Lecture 2-3: Understanding Philosophical Problems PDF

Lecture 2-3. Understanding Philosophical Problems 2.1. Characteristics of Philosophical Problems Philosophical Problems are Fundamental Problems Involving Fundamental Ideas. Many of us walk through life with a lot of beliefs and ideas about how we ought to deal with our friends, how we should...

Lecture 2-3. Understanding Philosophical Problems 2.1. Characteristics of Philosophical Problems Philosophical Problems are Fundamental Problems Involving Fundamental Ideas. Many of us walk through life with a lot of beliefs and ideas about how we ought to deal with our friends, how we should respond to those who need help from us, the role we should play in our parents’ lives, the purpose of marriage and children, our relationship with our extended families, our obligation to the government, and so on. All these beliefs can only be coherent1 and meaningful if there is a framework of certain fundamental beliefs and ideas on which they hang. A fundamental idea or belief is one on which the truth of so many other specific ideas and beliefs rest. An idea is fundamental, that is, if that idea is the central foundation that gives meaning and coherence to all the other beliefs you may hold in life. Philosophical Problems are not RESOLVABLE by Empirical Methods (through Science or Commonsense). What is the difference between “What is holiness?” and “What is hunger?” The first question is an example of a fundamental, general question; the second one is a straightforward empirical question. A question is empirical if it can be answered by experience (either through observation or experimentation). Hunger, in this sense, is a physiological condition occasioned by the lack of food or other nourishment in the stomach. On the other hand, you will not get an answer to the question, what is holiness, if you go about examining holy people. The reason is that the concept of holiness is much broader and fundamental than that of hunger. Lecture 2.1. Philosophy: Worldview or Critical Thinking? Our first contact with the word “philosophy” comes from this understanding of it as a general outlook on life, or as a principle that enables us to understand the directions we need to take in life. This is a very significant insight into what philosophy is, even though we do not understand it when we say, “my philosophy of life is…” We can now make a very important point: One of the most crucial preoccupations of philosophers over the centuries is in the formulation or construction of worldviews, or what you can call “philosophies of life.” In the sense we are going to explain soon, “worldview” and “philosophy” are interchangeable. In other words, a worldview becomes the highest manifestation of philosophy. Or, the function of philosophy is to serve as the guide to life and action. 1 coherent [kəu'hɪərənt] - rabitəli (həm də nitq), aydın, ardıcıl səlis 1  What is Worldview? Here are some definitions that can help us: A point of view on the world, a perspective on things, a way of looking at the cosmos from a particular vantage point (Wolters, 1983: 5); A set of beliefs about the important issues in life; A general view of the world; A system of generalized views of the surrounding world and man's place in it, of man's relationship to the world and himself, and also the basic positions that people derive from this general picture of the world, their beliefs, socio-political, moral and aesthetic ideals, the principles by which they know and appraise material and spiritual events (Spirkin, online); A world view is a coherent collection of concepts and theorems that must allow us to construct a global image of the world, and in this way to understand as many elements of our experience as possible (Aerts et al, 2007: 8); The framework of ideas and beliefs through which an individual interprets the world and interacts with it (Wikipedia); · Visions of the world or aspects of it, whose primary function is to provide a broad or general guide for perceiving, feeling and transforming reality (Oladipo, 2008: 13). As a summary of all the suggested definitions, we can say that a worldview is a comprehensive set of ideas that helps you in explaining, at least: (1) the basic nature of the world in which you live; (2) your own basic nature; and (3) the sets of achievable goals you can possibly pursue in life, and the manner in which you should act in the world to achieve these goals. Before we examine some characteristics of worldviews, we need to look at the seven fundamental questions that give birth to the need to construct worldviews. These questions include: a. What is the nature of the world? How is it structured, and how does it function? b. Why is the world the way it is, and not different? Where did the universe come from? c. Where are we going in the universe2? What will be the fate of human and non-human lives in the universe? d. What are the kinds of futures open to us as human species in the universe, and how do go about choosing these futures? e. How are we as humans to act and create and transform the universe? What are the general principles that should guide the way we organize our actions in this world? What determines good and evil? What gives meaning to my life? 2 universe ['juːnɪvəːs] - dünya, cahan, kainat 2 f. How are we to construct the picture or image of the world that will yield 3 a genuine answer to questions (a), (b), and (c)? g. From where do we begin to get these answers? The answers to these questions are not answers an individual or a group can achieve in a day or even a year. Usually, a worldview builds up gradually from one’s personal and private experiences and empirical conditions of living. The answers to these questions can come in bits and pieces until one achieves a picture of the universe and one’s place and role in it. The next question that is important is: Why must I seek the answers to these questions? Why must I strive to formulate a worldview? There are several reasons why you must construct for yourself a view of the world. 