Learning Competency

Distinguish a holistic perspective from a partial

point of view PPT11/12-Ia-1.1
Recognize human activities that emanated from
deliberate reflection PPT11/12-Ib-1.2
Realize the value of doing philosophy in obtaining a
broader perspective in life PPT11/12-Ib-1.3
Do a philosophical reflection on a concrete situation
from a holistic perspective PPT11/12-Ic-1.4
The Elephant and the Six Blind
Men
The Elephant and the Six Blind Men

Once upon a time, there lived six blind men in a village.

One day the villagers told them, "Hey, there is an
elephant in the village today."

They had no idea what an elephant is. They decided,

"Even though we would not be able to see it, let us go
and feel it anyway." All of them went where the
elephant was. Everyone of them touched the elephant.
The Elephant and the Six Blind Men

"Hey, the elephant is a pillar," said the first man who

touched his leg.

"Oh, no! it is like a rope," said the second man who

touched the tail.

"Oh, no! it is like a thick branch of a tree," said the

third man who touched the trunk of the elephant.
The Elephant and the Six Blind Men

"It is like a big hand fan" said the fourth man who touched
the ear of the elephant.

"It is like a huge wall," said the fifth man who touched the
belly of the elephant.

"It is like a solid pipe," Said the sixth man who touched the
tusk of the elephant.
The Elephant and the Six Blind Men

They began to argue about the elephant and everyone of them insisted that
he was right. It looked like they were getting agitated. A wise man was
passing by and he saw this. He stopped and asked them, "What is the
matter?" They said, "We cannot agree to what the elephant is like." Each
one of them told what he thought the elephant was like. The wise man
calmly explained to them, "All of you are right. The reason every one of
you is telling it differently because each one of you touched the different
part of the elephant. So, actually the elephant has all those features what
you all said."

"Oh!" everyone said. There was no more fight. They felt happy that they
were all right.
The Elephant and the Six Blind
Men
The Elephant and the Six Blind
Men
The Elephant and the Six Blind Men

The moral of the story is that there may be some truth

to what someone says. Sometimes we can see that
truth and sometimes not because they may have
different perspective which we may not agree too.
So, rather than arguing like the blind men, we should
say, "Maybe you have your reasons." This way we
don’t get in arguments. It teaches us to be tolerant
towards others for their viewpoints. This allows us to
live in harmony with the people of different thinking.
The Elephant and the Six Blind
Men
Philosophy
Pythagoras was said to have been the first man
to call himself a philosopher; in fact, the world
is indebted to him for the word philosopher. It
is said that when Leon, the tyrant of Philius,
asked him of who he was, he said, “a
Philosopher” and he likened the Philosopher to
spectators at ancient games.
Philosophy
Before that time the wise men had called themselves a sage,
which was interpreted to mean those who know. Pythagoras
was more modest. He coined the word philosopher, which
he defined as one who is attempting to find out.
According to him, men and women of the world could be
classified into 3 groups:
1. lovers of gain
2. lovers of honor and
3. lovers of wisdom
Philosophy
-the study of the fundamental nature of knowledge,
reality, and existence, especially when considered as
an academic discipline.
The original meaning of the word philosophy comes
from the Greek roots philo- meaning "love" and
-sophos, or "wisdom“. When someone
studies philosophy they want to understand how and
why people do certain things and how to live a good
life. In other words, they want to know
the meaning of life.
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and
fundamental problems, such as those
connected with existence, knowledge, values,
reason, mind, and language.

Philosophy is the rational attempt to formulate,

understand, and answer fundamental
questions.
Meaning of Philosophy
a. Science
-called as science because the investigation is systematic. It
follows certain procedures
-in other words, it is an organized body of knowledge

b. Natural light of reason

-investigates things, not by using any laboratory instrument or
investigative tools, neither on the basis of supernatural
revelation; instead philosophy uses natural capacity to think or
simply, human reason alone or the so called unaided reason.
Meaning of Philosophy
c. Study of all things.
-sciences concern themselves with a particular
object of investigation. ; plants, animals,
chemicals, elements, force and motion
-philosophy studies human beings, society,
religion, language, God, among other
concerns.
Meaning of Philosophy
d. First cause or higher principle
-a principle is that from which something
proceeds in a manner or whatsoever
1. Principle of Identity
-whatever it is, and whatever it is not; everything
is what it is. Everything is its own being and
not being is not being.
Meaning of Philosophy
d. First cause or higher principle
2. Principle of Non Contradiction
-it is impossible for a thing to be and not to be at the same
time, and at the same respect.

