Philo

Objectives
At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:
 define and explain the historical method of philosophizing,

 compare the Socratic method, dialectic method, scientific method, and historical method as
methods of philosophizing,
 distinguish an opinion from truth by analyzing the given situations, and
 justify the validity of the statement “The historical method leads to wisdom and truth.”
You already know that the Philippines has a rich culture that was molded by colonial influences in the
past.
 If you want to further know how that happened, what type of book should you read?
 How do you know that what was recorded in our history books really happened?
Find out the answers in this lesson!
Review!
Methods of Philosophizing
A method of philosophizing is a process of determining the truth or drawing conclusions from a
statement using various philosophical methods, such as:
 Socratic,
 dialectic,
 scientific, and
 historical.
Learn about it!

If you answered “history book” in the previous question, you are correct. Now, if you were to read that
particular history book to know how the Philippines ended up with such a unique culture, then you just
applied the historical approach in your activity. Historical evidences are derived from records of the
past.
The Historical Method

 The term "history" is from the Greek word iotopia which means “to investigate" or "to find
out.”
 The historical method is the process of gathering evidences, examining them, and
formulating ideas about the past to come up with present truths.
 In this approach, it is believed that history has a “divine order” or a large “cyclical or
progressive” pattern that enables events to repeat themselves and record information through
historical accounts or archaeological findings.
 The process of learning the truth is simply through looking at past records to validate the
present hypothesis.
 If viewed in a more general perspective, the historical approach would include only a historical
account to differentiate truth from opinion.
 History is seen as more important than logic and a more valid source of the truth.
 Using the historical approach is much like researching for an answer to a particular question.
Reviewing what has been done in the past is the primary method of looking at a solution for a
problem at present.
Examples:
 You are going to Baguio for the first time with your family. You have the option to use one of
two routes. You look for reviews published in the internet to determine which of the two routes
is better.
 An entrepreneur wants to open a café in a middle class residential area in the city. Before
buying the property, she looked first at previous business ventures that were established
within the area to determine the feasibility of her plan.
Learn about it!

Historical, Scientific, Dialectic, or Socratic Method
Both the Socratic method and the dialectic method are based on a discussion between two or more
people who have differing views, but wish to pursue the truth by seeking agreement with one another.
The scientific method is a process of determining truth or knowledge through experimentation,
inductive and deductive reasoning, and hypothesis or theory testing. Meanwhile, the historical method
deals with examining the past to come up with present facts or truths.
Study the table below.
Learn about it!

Opinion and Truth
It is important to distinguish opinion from truth when using the historical method.
Remember:
 An opinion is a personal view formed about a particular matter, such as your preference for
Japanese cuisine.
 Truth, on the other hand, is something that has actual and proven existence regardless of
one’s opinion, such as the fact that the Philippines is made up of more than 7,100 islands.
Try to analyze the given situations. Distinguish the opinion from the truth.
Situation A reveals the truth because this account is derived from historical evidence.
Situation B expresses an opinion because it is a personal view.
Learn about it!

The Historical Method Leads to Wisdom and Truth
Because history is repetitive, it is believed that the things that are occurring at present already
happened in the past. Following this logic, the historical method serves the purpose of digging into
historical data and analyzing together the findings to come up with a conclusion. The use of the
method, therefore, leads to knowledge that is true and evidence-based.
History is repetitive. Only technology and political systems change. Everything revolves around war for
conquest, whatever the specific reasons. Greed is the brace no matter what the system may be.
Explore!
As a student, you are exposed to doing assignments on almost every subject you are taking. In some
classes, English for example, your primary project would be a position paper on the literary work you
have been asked to read. In putting content into your project, how do you go about writing it? Do you
review other sources first before proceeding to write your final position?
Try it!
Choose a random object in your house. On a piece of paper, write a hypothesis of where you think
that object originated from. You may also include your ideas on how you think that object was used in
the past. After listing your thoughts, find some relevant information on the internet that may tell you
more about your chosen object. You may also search for answers at the library if you want. Once you
find valid information, compare your work to the real origins of the object to see how you fared.
What do you think?

Can the use of the historical approach predict the future? Why? Why not?
Tips
 The historical method does not accept logic as the primary source of the truth. Instead, it
relies on factual information or evidence-based conclusions to confirm a present idea as the
truth.
 The historical method, as a method of philosophizing, should not be mistaken for historical
materialism. Although both concepts fall under philosophy, historical materialism is a Marxian
topic that caters to a more liberal readership.
 History, as a discipline, should be considered a separate topic from the historical method.
While both concepts focus on past events as significant, the latter only uses history to produce
its main goal which is the truth.
Keypoints
 A method of philosophizing is a process of determining truths or conclusions from a
statement through the use of various philosophical methods such as Socratic, dialectics,
historical, and scientific.
 The historical method deals with examining the past to come up with present truths.
 An opinion is a personal view formed about a particular matter, while the truth is something
that has actual and proven existence regardless of one’s opinion.
 The historical method of philosophizing leads to wisdom and truth.

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Objectives

At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:

 define and explain the historical method of philosophizing,

Find out the answers in this lesson!

Learn about it!

The Historical Method

Learn about it!

Study the table below.

Learn about it!

Situation B expresses an opinion because it is a personal view.

Learn about it!

What do you think?

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