Philosophy

“Love of Wisdom”

Why?

Ask “Why?” once and you are a scientist.Ask “Why?” a second time and you are a

philosopher.Ask “Why?” a third time and you are

probably three years old and annoying your mother.

Philosophy

MetaphysicsThe nature of reality

EpistemologyThe nature of knowledge

AxiologyThe nature of value judgments

EthicsAesthetics

Philosophers as Physicists

The MonistsConcerned with composition of matter.

Thales – all matter is made from water.Anaximander – all matter is made from “the

boundless.”Anaximenes – all matter is made from air.

Order in the UniverseHeraclitusAll things change

in a “orderly way.”“One cannot step

into the same river twice.”

Strong influence on Socrates.

PythagorasThe universe could

be reduced to numbers.

Creation of MatterEmpedoclesEverything made

from earth, air, fire, and water.

Leucippus/Democritus

Small, invisible particles that moved in a void.

Atomic Theory

From Physics to Ethics

The SophistsFirst Humanists“Man is the measure of all things.”

– Protagoras.Taught wisdom for a price.

How do we know what we know?Sophists

We can’t know anythingSocrates

Question until you find one truth then work backwards

PlatoReminiscence theory of knowledge

AristotleEmpirical approachObservation leads to universal laws

Socrates

“Know thyself.”

“The unexamined life is not worth living.”

“I am the wisest man alive, for I know one thing, and that is that I know nothing.”

Socrates

To know good is to do good.

Most important to know what you don’t know.

Dialectical method –questioning until you question what you believed.

Plato

“Wisdom begins in wonder.”

“We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.”

Plato

Theory of the Forms Ideal for every object

Aspatial & atempural

What is the nature of a just society?

The Republic – Utopian society based on education and ability.

Men and women are equal.

What is the Form of a right triangle?

Any three sided polygon which satisfies the statement a2 + b2 = c2

Aristotle

“For the things we have to learn before we can do them, we learn by doing them.”

“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.”

“Women are failed men.”

Aristotle

Empirical Method – inquiry based on experience

Knowledge is deductive – inside the mind.

Syllogism – 1 conclusion from 2 premises All men are mortal

Mr. Kelly is a man

Mr. Kelly is mortal and has great hair