INTRODUCTION TO THE

PHILOSOPHY OF THE
HUMAN PERSON
 Prayer
O God of truth and knowledge, be with us
throughout this day and pour your blessing upon
us. Help us in our studies and enlighten our
minds. Enable us to take the delight in seeking
truth and wisdom without rest. Amen.
Send O Lord, Holy Apostles into
your Church!
 Truth vs.
What is the difference?
Opinion
Opinion Truth
Mr. John Carlo is a very
good teacher because he Mr. John Carlo is teaching
gives all his best in Philosophy.
teaching Philosophy.

A. B.
 Truth vs.
What is the difference?
Opinion
 Opinions are statements that reflect the views
or ideas that people have about subjects and
topics. Opinions may not be rooted in fact or be
supported by strong evidence, though there are
exceptions, such as in the case of expert
opinions.
How can PHILOSOPHY
guide us in distinguishing
TRUTH from OPINION?
 Methods of
PHILOSOPHIZING
 Methods
a particular form of procedure for accomplishing
or approaching something, especially a systematic
or established one.
PHILOSOPHIZING
To think or express oneself in a
PHILOSOPHICAL MANNER
 Existentialism
Phenomenology Postmodernism

PHILOSOPHIZING
Analytic Fallacies
Tradition Logic and Critical
Thinking
 What is Truth?
• Phenomenology - truth is based on the person’s
consciousness
• Existentialism – truth is based in exercising choices
and personal freedom
• Postmodernism – it is accepted that truth is not
absolute (i,.e., cultural)
• Logic – truth is based on reasoning and critical thinking
Phenomenol
On Consciousness
ogy:
Phenomenolog
Phainomenon = Appearance
Logos = Reason/ study
y? Study of Phenomenon
Investigation of the
Anything that exists of
which the mind is
essence or the nature of conscious of
material things or things
that appear to us
Rene Descartes Edmund Husserl
Father of Modern Father of
Philosophy Phenomenology
Doubted the certitude of the The thinking “I” is
world outside of the self always conscious of
(EGO) his world

Rene Descartes Edmund Husserl

Father of Modern Father of
Philosophy Phenomenology
Phenomenology focuses on
careful inspection and
description of phenomena
or appearances, defined as
any object of conscious
experience, that is, that
which we are conscious of Edmund Husserl
Father of
Phenomenology
 Pure description of the
“What is”
Back to the things
themselves
Phenomenology attempts to describe
what is given to us in experience
without obscuring preconceptions or
hypothetical speculations. Edmund Husserl
Father of
Phenomenology
 Existentialism
Phenomenology Postmodernism

PHILOSOPHIZING
Analytic Fallacies
Tradition Logic and Critical
Thinking
Existentialism:
On Freedom
 Our search for truth by means of critical
thinking is a rational choice. Existentialism
emphasizes the importance of free
individual choice, regardless of the power
of other people to influence and coerce our
desires, beliefs, and decisions.
 Sartre argued that
consciousness (being-for-
itself) is such that it is
always free to choose
(though not free not to
choose) and free to “negate”
or reject the given features
of the world.
Jean Paul Sartre
 One is never free of
one’s “situation,” but
one is always free to
“negate’ that
situation and to (try
to) change it. Jean Paul Sartre
 To be human, to be
conscious, is to be
free to imagine, free
to choose, and
responsible for one’s
life. Jean Paul Sartre
EXISTENCE
PRECEDES
ESSENCE
Jean Paul Sartre
Postmodernism:
On Culture
 “Postmodernism” is a name of a rather
diffuse family of ideas and trends that in
significant respect rejects, challenges, or
aims to supersede “modernity”.
The convictions, aspirations and
pretensions of modern Western thought
and culture since the Enlightenment (i.e
rationality, objectivity & universal truth)
 Postmodernists claim that it is
IMPOSSIBLE for anyone to have
objective and neutral knowledge of
another culture.
There is no such thing as an objective,
single truth independent of humans’
capacity to interpret and explain.
How can we
know the Truth?
Postmodernists consider that to arrive
at truth, humanity should realize the
limits of reason and objectivism.
Beyond exalting individual analysis of
truth, postmodernists adhere to a
relational, holistic approach.
Analytic Tradition
Can language objectively
describe truth?
Answer: Language cannot
objectively describe truth.
 Language is socially
conditioned.
We understand the world
solely in terms of our
language games – that is, our
linguistic, social constructs.
Truth as we perceive it, is
Ludwig Wittgenstein itself socially constructed.
Analytic philosophy is the conviction
that to some significant degree,
philosophical problems, puzzles and
errors are rooted in language and can be
solved or avoided by a sound
understanding of language and careful
attention to its workings.
 INTRODUCTION TO THE
PHILOSOPHY OF THE
HUMAN PERSON
 Prayer
O God of truth and knowledge, be with us
throughout this day and pour your blessing upon
us. Help us in our studies and enlighten our
minds. Enable us to take the delight in seeking
truth and wisdom without rest. Amen.
Send O Lord, Holy Apostles into
your Church!
Logic and Critical
Thinking: Tools in
Reasoning
 2 Basic types of Reasoning
1. Inductive – Based from observations in order
to make generalizations. This reasoning is often
applied in prediction, forecasting, or behavior.
2. Deductive – Draws conclusion from usually
one broad judgment or definition and one more
specific assertion, often an inference.
 Example of Deductive Reasoning

All philosophers are wise. (Major Premise)

Confucius is a philosopher. (Minor Premise)
Therefore, Confucius is wise. (Conclusion)
1. Validity and soundness of an Argument.
2. Strength of an argument
 Fallacies
Defects in an argument other
than its having false
premises.
 Fallacies
a. Appeal to pity (Argumentum ad misericordiam)
b. Appeal to ignorance (Argumentum ad ignorantiam)
c. Equivocation
d. Composition
e. Division
f. Against the Person (Argumentum ad hominem)
g. Appeal to force (Argumentum ad baculum)
 Fallacies
h. Appeal to the people (Argumentum ad populum)
i. False cause (post hoc)
j. Hasty generalization
k. Begging the question (petition principii)
 Summary
We are human beings possessed with reason. We use
it when we make decisions or when we try to
influence the decisions of others or when we are
engaged in an argument or debate. Indeed, this lesson
presented the general principles involved in
reasoning to arrive at truth. Though emotions can be
more persuasive, in the long run, correct reasoning
will prove to be the most solid foundation.