During the last meeting of class we were led through a scattered discussion of the various philosophers and philosophies discussed throughout the year. If we are to find a common problem that offers any sort of unity to what we have been studying, it must be that each philosopher wants to discover how to go about experiencing reality. Philosophers such as Pierce, Tolstoy, Camus, Bergson, Russell, and Sartre have attempted to define an unconditional experience with varying degrees of success. To appreciate an experience unconditionally, it must be shorn of that which is sensed and that which is opined. .
Pierce, perhaps unknowingly offering insult to Tolstoy, proposed that people adopt beliefs as an escape from their inability to understand the world. Tolstoy, in religious fervor, determined that, because one believes in God, there is no need to fear the confusing world. Both philosophers believed that humans were neither diligent nor intelligent enough to interpret reality and react appropriately so they responded with a rather simple solution. To live without routines and values and to have pure experience, we must live spontaneously. Anything that restricts our spontaneity - reason, habit, and monotony - must be discarded. Once this task is complete all that is left is the unpredictability and the excitement of undefined outcomes, of pure experience.
Camus became frustrated by the routines followed by most of society because he felt that the routine one follows makes obscure the existence of any fear or worry. The prospect of completing an endless "to-do" list pushed him to think of its purpose. Just as Sisyphus discovered another rock to push as soon as he had completed his original task, Camus felt that his routine, though maybe not as tedious as pushing rocks, was completely useless and would never serve to satisfy his desires. The recognition of this ugly fact caused any hope that he may have had to sink to the bottom of his soul and proclaim that human endeavor is necessarily a disappointment and always will be because of the absurdity of the world.
After all if we don't know why we are here, then why are we here? ... They wanted to know more, why we live? ... All of this criticism is the reason that philosophy feels so uncomfortable to us. ... Until we have quenched our insatiable thirst for truth, we will know philosophy. ... Philosophy makes life worth living. ...
To say that I am married to a specific philosophy without any experience seems naive. ... My personal gravitation towards a perennial educational and teaching philosophy is due to its inclusiveness in regard to the other philosophies. ... But what is superseded is why these facts are provided. ... That in itself is an initial experience that in turn shapes and formulates my philosophy. ... Perennial philosophy is inclusive. ...
Another alternative which developed was philosophy. ... Autarkeia is an important word concerning the philosophy of these times. ... Serenity of the soul, or ataraxia, was the goal of this philosophy. ... In the search for truths and answers, philosophy thrived. ... The people wanted to know "why?" ...
With that being said, I have a true understanding of being able to ask myself why things went the way that they did, both on good days and bad days. The purpose of developing an educational philosophy is that it defines the purpose and focus of an educational institution. ... The philosophy that is the closest to my beliefs, values and other ideas seems to center more on perennialism. ... This is a great philosophy because I too believe that the goal of education should always be to develop rational thoughts. ... When students enter my classroom, there is no confusion of what they are suppo...
The approach that is used to study a subject is the basics of philosophy. Unlike other disciplines, philosophy does not have any one particular subject matter. ... Philosophy is a path to thinking in depth about something. ... "Why does the universe exist?" ... "Why do humans exist?" ...
What is philosophy? Before I explain what it is, it might be worthwhile clarifying what it isn't. Philosophy is not about two old men sitting around the fireplace discussing the meaning of life. Unfortunately, that is the type of mental picture most people have of the discipline. It is generally ...
What does one think when they hear the word Philosophy? ... For example: Why are we here? ... What then is Philosophy? ... Philosophy is broken down into five main branches. ... Why do Christians use the Bible, and not, for example, The Odyssey. ...
Psychology began as philosophical questions of why we think the way that we do, what the mind and conciousness are. ... Sociology was initially philisophical questions of why society is what it is and what morality and justice are. ... When employers are questioned why, they say that "(philosophy) helps eliminate vagueness and ambiguities in speech and writing" (Ursery). ... ("Why Study Philosophy"). ... On the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT), philosophy and economics were tied for the highest average score in 2010 ("Why Study Philosophy"). ...
Philosophy to Me The meaning of philosophy is a very complicated issue and can mean many different things. ... The Koran helps me to understand the origins of this world and the question of why we are here in the first place. ... The question can be however that why is this possible? ... This is a main part of philosophy for me. ... These are the meanings of philosophy to me....
Philosophy Philosophy is an insight to humanity or a humanistic study. ... Philosophy differs from other disciplines because it is one that is in search of a subject matter, whereas other disciplines have an assigned subject matter. Philosophy is a way of examining ideas. ... The first type of question is a cosmological question, such as, why does the universe exist, why is there something rather than nothing, and is there some plan for the universe? ... Why do I exist? ...
