THE IMPORTANCE OF PHILOSOPHY

PHILOSOPHY is a study that seeks to understand the mysteries of existence and reality. It tries to discover the nature of
truth and knowledge and to find what is of basic value and importance in life. It also examines the relationships between
humanity and nature and between the individual and society.

Importance of Philosophy in two ways:

1. The Charge of Futility (philosophy is a useless or futile activity)
a. Futile: Achieving no result; not effective or successful (Cambridge Dictionary, n.d.).
b. Bertrand Russel’s “The Value of Philosophy, the charge that philosophy is a futile activity because of:
1. The indefiniteness of philosophy –does not provide final answers to the questions that it deals with, for the
answer it offers differ from one philosopher to another; and there seems to be no objective way to
determine whose answer is better.
2. The impracticality of philosophy – the activity of philosophizing has no practical benefits, it does not help us
in our efforts to satisfy our material needs and those that are related to the nourishment of our body.
 These two characteristics attributed to philosophy is in contrast with science,
Scientific Questions v. Philosophical Questions.
a. Scientific Questions: Those are the questions that are already known with some degree of certainty to be
capable of being answered in a precise or definite way.
b. Philosophical Questions: Those are the type of questions that have not been established yet whether there
are a precise and objective means of answering these questions.
 Science deals with definitely answerable questions while philosophy deals with indefinitely answerable ones.
However, most scientific question did not start out as scientific questions. They started out as philosophical
questions, questions that we were thought to be indefinitely answerable. Reasons why philosophical questions
became scientific questions: A.) The unavailability of technology to test hypotheses. B.) Imprecise formulation
of questions.
 Philosophy does the preliminary work for science in finding definite answer to certain question. Therefore it is but
proper that we should value philosophy for making it possible for science to deal with such questions.
 It is true that philosophy does not directly satisfy our material needs because it is focused on satisfying another kind
of valuable human needs: the needs of the mind. But even when most or all of our material needs have already been
satisfied we will still have questions about how to further improve the quality of our lives.

 Following Russell (1980, 89), we thus conclude that the idea that philosophy is a futile activity is a consequence
of a lack of understanding of the goals of philosophy and a limited view of what is valuable in life.

2. Some Major Achievements

1. To provide a holistic view of life
 Philosophy supplements what is lacking in scientific explanations to come up with holistic explanations of
things or events in the world.
Ex. Aristotle’s four kinds of causes: material, formal, final, and efficient kind of cause.
2. Contributes to the development of some disciplines or areas of knowledge.
 The ancient period, pre-Socratic philosophers brake away from mythological explanations of natural
processes (explaining events in nature by the actions of the Gods) and started the methods of explaining
these processes in terms of observation and reasoning that gave birth to Scientific Method.
 The medieval period, philosophy was the handmaid of Christian theology. Philosophers and theologians
like St. Thomas Aquinas & St. Augustine used the philosophy of Aristotle & Plato to clarify, justify and
show the consistency of Christian doctrines, etc. that contributed to the strengthening of the foundations
of Christian theology.
 The modern period, justify the belief in the reality of the physical world and helped solidify the foundation
of science and the objectivity of scientific knowledge.
 The contemporary period, clarified and justified certain features of the foundations of mathematics.
3. Provides ethical guidelines for the use of modern technology (through its investigation)
 New ethical issues arise with the invention of modern technology. Examples are the advancement in
biomedicine which have introduced new procedures in reproduction (vitro fertilization, surrogacy,
 prenatal screening, & gender selection) treatment of diseases (dialysis, genetic enhancement, organ
transplantation & use of ventilators)
 Technological advancement which have given rise to ethical issues on piracy, cyber bullying, hacking and
pornography
 Other ethical issues arising from the development of technology the possibility of human cloning, stem
cell research and the use of humans and animals in scientific experimentation for medical and business
purposes.
4. Significantly contributed to social transformation
 Consider the political revolutions inspired by John Locke and Karl Marx and the present concept of
democracy, which includes the principles of separation of powers of the three branches of the
government(executive, judicial & legislative) for checks and balances, the product of the ideas of John
Locke and Montesquieu
5. To explore what is possible and consequently expand the boundaries of knowledge or of what we can know
 Philosophy will continue to explore what is possible to get insights about the human condition and to keep
our sense of wonder that drives us to explore alternative ways at looking at things which will liberate us
from the oppressive power and prejudices.

 The major achievements of philosophy are as follows: philosophy supplements scientific explanations to come
up with holistic explanations, contributes to the development of some disciplines, provides ethical guidelines
for the use of modern technology, contributes to social transformation, and expands the boundaries of
knowledge.

 Philosophy satisfy "the needs of the mind". While science satisfy our material needs, philosophy helps us value non-
material needs such as better human relationship, better spiritual life, and a better or deeper understanding of our
existence in this world.

PERFORMANCE TASK: MIND MAPPING

You are to make a mind mapping (example is shown below) with this topic, “THE VALUE OF MY LIFE AND ITS NETWORK”
Procedure:
1. You are free to choose or make your own design of mind map. Show your creativity.
2. At the middle/center of your mind map, put your name.
3. Indicate important information about yourself, your family & loved ones, your achievements, failures, strength &
weaknesses, dreams & ambition, personal belief, unforgettable moments/experiences, likes & dislikes, principles in
life, etc . (other information that you would like to include)
4. Use white long folder. (Old/used folder is allowed and you are encourage to use recyclable materials for your design)
5. To be submitted on Tuesday, August 6, 2019.

“THE VALUE OF MY LIFE AND ITS NETWORK”

Rubric:
Content 15
Craftsmanship 8
Creativity/Originality 7
30 points