What do YOU think philosophy is?

Question

My homework assignment is to ask 6 friends what they think philosophy is, and compare their answers.

So, I am going to extend an offer of friendship to all of you, and ask this question. I'm not looking for a right answer, I just need to compare your answers to each other. Anyone who takes the question seriously will get a thumbs up, and one of the first to take it seriously will get 10 points.

Thanks!

Answer 1

Philosophy comes from two words (Greek I think). Philo eaning love and sophy meaning knowledge and philosophy therefore means the love of knowledge. In practice I believe this means a love of pondering over the deeper issues of life that most people tend to ignore in the busyness of our current times. It is the love of analyzing issues that perhaps don't have a straightforward answer and trying to apply logic and facts to these questions of life.

Answer 2

Hi Friend!

Philosophy is the Love of Wisdom.Here are some thoughts from other "friends" on the subject!

“Philosophy, rightly defined, is simply the love of wisdom.” ~ Marcus Tullius Cicero quotes (Ancient Roman Lawyer, Writer, Scholar, Orator and Statesman, 106 BC-43 BC)

“Any religion or philosophy, which is not based on a respect for life is not a true religion or philosophy.” ~ Albert Schweitzer quotes (German medical Missionary, Theologian, Musician and Philosopher. 1952 Nobel Peace Prize, 1875-1965)

“Philosophy: unintelligible answers to insoluble problems” ~ Henry Brooks Adams quotes (American writer, 1838-1918)

“Science gives us knowledge, but only philosophy can give us wisdom” ~ Will Durant quotes (American Writer and Historian, collaborator of his wife, Ariel Durant. 1885-1981)

"Philosophy begins with wonder” ~ Socrates quotes (Ancient Greek Philosopher, 470 BC-399 BC)

Answer 3

philosophy, the search for truth, the basis of science, and the other three sides of the pyramid... A philosophy is as good as your theory, and hence, your argument. I see it quite metaphorically really: a theory is like a rock in the reef, it is the only thing you can hold onto, the strength with which you hold it is your argument, if you can't defend it because of your argument you will drown no matter what theory you hold onto (even if it is true). Just like a weak man would not be able to hold onto a rock in the reef, regardless of how strong the rock is. But if you are a true philosopher and realize the importance of argument, you will train yourself in the art of debate and not see things lightly. You will test your boulders, no matter how strong they are, until someone throws their refutation, one so strong it melts the rock away, and then you will hold on to the same rock as they do.

That sums it up, the way we see things, our philosophy, shouldn't be flexible, yet should be a combination of: just, firm, and reasonable. A rock amidst an ocean of refutations.

Answer 4

Philosophy is THE search for knowledge. It is the only way to truly gain knowledge about the world around you in the sense that it opens your eyes and mind to many different ideas that can not be proven nor disproven , that what philosophy is. You can believe what you want and as long as you can back it up and believe in it, and maybe get someone else to go along with it you have created your own philosophy. Knowledge is not learned it is found.

Answer 5

philosophy

Critical examination of the rational grounds of our most fundamental beliefs and logical analysis of the basic concepts employed in the expression of such beliefs. Philosophy may also be defined as reflection on the varieties of human experience, or as the rational, methodical, and systematic consideration of the topics that are of greatest concern to humanity. Philosophical inquiry is a central element in the intellectual history of many civilizations. Difficulty in achieving a consensus about the definition of the discipline partly reflects the fact that philosophers have frequently come to it from different fields and have preferred to reflect on different areas of experience. All the world's great religions have produced significant allied philosophical schools. Western philosophers such as Thomas Aquinas, George Berkeley, and Søren Kierkegaard regarded philosophy as a means of defending religion and dispelling the antireligious errors of materialism and rationalism. Pythagoras, René Descartes, and Bertrand Russell, among others, were primarily mathematicians whose views of reality and knowledge were influenced by mathematics. Figures such as Thomas Hobbes, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and John Stuart Mill were mainly concerned with political philosophy, whereas Socrates and Plato were occupied chiefly by questions in ethics. The Pre-Socratics, Francis Bacon, and Alfred North Whitehead, among many others, started from an interest in the physical composition of the natural world. Other philosophical fields include aesthetics, epistemology, logic, metaphysics, philosophy of mind, and philosophical anthropology. See also analytic philosophy; Continental philosophy; feminist philosophy; philosophy of science.

Answer 6

YOU think therefore I am...

Philosophy is, for me at least, highly subjective: existentialism and humanitarianism perhaps at the base of my own ethos (or lack of it).

My deliberate misuse of what is perhaps the most widely-known Cartesian quotation, Rene Descartes: "I think therefore I am" is a starting-point in itself.

After all, until you read this email, I don't exist in your milieu at all. Then again, since this is an electronic medium, you only have my word for the notion that 'I am who I am...' In other words, I only EXIST when YOU think about ME.

It is hard, at times, to separate polemic or cant from a discussion of one's own philosophical leanings, so I'll just mention that I write essays within the literary criticisms of postcolonialism and 'queer' theory, and leave it at that.

I'm not sure what curriculum or year your homework is for, but I hope this helps a little. Drop me a line if you need expansion or explanation re my email!

regards,

Paul :o)

Answer 7

Philosophy is a way of survival. With out our philosophy, we have not been able to adapt to what mother nature has thrown at us. Philosophy has helped us develop our technologies, such as clothes, tools, fire, shelters, and weapons to hunt food.

Philosophy is an essential and basic thing that has survived us as a humanity.

Answer 8

Philosophy is mind candy. A mixture of, reason, logic, abstraction, psychology, science, faith and culture all for the sake of advancing thought.

Answer 9

philosophy - study of the ultimate reality, causes, and principles underlying being and thinking

Answer 10

a battle between good intentions (to discover something for what good it will do)and mental masterbation(a sort of ego rub for one's self)
self exploration i guess