What is Philosophy? (Leaving Cert Religious Education): Revision Notes

What is Philosophy?

Definition and core concepts

Philosophy literally means the "love of wisdom". This simple definition captures the essence of what philosophers throughout history have been seeking - not just knowledge or facts, but deeper wisdom about life's fundamental questions.

The discipline has two key aspects that work together:

• Nature of philosophy: To wonder about the world around us
• Purpose of philosophy: To gain wisdom through this process of wondering

The role of wonder in philosophical thinking

Wonder serves as the starting point for all philosophical inquiry. When we encounter something that puzzles us or makes us curious about how things work, we begin to philosophise. This natural human tendency is captured in a quote attributed to Socrates: "all people philosophise, whether consciously or unconsciously."

This highlights an important point - philosophy isn't just an academic subject confined to universities. Every time we ask questions like "What is the nature of things?", "How can we know what we know?", or "What is the best way to live?", we're engaging in philosophical thinking. We're all searching for wisdom in our daily reality.

Reason and logic versus mythical thinking

What distinguishes philosophy from other ways of understanding the world is its commitment to reason and logic rather than myth. While mythical stories and religious explanations had previously provided answers to life's big questions, philosophy represents a shift towards rational investigation.

This doesn't mean philosophy rejects all previous wisdom, but rather that it uses different tools - logical reasoning and careful analysis - to explore fundamental questions. Logic and reason are considered more reliable methods for discovering genuine truth than mythical understanding alone.

Historical development in Ancient Greece

Much of Western philosophical tradition has its roots in Ancient Greece, particularly during the classical period from approximately 600-200 BCE. This era has profoundly shaped philosophical thinking up to the present day.

Before this period, people generally understood the world through mythical stories. Tales of gods like Prometheus or Zeus provided explanations for how and why things existed as they did. These myths served important functions in answering life's key questions, but philosophy offered a different approach.

The classical period marked a crucial transition - from mythical to logical thinking about the nature of existence and reality. Rather than accepting traditional stories, philosophers began using reason to investigate how the world actually works.

The Natural Philosophers

The first group of philosophers to emerge during this classical period were known as the "Natural Philosophers" or pre-Socratic philosophers. These thinkers were determined to find logical explanations for how the natural world came to be formed.

Previously, people had relied on mythical stories to answer questions about the world's origins. The Natural Philosophers took a different approach - they used reason and logic to develop theories about the fundamental nature of reality.

Applying philosophical thinking

The approaches developed by these early philosophers - and indeed by all the classical and contemporary philosophers studied in this course - can be applied to answer fundamental questions about existence, knowledge, and ethics. When studying any philosopher's work, consider how their ideas demonstrate both the nature of philosophy (wonder and questioning) and its purpose (seeking wisdom through rational investigation).