Philosophy is open to all. Although most people are not sure what philosophy is, they all engage in it regardless of whether or not they know. All of us have ideas about free will, human nature and morality, as well as the meaning of life. Everybody, whether it is because of startling events, curiosity, or simply out of curiosity, asks philosophical questions such as “Does God Exist?” Is there life after death? Are there universal or absolute moral principles? “What does good, poor and right refer to? What is beauty? What are the characteristics of a “good” work of art? What sources are we able to gain knowledge? “Does sensory experiences provide intangible knowledge?”
What is philosophy then? Literally, philosophy derives its name from the philos (loving) and SOPHIA (wisdom), which means “the love and wisdom.” Philosophers do not agree on the nature or function of philosophy. These definitions attempt to clarify what philosophy really means. These definitions are not meant to reflect all philosophical opinions.
- Philosophers analyze the foundations and presuppositions that underlie other disciplines. Philosophers don’t ask the question “Are Pablo Picasso’s paintings ‘good’ art?” As art critics ask, philosophers don’t ask “Are Pablo Picasso’s paintings ‘good’ works of art?” But rather, “Is aesthetic judgement a matter of personal taste or can there be objective standards we can use to evaluate art work?” Philosophers don’t ask the question “Is evolution true?” As biologists and physical analysts do, philosophers ask “Is the theory of evolution true?” but rather “How can we tell truth from falsehood?”
- Philosophy attempts to provide a complete view or understanding of the world. Philosophy combines the knowledge from the sciences and other disciplines to create a coherent view of the world. Philosophers don’t want to focus on a particular aspect of human experience or knowledge. They want to look at life in its entirety. Charlie Dunbar Broad, a twentieth-century English philosopher, said that this function is about taking over the results from the different sciences and adding to them the results the religious and moral experiences of humanity and then reflecting on the whole. This is a way to hopefully reach general conclusions about the universe and our place and prospects within it. (Scientific ThoughtNew York: Harcourt 1923, p. 20).
- Philosophers study and critically examine our deepest beliefs and attitudes. They make us see the meaning and consequences of our beliefs and their inconsistencies. They examine the evidence for our most precious beliefs and try to eliminate any traces of ignorance, prejudice or superstition.
- Philosophy studies the rules and principles of language and attempts to explain the meaning of ambiguous words and concepts. Philosophy examines the role language plays in communication and thought. It also addresses the question of how to ensure that language is meaningful. It’s a practice, a method that seeks to uncover the problems and confusions caused by misuse of language and to clarify the meaning of vague terms in everyday and scientific discourse.
- philosophy‘s ideological function is to define the exploratory and applied orientations that man, in particular, and all of humanity in general through exploring the world outlook. It is a set or criteria that can be used to assess the perceptions of the world and culture of man, as well as the community (socium) that he creates.
- Philosophy’s epistemological function is to scientifically interpret the world and its authentic knowledge. It defines scientific, extra-scientific, and non-existent. This is a professional assessment of knowledge.
- The methodological function is responsible for the development and verification methods that philosophy uses to achieve its goals and research. She is responsible for the development and approval of the philosophical approach and the evaluation and appraisal thereof.
- Information-communicative – this function controls the transmission and content of the transmitted data between any agents involved in its processes. It spreads knowledge among different disciplines, both within and outside philosophy. This supports cooperation between sciences and their respective disciplines.
- The value-orientation function has a specific role and is adjacent to a variety of disciplines. It performs the role as an evaluation activity on various criteria that can be applied to a wide range phenomenon, including the creation and elimination of value. It can also be used to justify and disseminate other values, except knowledge, which is by default the ultimate goal and value of all sciences. It is impossible to understand or support certain sciences like chemistry and physics without aesthetic values, such as “beautiful”. The last example shows that the study of culture without philosophy is formal and ineffective.
- Critical function is a critical function that evaluates the phenomena or processes and compares them with philosophy’s opinion. This, as the name suggests, criticizes, draws conclusion and gives a conclusion. Expert evaluations of philosophy are more extensive than other sciences. They use different criteria that don’t make sense for other disciplines.
- Philosophy’s integrating function is to accumulate, compile and accumulate knowledge. It then integrates them into its concepts. It works in conjunction with the other functions listed above to disseminate knowledge, theories, and hypotheses within the scientific community.
- The study, classification, and evaluation of different social groups’ views and opinions is the ideological function. This function of philosophy is concerned with ideology. It is clear that philosophy is closely linked to other social disciplines, such as sociology.
- Prognostic refers to a philosophy function that makes predictions based upon known data. Forecasts and models based on this function are more flexible and integrate better into culture and scientific knowledge than other theoretical constructs.
- The design function in philosophy is responsible to the creation of ideas, systems and images. It is similar to the previous one. In fact, they interact in the process theoretical forecasting, design, and modelling.
- Educational function is intended to influence the formation and expression of views by individuals and groups. Since the inception of philosophy, one of the oldest functions has been apparent. It was based on the instruction of the meaningful and understandable. In ancient times, scientific knowledge was spread because of a limited number of speakers and the absence or closure of educational institutions.
- The functions of philosophy are closely related to the object and the objects of each direction. However, they also have their own specificities. It is important to consider the above.
(If you need help with your assignment or any other school related task, click this link )