3. Principle of Excluded Middle

-a thing is either is or is not; everything must be either be
or not be; between being and not being, there is no
middle ground possible
Meaning of Philosophy
d. First cause or higher principle
4. Principle of Sufficient reason
-nothing exist without a sufficient reason for its
being and existent.
Meaning of Philosophy
In attaining wisdom, there is a need for emptying.
-can be intellectual, Taoist considers an empty cup
more useful than a full one. This means
simplicity and humility
-can be spiritual, in Christian philosophy, poverty in
spirit means compassion
-can be physical, Buddhist refrain from misuse of
the senses, thereby emphasizing a unified whole.
Nature of Philosophy
1. Philosophy is a set of views or beliefs about life
and the universe, which are often held uncritically.

We refer to this meaning as the informal sense of

philosophy or “having” a philosophy. Usually when
a person says “my philosophy is,” he or she is
referring to an informal personal attitude to
whatever topic is being discussed.
Nature of Philosophy
2. Philosophy is a process of reflecting on and
criticizing our most deeply held conceptions and
beliefs.

These two senses of philosophy— “having” and

“doing”—cannot be treated entirely independent of
each other, for if we did not have a philosophy in the
formal, personal sense, then we could not do a
philosophy in the critical, reflective sense.
Nature of Philosophy
3. Philosophy is a rational attempt to look at the world
as a whole.
Philosophy seeks to combine the conclusions of the
various sciences and human experience into some kind
of consistent world view. Philosophers wish to see
life, not with the specialized slant of the scientist or
the businessperson or the artist, but with the overall
view of someone cognizant of life as a totality.
Nature of Philosophy
4. Philosophy is the logical analysis of language and
the clarification of the meaning of words and
concepts.
. Certainly this is one function of philosophy. In fact,
nearly all philosophers have used methods of analysis
and have sought to clarify the meaning of terms and
the use of language. Some philosophers see this as
the main task of philosophy, and a few claim this is
the only legitimate function of philosophy.
Nature of Philosophy
5. Philosophy is a group of perennial problems that interest
people and for which philosophers always have sought answers.
Philosophy presses its inquiry into the deepest problems of human
existence. Some of the philosophical questions raised in the past
have been answered in a manner satisfactory to the majority of
philosophers. Many questions, however, have been answered only
tentatively, and many problems remain unsolved.
• “What is truth?”
• “What is the distinction between right and wrong?”
• What is life and why am I here?
• Why is there anything at all?
Importance of Philosophy
1. The study of Philosophy enables us to think carefully and
clearly about important issues.
2. In studying Philosophy, we learn to take a step back from
our everyday thinking and to explore the deeper, bigger
question which underpins our thought.
3. The focus in the study of Philosophy is to learn not what to
believe, but how to think.
4. Studying philosophy sharpens your analytical abilities,
enabling you to identify and evaluate the strengths and
weaknesses in any position.
Importance of Philosophy
5. It hones your ability to construct and articulate
cogent arguments of your own.
6. It prompts you to work across disciplinary
boundaries and to think flexibly and creatively about
problems which do not present immediate solutions.
7. Because philosophy is an activity as much a body of
knowledge, it also develops your ability to think and
work independently.
Brief History of Philosophy
Pre-philosophical Period
-even before the birth of natural
philosophy, people had already
attempted to explain the origin of
things and the events or occurrences
in nature
-however these are characterized by
religious elements or supernatural
powers and not by natural or rational
explanation.
Brief History of Philosophy
Pre-socratic Period
-Philosophy is said to have begun around
6th century BC through Thales of Miletus
-He was regarded as the Father of
Philosophy
He was the first to engage in the inquiry of
searching for causes and principles of
the natural world and various
phenomena without relying on
supernatural explanation and divine
components
Brief History of Philosophy
Pythagoras
-believes that cosmos is a
structured system ordered
by numbers.
-things become knowable
because they are
structured in this way
Brief History of Philosophy
Socrates
-best known for the Socratic method
-a method of question and answer which
aims to provoke the one being asked
to think for himself and to clarify his
or her conceptions about what is asked
a form of cooperative argumentative
dialogue between individuals, based
on asking and answering questions to
stimulate critical thinking and to draw
out ideas and underlying presumptions
-he also urged self examination
Brief History of Philosophy
Self Examination:
Have you ever looked
in the mirror and
asked Who am I?
Why am I here/
What should I do in
my life?
“The Unexamined life
is not worth living.”
-Socrates
Brief History of Philosophy
Plato
-concluded the concept, or the idea, is the
only true reality
-Philosophy is the science of idea, of the
unconditioned basis of phenomena
-he encourage humanity to seek what is
good, what is true, what is beautiful in the
intellectual realm beyond the appearances
because the senses are often deceitful
-he also urged humans to detach to what is
corporeal to recognize the eternal form of
truth, beauty, and goodness.
Brief History of Philosophy
Aristotle
-believes that the perceptual and
