs
  • Explores rationalism and empiricism
  • Investigates acquisition of knowledge and validity of perception
• Ethics:

  • Aims to synthesize concepts of right and wrong
  • Includes Metaethics, Normative Ethics, and Applied Ethics
• Aesthetics:

  • Deals with nature and appreciation of arts, beauty, and good taste
• Logic:

  • Studies reasoning and provides rules for logical thinking
  • Helps create sound arguments and avoid fallacious reasoning
• Philosophy's etymology: "Phylos" means to love, and "Sophie/Sophia" means wisdom, hence philosophy is the love of wisdom
• Wisdom is distinguished from knowledge as knowledge is used to achieve wisdom, while wisdom is the expression itself
• Misconceptions of Philosophy:

  • Belief that one's philosophy is as correct as the next person's
  • Philosophy is just an opinion, whereas it requires support through good reasoning
  • Truth is absolute, not relative
• Philosophical questions:

  • Seek answers
  • Based on human experiences
  • Pressing, fundamental, and can lead to infinite regress
• Methods for answering philosophical questions:

  • Construct well-reasoned arguments
  • Use the Socratic Method, Thought Experiments, and Reductio ad Absurdum
• Core Branches of Philosophy:

  Metaphysics:

  • Deals with the true nature of reality
  • Focuses on existence and the demarcation line between appearance and reality
  • Investigates the nature of existence itself

  Epistemology:

  • Study of knowledge and justified beliefs
  • Explores rationalism and empiricism

  Ethics:

  • Aims to synthesize concepts of right and wrong
  • Includes metaethics, normative ethics, and applied ethics

  Aesthetics:

  • Deals with the nature and appreciation of arts, beauty, and good taste

  Logic:

  • Studies reasoning and provides rules for logical thinking