what is philosophy?

Answer 1

A smile on a dog?

Answer 2

You'll never know what philosophy is from a dictionary definition or encyclopedia article.

Philosophy is a process, and to know it you have to take part in it. That is, for a start, you have to ask questions to find out what sorts of questions are and are not philosophical questions. You've started well: - the question "What is philosophy?" is itself a philosophical question. Here's my answer (it's a bit abstract, but that's the nature of the subject):

Philosophy is the pursuit of the optimization of the theoretical aspect of human life. That is, it's the pursuit of, mainly, three things:

1. Identity - which is clarity and distinctness (the absence of confusion).
2. Harmony - which is coherence and compatibility (the absence of conflict).
3. Precision - completeness and simplicity (the absence of imprecision).

Philosophers pursue these three ideals using three main methods:

1. Analysis - taking concepts apart to see how they work - or don't work, in order to make them clear and distinct.
2. Synthesis - joining concepts together in order to ask questions, provide answers, criticize answers, revise answers and/or revise questions - with the ideal of assembling a harmonious (true) worldview.
3. Synopsis - Taking worldviews apart and reassembling them in their most complete but precise form - with non-necessities removed - and with the ideal of the precise statement of alternative worldviews. (This method a.k.a. reductive analysis).

A very simple way of putting all this is to say that philosophy is "looking (thinking) before we leap".

Answer 3

In a strictly linguistic sense it means: love of wisdom.
But in my opinion the best way to define academic philosophy is by listing its main subdisciplines, so here we go.
-logic
-epistemology(what can we know)
-ethics( how should we live)
At one point in time all knowledge came under the heading of philosophy, as we began to be able to form sound sciences for specific fields they branched off and became one of their own.

Answer 4

ohh, we combined a great definition when studying complex numbers in math! Philosophy is talking about the imaginary part of the real world [please look at this only when knowing what is a complex number]

Answer 5

Shutup

Answer 6

philosophy- The disciplines presented in university curriculums of science and the liberal arts, except medicine, law, and theology.

Answer 7

Investigation of the nature, causes, or principles of reality, knowledge, or values, based on logical reasoning rather than empirical methods

Answer 8

The Study of Everything..Life, The Universe..42 *Kudos to anyone who can tell me what thats off*

Answer 9

The art of thought. How many people do you know that actually "like" to think and think about thinking. Most people will tell you it gives them a headache to think to much. Philosophers enjoy analyzing and thinking.

Answer 10

love and the pursuit of wisdom by intellectual means.
AND
A philosopher is a lover of wisdom.