cognitive faculties of people are
dependable; such belief places
humans in direct contact with the
world which is to be studied and
therefore engaged in substantive
philosophy
-focuses on analyzing phenomena or
experience and proving credible
opinions to arrive at adequate proof.
Brief History of Philosophy
Aristotle
-he believed that the aim of
Philosophy is truth, and the
endowment of senses will lead
a person in direct contact with
the world, and therefore allow
him to analyze whether what
appears upon close scrutiny
and analysis is correct.
Medieval Period
-confluence of faith and
reason
-Philosophy is used as
handmaid of theology
Medieval Period
St Thomas Aquinas
-explain his views on the
creation and
government, the origin
of the man, among
others through Catholic
Theology
Modern Period
Modern Period
Rationalism
- Believe that reason is the
sole source of knowledge
- Rene Descartes, Baruch
Spinoza and Gottfried
Wilhelm Leibniz
- Verification of truth is
limited to analytic or formal
knowledge of mathematics
and knowledge.
Modern Period
Rationalism
- is any view appealing
to intellectual and deductive reason as the
source of knowledge or justification.
- It relies on the idea that reality has a rational
structure in that all aspects of it can be grasped
through mathematical and logical principles,
and not simply through sensory experience.
Modern Period
Rationalism
- believe that, rather than being a "tabula rasa" to be
imprinted with sense data, the mind is structured by, and
responds to, mathematical methods of reasoning. Some
of our knowledge or the concepts we employ are part of
our innate rational nature: experiences may trigger a
process by which we bring this knowledge
to consciousness, but the experiences do not provide us
with the knowledge itself, which has in some way been
with us all along.
Modern Period
Empiricism
-believe that aside from
reason, experience is also
a source of knowledge
-the five senses connected
to the world can be used
to determine what can be
known.
expounded in particular by
John Locke, George
Berkeley, and David
Hume
Modern Period
Empiricism
- the view that the origin of all knowledge is sense
experience and sensory perception
- The world does not exist on its won, perceptions
do.
- Being is nothing more than being perceived.
Modern Period
Empiricism
- primary qualities exist in the world, and secondary qualities in
the perceiver.
- Solidity, extension, shape, motion, number—these exist
whether they’re perceived or not.
- But attributes like color, sound, and scent exist only when
perceived; there can be no image without an eye.
- It didn’t reject reason altogether; rather, thought that
knowledge comes from the application of reason to
sensory data.
Modern Period
Immanuel Kant
Kant argued that the human mind
creates the structure of human
experience, that reason is the
source of morality,
that aesthetics arises from a
faculty of disinterested judgment,
that space and time are forms of
our sensibility, and that the world
as it is ”in-itself” is independent
of our concepts of it.
Modern Period
Immanuel Kant
Kant argues that all philosophy ultimately aims at
answering these three questions: “What can I know?
What should I do? What may I hope?”
At the foundation of Kant’s system is the doctrine of
“transcendental idealism,” which emphasizes a
distinction between what we can experience (the
natural, observable world) and what we cannot
(“supersensible” objects such as God and the soul). 
Contemporary period
Contemporary period
Analytic tradition
-dominated English speaking countries, it is concentrated on
logical analysis of language to solve problems which beset
philosophy.
-philosophers under this tradition espouse a method of verification
which only accepts as meaningful and true which can be
investigated by science.
it is characterized by an emphasis on argumentative clarity and
precision, often making use of formal logic, conceptual analysis,
and, to a lesser degree, mathematics and the natural sciences.
Contemporary period
Analytic tradition
-Bertrand Russell’s conception involves an analysis of meaningfulness
of descriptions as to the name that designate or denote a subject
-George Edward Moore said that analysis is decomposing complex
concepts into their simple constituents
-Ludwig Wittgenstein believes that the task of philosophy is to
carefully analyze ordinary language use, known as linguistic analysis
Contemporary period
Continental Tradition
- generally reject the view that the natural sciences  are
the only or most accurate way of understanding natural
phenomena. 
- considers conditions of possible experience as
variable: determined at least partly by factors such as
context, space and time, language, culture, or history. 
- Emphasizes metaphysics
Contemporary period
Branches of Philosophy
Ethics
-study about morality of
human conduct
How should we live?
What is good and evil?
What is the best way to
live?
What is Justice?
Is right and wrong the
same everywhere or
different everywhere?
Aesthetics
Explores the nature of beauty,
art, and taste with the creation
and appreciation of beauty
1. What is beauty?
2. What is art?
3. What is the value of beauty
and art?
4. Who should judge what is
beautiful or artistic?
5. How should art and beauty
be judged?
Logic
The systematic
principles (or rules)
for thinking rationally.
A philosophical study
on the correct
processes of thinking.
Epistemology
Explores the nature
and limitations of
knowledge
What is knowledge?
How is knowledge
acquired?
How do we know
what we know?
Metaphysics
Explores the
fundamental
nature of reality
and being
What is real?
What is reality?
What is reality
like?
Identify the branch of Philosophy in which each given
question is likely to be asked and answered.

