Essay Example on View of Philosophy and Value It Holds

Introduction

Philosophy, as well as the nature of philosophical events, are distinct methods of thinking about truth, life, spirituality, religion among other unanswerable life issues. In other words, philosophy can be viewed as the quest for wisdom, being able to have an open-minded concerning controversial subjects in regard to daily life questions that enhances the mind to explore and understand new things by developing a logical sense. Therefore, the value of philosophy is based on its ability to have an impact on society and offer wisdom to others (Chase 5). In most instances, philosophy is fallaciously perceived to be inadequate when compared to science. In that, discoveries in medicine help individuals to live healthier and lengthier lives; on the other hand, technological innovations enhance a more convenient world. Thus, philosophy is viewed as a process that functions as an activity which caters for society's need for wisdom which entails bringing together the ideas we are conversant about so as to achieve what we value.

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It is essential to note that, in today's world, there is a common use of the word philosophy since it is a term applied to almost all sectors of life. For instance, some questions may portray this general approach: what is your philosophy of banking? Car? Business? Money? This general abuse of the term if allowed, one may perceive that a person who thinks critically about any matter is a philosopher. If this is allowed to continue, then we will end up ignoring the study of philosophy or academic disciplines. It should be understood that philosophy cannot be viewed as a "way of life" and that all individuals do not have their own philosophy (Appelqvist 700). Instead, philosophy is an activity of thought and it should not be confused with its outcome. Philosophy provides a body of philosophical assumptions and not the philosophy, hence a philosopher ratifies a philosophy, a pursuit after wisdom. It is a critical and comprehensive way of thinking which human beings are yet to devise. This implies that philosophy is an extensive process of thought that entails unmasking assumptions, resolving confusion, differentiating importance, revealing presuppositions, questioning conceptual frameworks among many others.

The claims aired by my friend about philosophy being ultimately useless is very wrong. He holds that the subjects that philosophy investigates are a matter of opinions since the philosophical truths concerning the reality, knowledge or values are elements that cannot be objectively established. In other words, his view is that there are other more significant and more practical goals in life such as making money as opposed to studying philosophy. In my view, philosophy and education have a common objective of enhancing the total intellect of an individual with the intention of realizing human potential. However, does this apply in all cases? One of the main arguments opposing the concept of philosophy as pointed out by my friend is that it offers no definite solutions. Challengers' points out that it can provide theoretical answers although none that can be proven. In my understanding, this is a type of scientific point of view and the truth is that philosophy has answered multiple questions. This is attributed to the notion that all the branches of sciences derive their concepts from philosophy.

On the other hand, as human beings ponder throughout time and agree on a proven explanation, a new science would be formed. For instance, there used to be a perception that the world was flat until a person critically thought about it and started questioning the truth of this assumption. In the long run, we now have the Copernicus hypothesizing that the sun is the center and not the earth hence the formation of the science of astronomy. Thus, the conflicting claims brought by philosophy is the aspect of doubting issues without first examining the value of philosophy or their choices. Nevertheless, it is through developing doubts that an individual is able to acquire more knowledge and wisdom which is considered to be the primary goals of philosophy. Therefore, to respond to my friend, I would advise him that human beings are gifted with the ability to have thought processes that are keepable of surpassing the low-level life forms. Thus, for him to say philosophy is useless is equivalent to letting go of this gift without utilizing it hence ending up ignoring the possibilities of the mind, but is this fair? My view is supported by Socrates who stated that "....an unexamined life is no life for a human being to live." This assumption supports the idea that it is through examining or doubting our choices that we will be able to gain more knowledge.

Subsequently, the value of philosophy in the world is hindered by self-assertion. In that, the public will find themselves searching for knowledge although they end up being limited by the perception that the universe is of less worth than themselves hence resulting in a downfall of the instinctive individual. This implies that people tend to be concentrated so much on their private matters. It is viewed as a trap, an individual's life is filled with issues relating to friends and family and he or she is confident that to have found his mark or place in life. Contrary to this belief, a true believer or student of philosophy will be interested in acquiring more knowledge that is free and pure. The quest for such knowledge is not self-centered but a selfless move to understand the dynamics of life (Chase 7). The aspect of letting go of the efforts of trying to fit the universe into his world brings immense knowledge since he or she has overcome the narrow circle of private interest and self. Even so, Russell acknowledges that philosophy handles matters with uncertain answers. However, in this ambiguity, he realizes philosophy's primary value; in that, in considering the great questions, a person is freed from narrow private interest alone.

