What Is Philosophy

1
What Is Philosophy?

• My good friend, you are a citizen of Athens, a
  city which is very great and very famous for its
  wisdom and power -- are you not ashamed of caring
  so much for the making of money and for fame and
  prestige, when you neither think nor care about
  wisdom and truth and the improvement of your
  soul?
• - Plato, Apology (F.J. Church translation)

2
TS on Philosophy

• Philosophy an area of inquiry that raises
  questions about knowledge, nature, and norms and
  tries to give reasoned answers to them (p. 3).
• So, philosophy has a characteristic subject
  matter and a method.

3
Subject Matter

• Those are my principles, and if you don't like
  them... well, I have others.- Groucho Marx

4
TS on Subject Matter

• Subject matter knowledge, nature, and norms.
• Knowledge epistemology
• Nature metaphysics
• Norms ethics
• (hence the title of the book)
• Not limited to this, though

5
Details on Epistemology

• The study of knowledge, including justification,
  evidence, reasons for belief, etc.
• Some Main Qs
• How can one acquire knowledge?
• What is it to know something?
• How do I know Im not in the matrix (e.g.)?

6
Details on Metaphysics

• The study of nature, existence, reality, objects.
  (Not the stuff in the metaphysics section of
  BN.)
• Some Main Qs
• What is it to exist?
• When is something part of reality?
• Whats the relationship between abstract and
  concrete things?

7
Details on Ethics

• The study of right and wrong, good and bad,
  actions, character, justice, value, etc.
• Some Main Qs
• What should one do?
• Why should one be moral?
• When is something right or wrong?
• Is morality subjective?

8
Some Main Branches / Areas

• Epistemology
• Metaphysics
• Ethics, Value Theory, Etc.
• Logic
• History of Philosophy

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Important Notes on Branches

• No strict boundaries here
• Largely identified by their characteristic
  questions and subject matter
• May overlap

10
Crash course in Hist. of Phil.

• Ancients Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, etc.
• Medievals Augustine, Aquinas, Anselm, etc.
• Moderns Descartes, Leibniz, Locke, Hume, Kant,
  etc.
• 20th CenturyFrege, Russell, Moore,
  Wittgenstein, Quine, etc.

11
WSA on Philosophy

• Philosophy is defined by a goal and a method
  (p.1).
• The Goal a systematic world view (p.1).
• one that is rational, reasonable, justified

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Picture of the World
13
Characteristics of Philosophys Subject Matter

• Deep questions?
• Not really.
• Relativity theory in physics is pretty deep
• Foundational
• Causation, explanation, time, space,
  justification, truth, rightness, wrongness, etc.
• Conceptual
• How we think, conceive, or conceptualize the
  world, rather than how the world is
• Possibility / Necessity
• How things must be or can be, not how they are
  (empirical / descriptive / factual)
• Especially puzzling
• Liar paradox, problem of free will, etc.

14
Methods

• Go on, prove me wrong. Destroy the fabric of the
  universe. See if I care.- Terry Pratchett

15
KNN on Method

• Method putting forward what one takes to be
  good reasons in support of whatever claim one is
  attempting to support (p. 3).
• Not different from any other truth-seeking
  discipline

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Main Method

• Critical thinking (Reasoning)
• Follow the evidence, follow Reason
• Follow what is true (or most probable), not what
  you want to be true
• Look to see if assumptions are justified

17
WSA on Methods

• Conceptual analysis provide necessary and
  sufficient conditions for the application of a
  concept.
• E.g. Something is a bachelor if and only if it is
  male and not married.
• Interdisciplinary research
• E.g. Linguistics, Mathematics, Psychology
• Cognitive science, neuroethics, international
  relations, experimental philosophy

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Another Method

• Thought experiments hypothetical scenarios in
  which certain things are stipulate as true or
  false.
• As counterexamples
• As something that needs a unifying explanation

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KNN on 2 Aims

• Constructive aim to construct good arguments
  that really do support some philosophical claim
  (p. 3).
• Critical aim critically evaluating arguments,
  putting them to the test to see if they are any
  good (p. 3).

20
An Example Debate

• Larry David What can I say?David Schwimmer
  You can say, Im sorry, Ill buy you a new
  watch.

21
Curb Your Enthusiasm Clip
22
What Do You Think?

• Does Larry owe David a watch?
• Does Larry owe David an apology?
• Does Larry owe David something else?

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Davids Argument?

• you had possession of my watch, and now you
  dont.
• Background principle? If L was in possession
  of Ds property W and L loses W, then L owes D a
  new W.
• Whether D lost W first doesnt matter.

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Larrys Argument?

• You didnt even have a watch to begin with, so
  youre in the same position you were. Theres no
  change.
• Background principle L owes D a new W only if
  L changed the position D was in w.r.t. W.
• Claim Larry didnt change the position David
  was in w.r.t. his watch.

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The Truth is Hard to Find

• if truth be at all within the reach of human
  capacity, it is certain it must lie very deep and
  abstruse and to hope we shall arrive at it
  without pains, while the greatest geniuses have
  failed with the utmost pains, must certainly be
  esteemed sufficiently vain and presumptuous. I
  pretend to no such advantage in the philosophy I
  am going to unfold, and would esteem it a strong
  presumption against it, were it so very easy and
  obvious." - David Hume, Treatise (1739-40),
  Introduction

26
Studying Philosophy

• Read listen carefully and critically
• Internalize the problems, puzzles, issues
• Formulate opinions take a stance on the issue,
  even if only tentative
• Have a humble attitude recognize that you may
  be wrong, that you have much to learn, etc.