1) The first reason is that a worldview gives you an insight into who you are as a person, what you value most in life, your needs, your purposes, your weaknesses and strength, and what you are and you are not capable of doing. In this sense, we can say that you have not actually achieved any intellectual maturity until you have been able to formulate some kind of view about the world (or get some answers to the above questions, no matter how naïve or commonsensical). 2) The second reason why a worldview is important is that human beings also need to understand the physical world they are interacting with. Without an adequate and practical knowledge of our environment, it seems impossible that we will be able to act in any reasonable way. Essentially, worldview becomes a practical survival strategy for human beings in a world where they are weak and few compared with other animals i.e. the ants4 and termites5 (which are numerous), or the sharks and elephants (which are strong, tough and aggressive). 3) The third reason why we need a worldview has to do with the psychological confidence, satisfaction, and happiness that a person derives from an understanding of his/her place in the universe, and where s/he thinks everything will end, someday. Usually, religion or science serves this purpose in our lives. Worldviews give us the strength and courage to take on life troubles and surmount6 them. 3 Yield [jiːld] - hazırlamaq, istehsal etmək, hasil etmək, əldə etmək 4 ant [ænt] - n qarışqa 5 termite ['təːmaɪt] - n. zool. termit, həşərat, cücü 6 surmount [səː'maunt] - qalib gəlmək, üstün gəlmək, öhdəsindən gəlmək, aradan qaldırmaq; aşmaq (maneəni) 3  A final point before we conclude this section. A worldview is usually not a fixed framework of what the universe is and what we are. It reflects the dynamic nature of the world as a changing entity, the dynamic nature of man, and the dynamic nature of the cultures in which we find ourselves. Worldviews also reflects our partial and incomplete understanding of the universe. From the foregoing, we can observe that worldviews need constant reflection and revision. The problem, however, is that we do not even have the time to reflect on some of the beliefs we hold as part of our worldview. We therefore go about life with a lot of true and false beliefs about ourselves and the universe we live in such an unstable worldview would not only hinder the way we act, it will eventually leave us confused about how we see ourselves and the world around us. Question o Which of the following definitions does not define a worldview? A) A general perception of the world. B) A way of looking at the world from a point of view. C) A framework with which an individual views, interprets, and interacts with the world. D) A method with which philosophers confuse other disciplines. Feedback If you look at the options critically, the first three options are a way of defining what a worldview is. It can be referred to as a general conception of the world (option A); it can also be referred to as a way of looking at the world from a perspective (option B); it can be a framework for conceptualizing the world (option C); but it is definitely not a method with which philosophers confuse other disciplines (option D). So, the answer is ‘D’. 2.2. The Relationship between Philosophy as World View and Philosophy as Critical Thinking Let us begin this section with the crucial point we made at the end of the last section. The point is this: since most of us do not have the time nor the discipline to reflect on the beliefs and ideas by which we make meaning out of the universe and order our actions and behaviors, we take our worldview for granted (that’s if we even have one already). Further, we go through life with an excess7 of contradictory ideas and beliefs which are mostly wrong and false. This inability to reflect on our beliefs and ideas gives us the impression that these beliefs are fixed and unchanging. As important as worldviews are, they are only provide us with a partial knowledge of ourselves and the universe. This is so because the universe is so vast and enormous that we can never hope to attain more than a limited and often inadequate 7 excess [ɪk'ses] - 1) artıq, artıqlıq; 2) ifrat, ifratçılıq 4 understanding. The best that we can do then is to ensure that the ideas and beliefs that enable us cope with the challenges of life are re-examined critically from time to time in the light of new knowledge and information about the world and our existence. In the last section, we conceived of philosophy in a very broad manner as being interchangeable with the concept of worldview. In this section, in order to understand the function of philosophy as critical thinking, we need to make philosophy a little narrower than the way we conceive it in the last section. In other words, philosophy as worldview helps us in addressing the questions of values and meaning, and in making sense of our world and our existence in the light of these questions. Philosophy as critical thinking, on its own, helps in sharpening this picture of the universe and of our existence by providing our own justification for the ideas we hold. Providing your own reason for holding a belief means you don’t depend unthinkingly on any authority i.e. parents, mentors, religious leaders, elders, etc. Imagine that you are putting on glasses that are blurred8 and hence cannot