Nevertheless, there are distinct ways for philosophers to examine opposing ideas and beliefs. According to Hallman, philosophy involves having an open-minded concerning controversial issues to daily life matters since it helps the mind to explore and absorb new things. This also enhances the establishment of logical sense since a person is open-minded in different forms of thinking and ways of life. Despite this popular perception, I believe that the goals of the philosophy are to influence society by providing other people with wisdom. Else what is the need of having an open-minded approach to different issues but fail to influence society through human experiences? Is that how practical questions are solved using philosophy? Philosophy should be extensive enough not just being open-minded so as philosophers can address both social and human challenges among other wide range of problems under the lens of a critical eye that is unwavering (Hanna 700). Such thoughts by Hallman fails to show how the principles of explanation and basic stages of any concepts schema are implemented based on the breadth and depth of human experience. Therefore, philosophy is supposed to illustrate the basic insights in every aspect of life.

One of the philosophers I find interesting is Plato. He stated that philosophy should be taken seriously since it is a gift that is given to human beings by god. In that, man is given the powers by god to critically understand the world and also the man's life which is found within it. Plato is famously remembered for cautioning the abandonment of philosophy by citing that failure to take the philosophy seriously it will become a source of embarrassment, especially to the beginners. In that, philosophy is supposed to be practical in the sense that the method of inquiry can be applied to solve practical questions by applying the aspect of practical common sense (Appelqvist 716). Thus, failure to come up with theories one will not be able to analyze, expound or help in planning. Suggesting that, it is necessary to question beliefs, assumptions, common sense, ideas, and current presuppositions as well as the effectiveness of current practices through having philosophical thoughts.

Critical Evaluation of Philosophy

After now reviewing what philosophy entails, it is significant to consider evaluating the value of philosophy to address some of the doubts brought forward by the opponents of philosophy. This is because several individuals who are against the value of philosophy are under the influence of science hence doubting philosophy particularly when it comes to the matter of knowledge where there are too many controversies (Shand 290). This notion about philosophy appears to be caused partly by a wrong understanding of the ends of life since it does not highlight the essential things that the philosophy tries to accomplish. It is in these effects that we have to evaluate the value of philosophy since a majority of people are ignorant about the certainty of philosophy.

Moreover, just like any other form of study, philosophy main goal is knowledge. It seeks to attain knowledge that provides unity and system to the department of science through critical analyses of the grounds of our beliefs, convictions, and beliefs. However, it is vital to record that philosophy has attained a great measure of success in its efforts to provide convincing answers to its questions by developing a sense of understanding (Appelqvist 713). This denotes that, people are able to focus more on their experiences as opposed to their actions once they develop a sense of understanding. Philosophes spend most of their time reflecting upon the basic issues and come up with ideas that positively transforms human events or culture.

Consequently, some of the critics may claim that philosophy lacks practical value or relevance to the actual issues of this world such as making money. In response to this criticism, if it were not for philosophy, human beings could not be able to carry out the actual activities. In the sense that, human beings require motives, purposes and reasons in their lives for their survival. It is evident that, as human beings, we tend to pose the question such as "survival for what?" As a consequence, it is through a philosophic inquiry that people are able to understand the criticized human issues such as the reasons for surviving among others (Shand 285). Therefore, philosophy can be perceived as an activity of thought that can be used to attain what we value hence becoming an essential element in the lives of humans across the globe. The value of philosophy is supposed to be sought significantly in its very uncertainty. Philosophy is supposed to be studied not just to provide definite answers but also to understand the questions themselves since these questions extend our understanding of what is practical. As a consequence, understanding the value for philosophy will without a doubt enrich our intellectual thinking and minimize the assertive assurance which diminishes speculations from the mind.

Conclusion

To sum up, the value of philosophy can be attained any person decides to cross the line between the things and ideas. Thus, this work has successfully pointed out that philosophy is valuable since it viewed as a foundation of knowledge and understanding. People who attempt to understand the values of philosophy are I turn going to benefit from their curiosity to understand the concepts of philosophy. However, this does not imply that a person is supposed to have the ability to understand or learn about the entire universe but just to have an open-mind since philosophy's value provides immense enlightenment. People need to stop being ignorant when it comes to the study of philosophy and realize that there is indeed value in believing that a deeper reality exists. In that, the re...