the role of philosophy in the contemporary times.... the problem.... the solution?

Question

will somebody help me on the role of philosophy this modern days... please site a problem and also the solution

Answer 1

The fundamental role of philosophy has not changed much over the past 2,500 years, even tough a great many specific details have changed. Philosophical thought begins when someone notices that their own existence is amazingly odd and unfathomable. Most people experience this feeling at some point in their lives, but most find it uncomfortable or annoying so they push it out of their minds. But for some people this kind of thought triggers a contemplative mood and captures their imagination.

Explaining this mood to someone who is not currently in the mood is notoriously difficult – sort of like trying to explain colors to a blind person. Anyway, this thought/mood is the origin of philosophy. It begins a quest to understand things more deeply than they are normally understood. If someone who is not in the philosophical mood demands an explanation of why this kind of understanding is important, they are not likely to get any sort of satisfactory response. Why not? Because the philosophical mood is like wearing some strange pair of glasses (or taking a mind-altering drug) that makes seemingly insignificant details pop out into vivid, 3-D form. The philosopher points and says, "Can't you see how strange this looks?" but hardly anyone else can see what the philosopher sees, so they just shake their heads and mumble about what an odd fellow the philosopher is.

But luckily for the philosopher, there are others who have fallen into the mood. Philosophy is a community of people who have fallen into the philosophical mood. Some actually forget the mood and become so totally absorbed in playing games with technical details that they don't even have time to notice the philosophical mood any more. I pity the poor undergraduate who takes an introductory philosophy class from one of these philosophers. But the vast majority of philosophers periodically find their philosophical mood rekindled – which is why they spend such a major part of their lives pursuing one theory or another with so much passion. To those without the special glasses, philosophy seems stuffy and boring, but to the philosopher it seems that the fate of all existence depends on this quest. It is exciting, and it is meaningful because it involves digging into the very nature of meaning itself. Socrates summed it up when he said: "The unexamined life is not worth living."

Science is a form of philosophy; in fact philosophy is sometimes called "the Queen of the Sciences." Religion can be a form of philosophy too, for those who are not satisfied with the standard answers and seek something deeper. Science and religion have the impact that they have on modern life precisely because they are rooted in philosophy. The key thing is that philosophers find each other and talk to each other in ways that most people don't understand, but the results trickle down. Have you seen "The Matrix?" This is Descartes "evil genius" dressed up in Hollywood packaging.

There is good news/bad news concerning philosophy in modern life. The good news is that we have more resources available for philosophical investigation than we've ever had before. The bad news is that these same resources can just as easily provide a source of mindless distraction and promote a sort of consumer frenzy that makes everyone too busy to live deeply. Or, to put it another way, the sea is deeper than ever before, but most people won't dive below the surface.

Answer 2

Philospophy has reached a traffic jam. Siophisticaed arguments can be made to support most ideas e.g. God is dead etc

Also, the ideas are understood by so few peole -that it seems no longer relevant - there are few "major" issues unresolved.