Philosophy Explained: Core Concepts, Branches, and Purpose
What is Philosophy? A Foundational Understanding
Philosophy is a passion that involves the whole human being and is necessarily part of the human mind. It seeks a full explanation, an understanding beyond which no one can go. Philosophy is a knowledge that, through questioning the reason for all things and their root causes, addresses the most genuine human need: the pursuit of truth.
Core Characteristics of Philosophy
- Universality: It is a knowledge that wonders about all of reality; its field of study encompasses universality: human beings, thought, rationalization, feeling, and construction. Ultimately, it addresses the entire human experience. This is a main difference from sciences, which often consider only a partial field of reality. However, both kinds of knowledge are needed and enrich each other; philosophy helps maintain sight of the overall framework when studying a specific problem.
- Radical: It is radical, considering reality from its fundamental explanatory principles, asking ‘why’ and ‘what caused it’.
- Rational: It is a rational knowledge, since the aim of philosophy is to rationally understand and interpret reality. It must argue, provide consistent arguments, and pursue objective understanding. Philosophical rationality is not limited to theoretical explanations but also has a practical dimension: learning how to live.
- Critical: It is critical: Philosophy has always involved a rethinking of traditionally accepted knowledge. This puts it at odds with dogmatism, which holds fixed truths that cannot be discussed. Moreover, criticism is not solely negative; to criticize means to analyze, discern, and judge something.
Key Disciplines of Philosophy
Philosophy encompasses several core disciplines, each addressing fundamental questions:
- Metaphysics: The oldest discipline of philosophy, devoted to the study of being. As its name indicates (meta = beyond), it explores what lies beyond material appearances perceived by the senses, accessible only through reason.
- Epistemology: Seeks an answer to how we can know and what constitutes the most appropriate method for acquiring knowledge.
- Logic: Deals with the conditions required for all coherent thought and the tools for achieving it. Its principles are fundamental to the Philosophy of Language.
From these general disciplines, other human sciences emerge:
- Ethics: The study of values, norms, and obligations that should govern the moral conduct of the individual.
- Political Philosophy: Investigates everything related to the individual in society, the citizen, and the state.
- Aesthetics: The study of beauty and the human capacity to create art.
All these disciplines are interconnected, reflecting Descartes’ view that human knowledge is a unity, like a tree composed of a trunk and its branches.
The Essential Functions of Philosophy
- Unifying Knowledge: To know what is most universal. It helps give unity to the whole body of knowledge. It therefore plays an interdisciplinary role.
- Analyzing and Evaluating: In its dialogue with other sciences, it analyzes and evaluates their concepts and methods, seeking to delineate the boundaries of each field and identify what is true in every form of knowledge.
- Fostering Critical Thought: As a critical form of knowledge, it steers us away from dogmatism, prejudices, and fallacies. Philosophy critiques current knowledge, thereby opening pathways for the transformation of both thought and society.
- Teaching Reason: It teaches us to reason, to think and go beyond what is immediately apparent. This requires the use of abstract thought.
- Guiding Behavior: In its practical dimension, it directs human behavior in both private and social spheres.
- Addressing Ultimate Questions: It addresses the ultimate problems that science cannot fully answer: the nature of the person, the meaning of existence, the origin of the universe, and more.