1. What is the nature of reasoning?

2. What is the nature of induction and how is it
similar to or different from scientific
knowledge?
3. What is the nature of death?
4. Is there life after death?
5. Do heaven and hell exist?
6. What is the mind?
Identify the branch of Philosophy in which each given
question is likely to be asked and answered.

7. Is the self possible?

8. Is it good or evil?
9. Can there be an absolute truth?
10. Is it beautiful or not?
11. Is morality relative?
12. Are my reasoning and judgment good?
13. Is abortion ethical?
14. What is the real price of the painting?
15. Did the soldier who threw himself on the grenade do the right
thing?
Identify the branch of Philosophy in which each given
question is likely to be asked and answered.

16.  Is art an intellectual or representational

activity? 
17. Is artistic value objective?
18. What is spirit?
19. Are you lying?
20. Is the earth round?
Value of Philosophy
-is not measured by its ability of
arriving at definitive answers, but in
uncertainty and in enabling a person
to widen his or her perspectives to
avoid dogmatism
-engaging in philosophy is
contemplation, a reflective activity
where you renounce who you are,
your beliefs and your values. Holding
to your beliefs is closing yourself to
the possibilities of other perspectives.
Value of Philosophy
Dogmatism
-the tendency to lay down principles as incontrovertibly true,
without consideration of evidence or the opinions of others.
Example:
1. Christianity is the only true religion.
2. Women are inferior to men.
3. The poor deserve their suffering because they are lazy and
have no drive to succeed.
4. You will only be respected by others if you assert your
power.
Identify which questions are philosophical.

1. What is the square root of 64?

2. What days of the week does the garbage collector goes to village?
3. What happens after death?
4. Is it right to impose dress code to students in SHS?
5. What makes an action moral?
6. What is matter?
7. What is the lifecycle of a butterfly?
8. Are you lying?
9. What is the meaning of life?
10.What is truth?
Filipino as Philosopher
The term “pilosopo” connotes the image
of a comical, and sometimes annoying
character.
It is often used to describe someone who
plays with words, or twists
commonsensical reasonings in order to
come across as funny.
Also described as “KSP” because their
incessant questioning gives the impression
that they are desperate for attention.
Filipino Thinking
1. Loob: Holistic and Interior Dimensions
-kagandahang loob, kabutiang loob, and kalooban are terms that show
sharing of one’s self to others.
-the value of hospitality, pakikisama, loyalty, and respect to authority.
Filipino Thinking
2. Filipino philosophy of time
-makes the Filipino an unmitigated optimist.
-when the so called wheel of life is on the downtrend , he looks to the future
with hope because life’s wheel cannot stay down forever.
-when one weeps, one will surely smile
-often, Filipino Time is mistakenly interpreted as always delayed in the
committed time of arrival. This notion can be misleading since the farmers
are early risers to go to the field and waste no time for work.
Filipino Thinking
3. Bahala Na
-fatalism
-literally means leave everything to
God who is Bathala in vernacular.
Puts complete trust in the Divine
Providence
-filipino accepts beforehand whatever
the outcome of his problem might
be
-perceived as courage to take risks.
Filipino Thinking
4. Filipino thought and values: positive and Negative Aspects
Ningas Cogon- the attitude when we start something with
interest and enthusiasm, then after a very short time, we
lose interest and stop whatever it is we are doing. Leaving
things incomplete. Just like a wild fire burning out quickly.
Padrino system- patronage in the Filipino culture and politics
is the value systemwhere one gains favor, promotion, or
political appointment through family affiliation (nepotism)
or friendship (cronyism), as opposed to one's merit
Filipino Thinking
4. Filipino thought and values: positive and Negative Aspects
Utang na loob-is an obligation to appropriately repay a person
who has done one a favor.
Colonial mentality- is the attitude that colonized people feel
themselves to be inferior to their colonizers based on the fact
of colonization.
Mañana Habit- is something that we have learned from the
Spaniards. The word “Mañana” means ‘tomorrow’ or
‘specified future time’. it’s “in the indefinite future (used to
indicate procrastination – the action of delaying or postponing
something)”