Of Wisdom.: Introduction To Philosophyof The Human Person Lesson 1

Introduction to Philosophyof the Human Person
Lesson 1
What is Philosophy?
Today, We will briefly sketch the definition of philosophy as well as its major branches.
Specifically, it will address the question: What is Philosophy?
Philosophy, particularly Western philosophy, comes from the two Greek words philia, which
means “love” and sophia, “wisdom”. Thus, etymologically speaking, philosophy means the love
of wisdom.
As is well known, love in this context is understood as a strong desire for a particular object; while
wisdom is understood as a correct application of knowledge. Thus, philosophy as the love of
wisdom, at least in this context, could refer to the strong desire of the human person to possess
knowledge and apply it correctly. It’s not a coincidence, therefore, that most philosophers in the
Ancient World, particularly in Greece, India, and China were sages or wise men. Think for
example of Socrates, Gautama Buddha, Confucius, and Lao Tzu.
Traditionally, however, philosophy is defined as a science that studies beings in their ultimate
causes, reasons, and principles through the aid of human reason alone. And when we speak
of “being” or “beings” in philosophy in this context, we mean all things that exist, material or
immaterial. An example of beings are “stones”, “trees”, “persons”, “cars”, air, water; and the
notions of “God”, “soul”, “spirit”. All of these are beings, and philosophy studies their ultimate
causes, reason, and principles through the aid of reason alone.
In other words, philosophy is concerned with the reason and principles that account for everything
that exists. Thus, some of the basic questions in philosophy are:
• What is the origin of the world, of everything that exists?

• Why do these things exist, rather than not exist at all?
• Is there God? If so, how can we justify the goodness of God in the face of evil?
• What is the meaning and purpose of life? Why do we have to suffer?
• If one is suffering from an unbearable pain, such as cancer, is it morally right to resort to
euthanasia or assisted suicide?
These are just some of the questions that philosophy attempted to address. And in doing so,
philosophy uses reason as a tool, which can be expressed in many forms, such as the ability to
reflect, question, articulate one’s thought, and analyze certain phenomenon or event. In short,
philosophy attempts to understand things in a critical and logical manner.
It is important to note, however, that philosophers do not agree on a single definition of philosophy.
In fact, philosophers differ in their basic understanding of philosophy. For example, Karl Jaspers,
a famous German existential philosopher, understands philosophy as a discipline in which
questions are more important than answers because answers themselves will, in turn, become
questions.
Major Branches of Philosophy
After addressing the question “what is philosophy?”, let us now discuss the major branches of
philosophy. Philosophy is normally divided into four major branches, namely: Metaphysics,
Epistemology, Logic, and Ethics.
Metaphysics comes from the two Greek words meta, which means “beyond” or “after” and
physika, “physical” or “nature”. Hence, etymologically speaking, metaphysics means the study of
things beyond the physical, that is, concepts or things that cannot be experienced, such as the
concepts of God, freedom, and soul.
Metaphysics is commonly understood as the foundation of philosophy. In fact, Aristotle calls it

the “first philosophy”. Originally, the Greek word metaphysika, which literally means “after
physics”, actually designated that part of Aristotle’s works, which came after those chapters that
dealt with physics. However, it was misappropriated later by the Medieval commentators on
classical texts as that which is beyond the physical. Thus, over time, metaphysics has been
understood as the study of that which exists beyond the physical.
Metaphysics is subdivided into two, namely, General Metaphysics and Special Metaphysics.
General Metaphysics is also referred to as Ontology. Under Special Metaphysics, we have
Cosmology, Psychology or Anthropology, and Natural Theology or Theodicy.
Ontology is derived from the two Greek words onto, which means “being” or “that which is”, that
is, everything that exists; and logos, which means “knowledge” or “study”. (Note, however, that
the term logos in ancient Greek scholarship have different connotations. For example, Heraclitus,
a Greek philosopher of the late 6th century BCE, understands Logos as reason or the underlying
principle of all that is.) Ontology, therefore, is the specific branch of philosophy that studies beings
in their ultimate causes, reasons, and principles through the aid of reason alone. In other words,
Ontology studies the first principles or the essence of all things.
Some of the basic questions in ontology are:
• What is being?
• Why do things exist, rather than not exist at all?
• What is the meaning and nature of reality?
• What is the underlying principle of all that exist?
• Is there nothing?
Cosmology, from the Ancient Greek words kosmos, which means the “world” and logos, meaning
“study”, is the specific sub-branch of philosophy that studies the world (or universe), including its
origin, dynamics, and characteristics, as well as the laws that govern its order.
Some of the basic questions in cosmology are:

• What is the origin of the world?
• What is the basic material of which the world is formed?
• How do things arise?
• In what consists its (the world) fundamental form or principle of order?
• Is the world or universe infinite?
Psychology comes from the two Greek words psyche, which means “soul” (but loosely understood
as mind) and logos, study. Thus, psychology is the specific sub-branch of philosophy that studies
the soul or mind. Broadly construed, though, psychology is the study of the nature and dynamics
of the human person as a whole, with emphasis on the way the person’s mind functions and the
way she behaves.
Some of the questions in psychology are:
• What is the nature of the human person?

• Is there such thing as human nature?
• What is the meaning and purpose, if any, of life?
• Is there life after death?
• How do we account for the existence of sufferings in the world?
Theodicy (Natural theology) is derived from the Greek word theos, which means God. The word
theodicy was coined by the famous 18th century German philosopher Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz
in his 1710 work titled Théodicée. Broadly construed, theodicy is the study of God. But
specifically, theodicy is concerned with the justification of the goodness of God in the face of the
existence of evil in the world.
Some of the questions in theodicy are:
• Is there God?
• What and who is God, if He exists at all?
• How do we prove the existence of God?
• If God exists, how do we justify the existence of evil and suffering in the world?
• Does a belief in God really necessary?
The second major branch of philosophy is Epistemology.
Epistemology comes from the two Greek words episteme, which means knowledge, and logos
which means study. It is formally defined as the study of the nature and scope of knowledge and
justified belief. Specifically, it analyzes the nature of knowledge and how it relates to similar
notions, such as truth, belief, and justification.
Some of the basic questions in epistemology are:
• What is knowledge?
• What do we know?
• How is knowledge acquired?
• What is the structures and limits of knowledge?
• What makes justified beliefs justified?
The third major branch of philosophy is Logic. Logic comes from the Greek word logos, which,
as I already mentioned, has different meanings. It is defined as the science of correct thinking
or the study of the principles and criteria of a valid argument. More specifically, logic attempts
to distinguish sound or good reasoning from unsound or bad reasoning.
Some of the basic questions in logic are:
• What is correct reasoning?

• What distinguishes a good argument from a bad one?
• How can we detect a fallacy in an argument?
• What are the criteria for determining the validity of an argument?
• What are the types of logic?
Ethics is derived from the Greek word ethos, which originally means custom or habit. Broadly
construed, ethics is the morality of human actions. Ethics, therefore, is concerned with questions
of how human persons ought to act, and the search for a definition of a right conduct and the good
life.
It is important to note that ethics is not the same with morality. This is because ethics denotes the
theory of right action and the greater good, while morality indicates practice, that is, the rightness
or wrongness of a human action.
Some of the questions in ethics are:
• What is a right conduct as that which causes the realization of the greatest good?
• How do we determine a right conduct? In other words, what makes a right conduct right?
• What is a good life and can we attain it?
• What is the difference between human act and actions that are based on instinct?
• What do people think is right?
Answer the short quiz on MS teams.

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Introduction to Philosophyof the Human Person

• What is the origin of the world, of everything that exists?

Major Branches of Philosophy

Metaphysics is commonly understood as the foundation of philosophy. In fact, Aristotle calls it

Some of the basic questions in ontology are:

Some of the basic questions in cosmology are:

Some of the questions in psychology are:

• What is the nature of the human person?

Some of the questions in theodicy are:

The second major branch of philosophy is Epistemology.

Some of the basic questions in epistemology are:

Some of the basic questions in logic are:

• What is correct reasoning?

Some of the questions in ethics are:

Answer the short quiz on MS teams.

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