Historical Introduction to Philosophy/General Introduction

Excellent Resources for the Beginning Philosopher (and my resources for this page):

An Invitation to Philosophy: Issues and Options, By: Stanley M. Honer, Thomas C. Hunt, Dennis L. Okholm, John L. Safford.

Also: Doing Philosophy: An Introduction Through Thought Experiments

--MaryCordova 05:45, 22 July 2007 (UTC) (Site Custodian)

Introduction: What is Philosophy?

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What is philosophy? This is a question best answered by what it is not. Philosophy gave birth to all the other disciplines and so what is not now covered by physics, biology, grammar, mathematics, etc is what is left for philosophy. To the ancient Greeks philosophy was the love (philo) of wisdom (sophia). This is essentially true today. The philosophy of today gives one an avenue to enquire about life's BIG questions. If this is not the pursuit and love of wisdom, then what is?

Philosophy started with a man called Thales, yes Thales, not Socrates. Thales, and all philosophers after him but up to Socrates, were called the Pre-Socratics. These Pre-Socratics were mainly interested in the physical world.

It is Socrates that revolutionized philosophy by taking examination off of the physical world and applying it to mankind itself.

Plato, Socrates's pupil, sought to give an objective basis for Socratic Ethics and developed comprehensive Epistemological and Metaphysical theories.

Aristotle, Plato's pupil, was more empirical (requiring of evidence) than his predecessor. Because of this Aristotle developed Science. He sought to give a physical base for the world rather than the metaphysical one that Plato had constructed.

It is from this trinity; Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, that the entire foundation for Philosophy is set. Every philosopher since has used the work of these men as a starting point. It is in the ideas of these men that we see the seeds of the topics which have become central to philosophy as we know it.

Educational Task: Philosophy is something that you "do", not simply study. In light of this, completion of the following exercise is recommended:

For this chapter, as well as the following ones, see if you can explain what you have learned to someone else. Try not to engage somebody who is an idiot, you will get nowhere. Better yet, see if you can find someone to join you in this course. Explain what you have learned but be sure to allow them to form their own thoughts about the ideas you are expressing. If they have an opposing view point this is so much the better for you. If you have learned well, and are able to convey ideas in a way they can understand, discussion can then begin. Voila, you are philosophizing! (A great man once told me that one cannot philosophize all by themselves). This seems like an easy task. In hind-sight, I recall that it is not. In fact, while I am no expert, it is quite possibly the most difficult task I could have given you. I shall try to come up with something better.

These next two sections will give you a more in depth analysis of philosophy, its early players, and its methods.

Philosophical Method - Mondragon

Presocratics and Socrates - Robinson

=="Philosophical systems are wholly true only for their founders. For all subsequent philosophers they usually seem one great mistake..." - Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche.== This quote (for me anyway) does not mean that philosophical problems cannot be solved but rather, that every philosopher thinks that they have solved such problems until their successors point out why they have not at which point said successors think that they have now solved said problems. It is somewhat amusing to 'see' this phenomena play out time and again since the birth of philosophy.

Philosophy of Religion

Questions to Think About: Are faith and reason compatible? How do we know that God exists and what is his nature? Why would God allow evil? Does the presence of evil show that there is no God? Would God's existence preclude free-will and choice?

In this section you will be introduced to the philosophies of Augustine, Aquinas, and Anselm. Augustine was a Platonic theologian and philosopher. In taking Plato's Great Chain of Being, and replacing the Good with God, Augustine found a rational basis for Christianity. On the other end of the spectrum was Anselm. For Anselm, Aristotelian logic seemed a better means for proving the existence of God. His argument was based on the logical necessity of there being a God who was "that, than which nothing greater can be conceived". For most, the sharp division between Platonic and Aristotelian justifications for the existence of God did not seem to make sense. It was Thomas Aquinas who was able to synthesize the two seemingly disparate methods of thinking and brought a more unified philosophical background to religion.

Educational Task: Don't forget the assignment given to you in the introduction. The further along you go the more important and helpful the practice will become.

Faith and Reason - Hartline and Kellaway

Arguments for God - Hartline

The Problem of Evil - Kellaway

Epistemology

Questions to Think About: Epistemology: the study of knowledge. What do we know, what can we know, how do we know it, how do we know we know it? When we 'learn' are we 'remembering' what we already know or, do we actually 'learn' new things? What is 'truth'? Are there such things that are true for everybody all the time (objectivity) or does it change from culture to culture, person to person, situation to situation (relativism), etc.? What happens when we say that there is no way to know if we know anything?

It was not until after the Medieval period that epistemology became a core element for the development of philosophical ideas. Before then, epistemology was just one of many branches. Of course, even the epistemological foundations that were so dominant in the Early Modern Period had their roots in the philosophies of Plato and Aristotle. Plato was the forefather of rationalism. Briefly, rationalism is the idea that true knowledge can only be had of the types of things that one can reach by reason alone. In addition to this, our knowledge, consists of innate ideas that every developed mind possesses, whether they know it or not. Empiricism, founded by Aristotle, takes a much different approach. Rather than negating the senses empiricism uses reason to make sense of observable, objective phenomena in the natural world. Through empiricism we can have knowledge of things through sensory input.

Educational Task: Once again, practice, practice, practice. This is truly the best way, not only to see if you are learning, but to actually expand what you have learned.

Epistemology - Rogers

Truth, Objectivity, and Relativism - Labriola

The Challenge of Skepticism - Keine-Deters

Nietzsche on Epistemology

The Philosophy of Mind

Questions to Think About: What is the mind? Is the mind distinct from body? Is the mind a physical, material thing, or is it immaterial?

Educational Task: Must I say it again? I think not. If you have made it this far I am sure you know the value of engaging conversation.

The Mind-Body Problem - Nelp

Theories of Mind - Aquinto

Personal Identity - McCahan

Nietzsche on the Mind

Free-will and Determinism

If I could will it, there would be a cartoon here. It seems determined not to be.

Questions to Think About: Are our decisions caused by external factors? If we base our 'decisions' on the potential outcomes then they are in fact caused by those potential outcomes. If so how can we say that we have free-will? Can everything, including human behavior be explained in purely mechanistic terms? When considering the notion of an omniscient God are we eliminating the possibility of Free-Will? Are our lives predestined, are we fated to our future?

Educational Task: Guess what! I have something new for you this time. Scenario: Man A and Man B. Man A is sitting alone in a room. Man B wants to talk to him. Man B comes into the room; closes the door; sits down; and the tewo men begin to talk. During the course of their conversation Man C comes along and locks the door to the room from the outside. Neither Man A nor Man B realize this. Are they still exercising Free-Will while continuing their conversation? Remeber that they are locked in the room together and, while they may not know it, they no longer have the choice to stay or leave. (An Essay Concerning Human Understanding by John Locke. Book II-Of Ideas. Chapter XXI-Of Power. Section 10. [1])