see clearly. Or imagine that you are driving a car in a very heavy downpour of rain. The effect on both instances is that you will not be able to see your surroundings very clearly. Your ability to see very well depends only on either cleaning the glasses or using the windshield wipers on your car. This is exactly the function of philosophy as critical thinking. In giving us clarity, philosophy as critical thinking helps in examining how all our ideas and beliefs hang together in one unified and coherent form. This is why H. S. Staniland defines philosophy as the “criticism of the ideas we live by” (1979: 3). The criticism of the ideas by which we make sense of our sense therefore requires that we rationally and critically reflect and examine these ideas in order to determine whether they are suitable for our use or not. It requires that you reveal the assumptions that lie behind some of your beliefs to see whether these assumptions can survive deep reflections on them. 2.3. Elements of Critical Thinking In examining a worldview, critical thinking demands that you test the worldview for three elements: factual adequacy, logical coherence and explanatory capacity. Let us explain these elements in turn: Factual Adequacy: This requires that you ask whether your worldview agrees or disagrees with relevant known facts and experience about what the belief is all about. For instance, if you belief that the world will end 8 blur [bləː] - 1) tutqunlaşdırmaq; 2) bulamaq, yaxmaq, bulaşdırmaq 5  one day, does that belief take into consideration the scientific facts about the origin and the end of the world. Does it agree or disagree with these facts? Logical Coherence9: This requires that you examine whether the set of beliefs that makes of up your worldview are in support or are contradictory. If they fundamentally complement one another, then you have a coherent and logical worldview. If they are contradictory, then either that one of the beliefs may be false, or most of them may be false. You therefore have an illogical and incoherent worldview. For instance, it is contradictory to believe (a) that beauty is in the eye of the beholder 10; and (b) some works of art are superior to others. Or, (a) that we are all responsible for our actions; and (b) the punishment of criminals is inhuman. Explanatory Capacity: This refers to the ability your worldview has to show how the entities of the universe are related or how they interact. It is this capacity of worldviews to explain that makes it possible for us to understand and interact smoothly with the physical world. It also enables us to shape and transform the universe to suit our aspirations and goals. Philosophy as critical thinking involves two other dimensions that are important for you to understand in relation to the analysis of our worldviews. These are the dimensions of conceptual analysis and the reconstruction of ideas. Let us look at them in turn. Our beliefs and ideas are sometimes confusing and contradictory because we do not take careful notice of the words and concepts that we use. If, for instance, I do not have a clear understanding of the meaning of freedom, I may hold the belief that “all people are free to do what they want.” Conceptual analysis involves your ability to give a precise and definite meaning to the words you use in speaking about your beliefs. It also involves your ability to establish a logical relationship between a particular word and other words. What, for example, is the relationship between the concept of freedom and that of punishment? When you get the idea of conceptual analysis right, then you are in a position to avoid saying one thing and meaning another! The other dimension of critical thinking is the reconstruction of ideas. After critically and conceptually scrutinising11 the ideas and beliefs that make up our 9 coherence, coherency [kəu'rnsˌ kəu'rnsɪ] - 1) bağlılıq, əlaqə; 2) uyğunluq, uzlaşdırma, əlaqələndirilmə 10 beholder [bɪ'həuldə] – şahid, tamaşaçı 11 scrutinize ['skruːtɪnaɪz] - 1) gözdən keçirmək, dəqiq yoxlamaq; 2) dəqiq öyrənmək, incəliyi ilə öyrənmək, dürüst tədqiq eləmək 6 worldview, it is important that we also attempt to generate better visions and pictures that will serve as further guide to life. Critical thinking and conceptual analysis may require that we sometimes abandon12 or reject some of our ideas and beliefs. Reconstruction of ideas requires that we rebuild the structure of our worldview by adopting some of other beliefs and ideas that would fit the structure of our worldviews better than the ones we have abandoned. Study Session Summary In this Study Session, we had taken a step further in our attempt to understand what philosophy is. We said that one of the major preoccupations of philosophers over the ages is the formulation of worldviews of guide to life. We defined a worldview as a comprehensive set of ideas that explains the nature of the universe, your own fundamental nature and the kind of goals that are achievable in your relationship with the universe. We also examined how philosophy can further help us in strengthening the vision of the universe and our role and place in that universe. We said that philosophy can do this through the task of critical thinking as well as conceptual analysis and the reconstruction of ideas. We said that this task of philosophy, involves examining our ideas and beliefs rationally and critically without unduly depending on any authority. Finally, we added that to achieve this critical thinking, it is necessary that we look at the factual adequacy of the belief, its logical coherence and its explanatory capacity. 12 abandon [ə'bændən] - v. imtina etmək, atmaq, qoyub getmək; necə gəldi atmaq, başlı-başına qoymaq 7