PHILOSOPHY OF

HUMAN PERSON
COURSE OUTLINE

I. DOING PHILOSOPY
II. WAYS OF DOING PHILOSOPHY
III.THE PERSON AS EMBODIED SPIRIT
IV.THE PERSON IN THE ENVIRONMENT
V. FREEDOM OF THE HUMAN PERSON
VI.INTERSUBJECTIVITY
VII.THE PERSON IN THE SOCIETY
VIII.THE HUMAN PERSON AND DEATH
WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY?

 Greek Word

PHILIA LOVE
SOPHIA WISDOM

LOVE OF WISDOM
LOVER OF WISDOM
WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY?

PHYTHAGORAS was the first one who called himself as

philosopher

 “Sage” ANCIENT GREEK (Wise Man) ----Those who know –

someone who has attained wisdom
 Philosopher –as one who is attempting to find out

 3 classification of people according to Pythagoras

 Lover of pleasure
 Lover of activity
 Lover of wisdom
WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY?

Philosophy is also defined as the

science that by natural light of
reason studies the first causes or
highest principles of all things.
WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY?

Philosophy as SCIENCE

 It is an organized body of knowledge.

It follows certain steps or employs certain procedures.

WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY?

Philosophy as NATURAL LIGHT OF REASON

It uses a philosopher’s natural capacity to

think or human reason or the so-called
unaided reason.
 WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY?

Philosophy as FIRST CAUSE OR HIGHEST

PRINCIPLE
 Principle of Identity – whatever is; whatever is not is not. Everything is its
own being, and not being is not being.
 WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY?

Philosophy as FIRST CAUSE OR HIGHEST

PRINCIPLE
 Principle of Non-Contradiction – it is impossible for a thing to be and not
to be at the same time.
 WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY?

Philosophy as FIRST CAUSE OR HIGHEST

PRINCIPLE
 Principle of Excluded Middle – a thing is either is or is not; between being
and not-being, there is no middle ground possible.
 WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY?

Philosophy as FIRST CAUSE OR HIGHEST

PRINCIPLE

 Principle of Sufficient Reason – nothing exists without sufficient reason for

its being and existence.
 PERIODS OF PHILOSOPHY

ANCIENT PERIOD (600 B.C.E.–1000 C.E.)

Different school of thoughts

Confucianism – Chinese belief system (importance of

ethics and morality e.g religion
Taoism-”Lao Tzu” – humans and animals should live in
balance with the Tao or universe
Aristotelianism – realm of existence
Cynism – people – motivated – self interest (CHANGE)
etc
 PERIODS OF PHILOSOPHY

MEDIEVAL PERIOD (1000 C.E.–1500 C.E.)

SUBJECT AREA: Theology

The problem of the compatibility of the divine attributes-concept of

God – personhood, perfect goodness
The problem of evil – the idea of all-loving, suffering to exist in the
world
The problem of free will-control of how we act
The question of whether there can be substances which are non-
material
 PERIODS OF PHILOSOPHY

MODERN (1500
C.E.–1900 C.E)
SUBJECT AREA:
EXISTENTIALISM
RENE DESCARTES AS THE
FATHER OF MODERN
PHILOSOPHY

“COGITO ERGO SUM”

(demonstrating the
attainability of certain
knowledge)
 PERIODS OF PHILOSOPHY

CONTEMPORARY (1900 C.E. - present)

Philosophers

Soren Kierkegaard
Friedrich Nietzsche
Martin Heidegger
Jean-Paul Sartre
Arthur Schopenhauer