Chapter 2 – What Is Philosophy?
The chapter explores the nature of philosophy and its various branches, emphasizing the importance of philosophical inquiry in addressing questions that fall outside the scope of science. It highlights metaphysics, epistemology, and ethics as the three main areas of philosophical investigation.
Metaphysics delves into fundamental questions about the nature of reality, such as the existence of God, the nature of free will, the concept of time, and the existence of non-physical entities like numbers and properties. While historically, there have been various metaphysical positions, contemporary analytic metaphysics aims to understand how these claims about reality logically fit together. Metaphysicians analyze metaphysical puzzles and seek to comprehend the realm of possibility and necessity.
Epistemology focuses on knowledge and justified belief, addressing questions about what constitutes knowledge, the limitations of knowledge, skepticism, and rational justification for beliefs. It also examines the similarities and challenges faced by scientific and moral knowledge, as well as the reasonableness of beliefs in the absence of absolute certainty.
Ethics concerns what we ought to do, how we should live, and how our communities should be organized. It challenges traditional views that tie morality solely to religious or societal commands, emphasizing that moral reasoning and reflection play a crucial role in ethical deliberation.
This chapter also addresses the reemergence of metaphysics in contemporary philosophy and the critical examination of scientific and moral knowledge, highlighting the intricate and interconnected nature of philosophical inquiries across different branches.
Overall, this chapter is a comprehensive overview of philosophical inquiry’s diverse and intricate nature. It emphasizes philosophy’s significance in addressing fundamental questions that lie beyond the scope of science and underscores the continued relevance and vitality of philosophical investigations in contemporary discourse.
