|
NIPISSING UNIVERSITY PHIL 1115: Introduction to Philosophy Module 1 |
|
PHIL 1115 Introduction to Philosophy
Objectives for Unit 1
There is no textbook reading for this first unit, but please read this page of advice offered by your textbook publisher, Thomson/Wadsworth. And read this article from the New York Times. Part 1: First Things First“While diminishing the feeling of certainty as to what things are, philosophy greatly increases our knowledge as to what they may be.” Bertrand Russell
Welcome to Nipissing University’s online introductory philosophy course. Perhaps you know a bit about philosophy already; perhaps you don’t. In the quotation above, Bertrand Russell wants to warn you that philosophy has two faces. Certain aspects of this study will make you uncomfortable. (If they don’t, you’re not thinking hard enough…). But he also glories in the fact that this study will open your mind to possibilities you never imagined. So philosophy can introduce painful doubts…but it opens worlds you might never discover otherwise. Philosophy bakes no bread… An old saying claims that philosophy bakes no bread. The meaning is that, unlike some of the other academic studies you have undertaken, philosophy will not directly put food on your table. Your ‘dough’ will have to come from other endeavours. But, because bread is so basic to life, it has been imbued with much cultural symbolism. We speak of the bread of life, breaking bread with friends and family, we give thanks for our daily bread. These additional meanings allow us to dispute the truth of the saying, but even if we think of bread only as bread, the saying can still be doubted. After all, it is perhaps equally true that no bread would ever have been baked without philosophy. Time Magazine considered this issue half a century ago and concluded that the “act of baking implies a decision on the philosophical issue of whether life is worthwhile at all.”
Albert Camus insists that the question of suicide is THE most important question. “There is only one really serious philosophical question, and that is suicide. Deciding whether or not life is worth living is to answer the fundamental question in philosophy. All other questions follow from that.” In light of this, we see that someone who bakes bread has already answered that question. At least for one more day…
------------------------------
Why are we here? This is one of the biggest of The Big Questions. It has a million answers and it has no answers. We have two months to investigate the possibilities.
Why are we gathered here in this web space?
In other times and places you might not have had this opportunity. At many times in history, you would have been told what to think. At many places today, you would be told what to think. We see the evidence of this in the news every day. You have a luxury much of the world doesn’t. But you’re not exactly home free either. Much more than we might imagine, we are still told what to think. More subtly. Less openly. But still for the same purposes and still by the same people. Books are still being banned. Subjects are still considered taboo. Under the guise of cultural relativism, we are encouraged to censor ourselves. I mention these things because one of the premier joys of philosophy is the opening of our minds to new ideas, new possibilities, new avenues of exploration. And one of the premier opportunities of philosophy is the development of the rational tools with which to asses both our old and new ideas, possibilities and avenues. But once embarked on this study, you have an obligation to philosophy as well. The world is in sore need of more philosophers. Philosophers to watch and comment. Philosophers to weigh the options. Philosophers to bear witness to the importance of truth.
Part 2: What is Philosophy?
We might begin by looking at what it isn’t. Western philosophy grew up in ancient Greece (far, far away and long, long ago). The people then worried about the same difficult questions about how to live a good life. The accepted, easy answers to the difficult questions were prescribed by the religious authorities. Official religion worked with the secular authorities to divide the acceptable from the unacceptable. Their answers were elaborated in stories (that we now call myths) and repeated down the generations. The purpose of this handing down was the socialization of succeeding generations so that the same values, the same belief in the law, the same belief in religion stabilizes that society (and ensures the acceptance and continuation of the status quo). The myths told that the gods created the world and continued to rule it at their whim. The activities of the gods were responsible for earthquakes, storms, droughts, fertility, good and bad fortune, etc. Zeus ruled the sky Poseidon ruled the waves Athena was the goddess of love and war The gods required propitiation (prayer and worship) to avert both private and public disasters. The priests, for a price, passed on mankind’s hopes and fears to the gods and interpreted the signs from the gods. It was in the interests of the priests and the secular government for the people to remain in awe of the gods and to accept the status quo without asking too many questions. Religion serves that purpose very well.
