Talk:Philosophy/Definition
Main article Philosophy
The word philosophy is of Ancient Greek origin: φιλοσοφία (philosophía), meaning "love of knowledge", "love of wisdom".[1]Traditionally, philosophy is the search for fundamental truths that are not derived from other truths: the 'first causes and principles of things'. [2]. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of approaching the same questions (such as mythology, mysticism, religion) by not accepting any authority higher than reason.[3]. Its most distinctive feature is its systematic, critical approach to problems (as opposed to scientific experiment or mystical intuition)[4]. Philosophers are divided on whether philosophical truths concern (i) the nature of reality (Realism) (ii) the concepts by which we approach the world (Conceptualism) (iii) the language we use to talk about the world (Nominalism). The main branches concern the questions of how one should live (ethics); what sorts of things exist and what are their essential natures (metaphysics); what counts as genuine knowledge (epistemology); and what are the correct principles of reasoning (logic).
References[edit]
- ^ Philosophia, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, at Perseus
- ^ Aristotle Metaphysics 993a
- ^ Licet ea quae sunt altiora hominis cognitione, non sint ab homine per rationem inquirenda, sunt tamen, a Deo revelata, suscipienda per fidem - Aquinas, Summa Theologiae Part I, Question 1
- ^ Quinton, Ayer, Stace