Reviewer for the 2nd set – 1st quarter Examination

Philosophy
Etymologically, the word “philosophy” comes from two Greek words, philo means “to love”, and
Sophia, meaning “wisdom”. Philosophy originally meant the love of wisdom. Philosophy is also defined as the
science that by natural light of reason studies the first causes or highest principles of all things.

Under this definition, four things are to be considered:

a. Science
b. Natural light of reason
c. Study of all things
d. First cause or highest principle

The branches/areas of Philosophy

a. Metaphysics is really only an extension of a fundamental and necessary drive in every human being to
know what is real.
b. Ethics is generally the study of the nature of moral judgments.
c. Epistemology deals with nature, sources, limitations, and validity of knowledge (Soccio 2007).
d. Logic is a treaties on matters pertaining to the human thought.
e. Aesthetics is the science of the beautiful in its various manifestation.
f. Value theory is the investigation of something worth significant.

Philosopher
A philosopher is one who perceives in some measure the ways in which the various experiences and awareness
of existence form a pattern of meaning.

Types of Philosophers (Alistair J. Sinclair)

1. Oral philosopher
A type of a philosopher who does not have a formal training on or studied philosophy in school and
he/she claims to be a philosopher.

2. Street philosopher
A type of philosopher who pretends to be brimming with knowledge and wisdom.

3. Amateur philosopher
A type of philosopher who studied philosophy for his/her own satisfaction.

4. Student philosopher
A type of philosopher who studied philosophy in school, college, or university.

5. Academic philosopher
A type of philosopher does not earn his/her living as a philosopher; yet, he/she is a qualified philosopher
at the degree level.

6. Professional philosopher
 A type of philosopher earns a living by writing books, making TV appearances, teaching, or researching
about philosophy.

7. Great philosopher
A type of philosophers who is systematic in his/her way of thinking. The greatness of this type of
philosopher lies in his/her being able to thoroughly ponder his/her thoughts to a more significant level
than most philosophers.

Expanding Our Philosophical Frames: Western and Non-Western Traditions

Many philosophers hold that there are three great original centers of philosophy in the world – Greek
(Western), Indian, and Chinese. All three arose as critical reflections on their own cultural traditions.
Historically speaking, Asian classics of the Indians and the Chinese predate the oldest of Western classics.
Indian and Chinese philosophers of note also lived earlier than their Greek counterparts (Quito 1991). During
the first centuries, there was more philosophical activity in the East than in the West. Before the Greek period,
there was hardly an activity in the West. Greeks before Thales did not have philosophy (Velasquez 1999).

Filipino Thinking: From Local to Global

It may sound presumptuous to speak of “Filipino thought” for the reason that the Philippines could not
very well speak of tradition such as that of China, India, or Greco-Roman.

 Loob: Holistic and Interior Dimensions

Kagandahang loob, kabutihang loob, and kalooban are terms that show sharing of one’s self to others.
For Mercado, interiority manifests itself in freedom. Loob puts one in touch with his fellow beings.
Great Philippine values, in fact, are essentially interpersonal.
 Filipino Philosophy of Time
The Filipino proves that he believes in the gulong ng palad (literally, wheel of fortunes) and hence,
looks at life as a series of ups and downs (Timbreza 1992).
 Bahala Na
The pre-Spanish Filipino people believed in a Supreme Being, Batula or Bathala. However, in this
regard, the originality of Filipino thought will probably be precisely in his personalistic view of the
universe (Timbreza 2002).
 Filipino Thought and Values: Positive and Negative Aspects
It is believed that the Philippine values and systems, in line with Filipino philosophy, are in dire need to
be used as positive motivation. Beyond his family group, the Filipino sees himself belonging to a small,
primary group in a dyadic, pyramidal fashion.

Philosophical Perspective
1. Idealism
It is a philosophy that believes in the superiority of the mind of matter. It holds that ideas are the only true
reality.

Plato was regarded as the father of idealism. Coming from one of the oldest and most elite of Athenian
families, his real name was Aritocles and he lived around 427-348 BCE.

Immanual Kant, who lived from 1724-1804, was one of the most important philosophers in the Western
tradition. He was born in the Konisberg, German, to a poor but deeply pietistic family. A proponent of
transcendental idealism, Kant believed that our experience of things is about how they appear to us, not
about how things are in and of themselves.
2. Realism
It believes in the existence of the objective realities or “things-as-they-are.” This means that the objective
realities or physical objects exist in themselves, or possess value with or without a mind perceiving it.

Aristotle was born in Stagira, a Greek community in Thrace, Aristotle (384-322 BCE) was the son of a
court physician. He is commonly referred to as the father of realism. He south to know objective reality
through the scientific method involving assiduous and diligent scrutiny of all observable data.
 Ultimate form means that a particular object shares properties with other similar objects.

Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) was born in Roccasecca, Italy. He joined the Order of Preachers
around 1243 and was a student of Saint Albert the Great. Known as one of the greatest theologians of
the Western religion, Aquinas taught at universities where he was regarded as a master of “disputed
questions” (Soccio 1995).

3. Pragmatism
It emerged as philosophy in the late nineteenth century and was popular among Americans. This philosophy
holds that experience is the ultimate basis of reality and stresses that practical consequences constitute the
essential criteria in determining meaning, truth, or values.

Charles Sandres Peirce is an American philosopher who studied philosophy, science, and mathematics
and chemistry at Harvard University. He accepted the proposition that the mind is different from
material reality, but he also maintained that what is known about objective reality resides in the idea one
has of any given object (Soccio 1995).

John Dewey was born on 20 October 1859, in Burlington, Vermount. He obtained his doctorate at Johns
Hopkins University in 1884, and taught at the University of Michigan.

 Instrumentalism holds that theories are instruments of actions and their application and
usefulness will determine the truth.

4. Existentialism
Contemporary existentialism was the most widely influential philosophical orientation from 1945 to the
1970’s. By focusing on the question of human existence and the feeling that there is no purpose or
explanation at the core of existence, existentialism holds that the only way to rise above the essentially
absurd condition of humanity is by exercising personal freedom and choice.