Those new philosophers in the Greek colonies of ancient Turkey came to believe that the old religious answers weren’t real – that they were merely pretty stories for children. These new ideas made many people uncomfortable. (Philosophy is supposed to make you uncomfortable, otherwise you’re not pushing hard enough. No pain – no gain.) So we can separate philosophy from what came before: myth, story and superstition. But we also need to separate philosophy from what came after. Originally, almost all academic subjects were branches of philosophy.As the natural sciences (biology, astronomy, physics etc.) developed concrete ways of testing their hypotheses (through observation, experimentation, calculation etc.) they peeled themselves away from philosophy and gained independent status. This has happened more recently with the human sciences (psychology, sociology, anthropology etc.) Philosophy is left with the great unanswerables. The origin of all the sciences and humanities in philosophy is still honoured; the highest degree you can get in any of them is a PhD (doctor of philosophy). Even today, scientists like the naturalist, Loren Eiseley, or historians like Arnold Toynbee and physicists like Richard Feynman have written as much philosophy as they did science or history. We will have three tasks in this course:
What do we mean by “Big Questions”?What is the meaning of life? What is the nature of reality? What does it mean to “know?” What is the nature of Justice? What is the meaning of God in human life? Why do innocent people suffer? Where does evil come from? What is the best form of government? What is the relationship of mind to body? What is beauty? Is the happiness of the many really more important than the happiness of the few? ---------------------------------------------------------------- (Interactive) Florida State University has considered this question about what is philosophy. Write an additional thoughtful question for each of the four philosophical categories. ----------------------------------------------
Part 3: Timely and Timeless questions
For the most part philosophy doesn’t directly address “timely” questions, questions about politics, world events, the economy, pollution, health concerns, the drug problem, prison reform, education etc.. These are important questions to be sure but they are related to a particular time or place and often merely seeking the best strategy for dealing with a specific concern – often seeking technical answers. ‘Timely” questions are usually related to particular ends:
But even with “timely” questions, we can’t help thinking philosophically Our world view – our philosophy – will affect how we approach such “timely” questions.
Many “timely” questions have "timeless" aspects. Therefore, we can ask both "timely" and "timeless" questions about them:
News stories almost always invite deeper philosophical questions:
-Why should hate crimes carry more severe penalties?
-Whose rights are more important: the offender who has served his time or the neighbours trying to protect their children’s safety?
-Which principle is more important: ownership of intellectual rights or the public good? We are often so distracted by the "timely" world around us that we give no thought to the "timeless" world. Philosophers have sought answers to the timeless questions since ancient times, questions about ultimate values, general principles, and the nature of reality, knowledge, justice, happiness, truth, evil, God, beauty and morality. . .
We’ve already listed some of the “Big Questions” above:
It is obvious that these questions have no easy answers, no answers that serve for all time, no answers that serve for every person, perhaps not even any “right” answers. Timeless questions are asked anew by each culture and each generation – by every person who wakes from their ordinary life to ask: Why am I here? Is this all there is?
Part 4: Philosophy is both a subject and a process
We don’t just learn philosophy. We must do philosophy… and that requires a variety of skills and tactics:
The purpose of the content is to furnish our minds with ideas – a common fund of terms, theories and people that we can talk about. We won’t cover everything, of course. We will pick and choose, identify some of the highlights, look at some of the most famous questions and answers. We will consider how and when and where philosophy developed, how it continues to influence our lives, how it can help us, collectively and individually.
The purpose of the process is to examine our own lives and learn to live intentionally, instead of just letting life have its way with us, to live our lives instead of letting our lives live us. My other intention in this course is simply to turn you on to the excitement and the enchantment and the drama of philosophy. Taken seriously, philosophy asks a lot of us. It requires us to hold up our beliefs for examination, for comparison, for critical discussion. We must be willing to be as hard on our own opinions as we are on those of others.
What we need to bring to the study of philosophy…
Because this is a university course which requires grading, we will, of course, have subject matter which you will need to learn – some philosophers, some significant dates, some classical answers to basic questions – some historical context to aid our understanding of the times and places where particular philosophies developed But we will be interested also – sometimes even primarily – in doing philosophy, in changing not only what we think about, but also how we think.
(Of course, whether there is such a thing as TRUTH is itself one of the BIG QUESTIONS) While you can probably pass this course with much learning (names, dates and theories), it would be unfortunate. Rather, I hope you will come to see this class as an experiment in thoughtful living. I’ll end this introduction with perhaps the most famous words in all of philosophy: Socrates: The unexamined life is not worth living. So examine the lives and thoughts of the philosophers, but examine also your own life.
Philosophy requires a courageous spirit – a willingness to uncover sometimes difficult truths – and then to try to live by them. Philosophy won’t bake your bread, but……it will open your eyes if you let it. Remember that philosophy hides in plain sight everywhere. But you have to pay attention… --------------------------------------------------- (Interactive) Take a look at some of these definitions of philosophy. In two or three sentences, tell me which one most closely relates to your personal reason for taking this course? -------------------------------------------------------
And lastly…. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (Interactive) Watch this Australian introduction to some of the classic philosophical problems. Which of these intrigues you the most? Why? Which of the reasons for taking philosophy do you find most compelling? -----------------------------------------------------
General Links... What is Philosophy? Dartmouth University's answer Subcategories of Philosophy Florida State University What is Philosophy? 16 minute video from Australia
Student Resources for The Big Questions... Philosophy Study Tips Wadsworth |