introduction to the philosophy of the human person

1. Lesson 2:
Methods of
Philosophizing
By: Ms. Jo Marie Nel C. Garcia

2. Truth and Knowledge
 Truth lies at the heart of any
inquiry. It is a fact that has been
verified.
 Knowledge is simple data that
comes from the outside that pass
to our senses. It must be truthful
to gain validity and acceptance.

3. Propositions
 Philosophers consider truth as a
kind of quality or value.
 Propositions are statements
about the world or reality which
may or may not carry truth.

4. What is truth and why is it important?
 Knowledge is the clear awareness and
understanding of something. It is the
product of questions that allow for clear
answers provided by facts.
 What we know is what is observable or
evident in the real world.
 Propositions which are observed to be
real or truthful are considered FACTS.

5.  There are statements, however, that are
not evidently or immediately known to
be true and they are called CLAIMS.
They require further examination to
establish whether it is true or false.

6. How do we know if something is
true?
 Philosophers emphasize the
importance of belief as a basis for
determining truth.
 We assume that everything we know
about this world is true but philosophers
who pondered upon the origins of
knowledge doubted everything that
there is to know about themselves and
the world. In doing so, they were able
to better understand the means by
which humans gain knowledge and
determine the truth about everything.

7.  It is said that there are instances when we
have to unlearn something so that we may
learn anew. Philosophers questioned what
they knew and even analyzed their methods of
knowing in order to understand themselves
and the world much better.
 Doubt has a very important purpose in
philosophy as it drives our desire to discover
truth. Nothing is taken as true unless there is
sufficient reason and evidence to prove that it
is indeed true.I am alive. Am I alive? I am alive.
I have a body.
Do I have a
body?
I have a body.
I can breathe. Can I breathe? I can breathe.

8. 1. It can be justified or proven through
the use of one’s senses.
2. It is based on facts.
3. It is a product of agreement or
consensus.
4. It can be applied in real life (tested
and verified)
Something is true if…

9. 1. It takes me 30 minutes to walk from my home
to school.
2. Living near the school is better because we
don’t have to spend much for transportation.
3. My sister ate the last piece of pizza.
4. My sister is a selfish person because she ate
the last piece and didn’t share it with me.
5. The police firmly pushed the suspect to his
kneed and placed him in handcuffs.
6. The aggressive manner by which the police
arrested the suspect is an example of brutality
that characterizes our police force.
Let us Analyze…

10.  Opinions are comprised of
statements which not only give facts
but also provide conclusions or
perspectives regarding certain
situations. They may advance a belief
about certain things or provide
explanations.
 Opinions are also the bases for
making arguments and convincing
people that a certain claim is a fact.
They are often influenced by bias.
How can philosophy guide us in
distinguishing truth from opinion?

11.  Beliefs are statements that
express convictions that are not
easily and clearly explained by
facts. To judge the truthfulness of a
belief, we must also consider
things such as the person’s
experiences and views.
 Explanations are statements that
assume the claim to be true and
provide reasons why the statement
is true.

12.  Arguments are a series of statements
that provide reasons to convince the
reader or listener that a claim or opinion
is truthful.
 They often take the form of statements
that are either claims of facts and are
phrased in such a way that they seem
reasonable.
 Fallacies are arguments based on
faulty reasoning. Some of them are
intentional, as the person making the
claim is desperate to convince you to

13. FALLACY CHARACTERISTICS EXAMPLE
Ad hominem Attacking the person
instead of the argument
itself
Of course he believes that the
government is flawed, he is a
rebel and a Communist.
Ad baculum
(appeal to force)
Using the threat of force or
an undesirable event to
advance an argument
If you do not agree with my
political opinions, you will
receive flat 70 on your card.
Ad misericordiam
(appeal to pity)
Using emotions such as
pity and sympathy
You cant fire me, I have a wife
and 12 kids who will go hungry
if I lose this job.
Ad populum
(appeal to majority
or bandwagon)
The idea is presented as
acceptable because a lot
of people accept it
Every boy your age already has
a girlfriend, you should go find
one!
Ad antiquitatem
(appeal to
tradition)
The idea is acceptable
because it has been true
for a long time
Marriage has traditionally been
between a man and a woman;
therefore, gay marriage should
not be allowed.
Ad verecundiam ‘misusing’ an authority 4 out of 5 dentists agree that
brushing your teeth makes your
life meaningful.

14. FALLACY CHARACTERISTICS EXAMPLE
Dicto Simpliciter argument based on an
unqualified generalization
Exercise is good. Therefore
everybody should exercise.
Fallacy of
Composition
Assuming that what is true
of a part is true for the
whole
Each brick in that building
weighs less than a pound.
Therefore, the building weighs
less than a pound.
Fallacy of Division Assuming that what is true
for the whole is true for its
parts
You come from a family of
doctors and lawyers! Surely,
you can do better in this course!
Hasty
Generalization
The generalization is
reached too hastily. There
are too few instances or
evidences to support such
a conclusion.
You can't speak French. I can’t
speak French. Carla can't
speak French; therefore,
nobody in this school can speak
French.
Petitio Principii
(begging the
question)
Assuming that the thing or
idea to be proven is true
(circular reasoning)
God exists because the bible
says so. … Why we can trust
what the Bible says? Easy, the
Bible is the word of God.
Post Hoc
(false cause)
Assuming a ‘cause-and-
effect’ relationship
Every time you wear your red
scarf, you cry. You should get

15.  Biases are the personal views of the
person presenting it. They are not
necessarily errors in reasoning, but
refer to tendencies or influences which
affect the views of people.
BIAS CHARACTERISTICS EXAMPLE
Correspondence
bias
(Fundamental
attribution error)
Tendency to judge a
person’s personality by
his/her actions without
regard for external factors
or situations
The soldiers who fought in
the war are all bloodthirsty
murderers.
Confirmation bias the tendency to look for
and accept information in a
way that confirms one's
own beliefs and reject
ideas that go against it
How can I accept his view
that there is no God? I am a
Christian!

16. BIAS CHARACTERISTICS EXAMPLE
Conflict of interest A person or group is
connected to or has a
vested interest in the issue
As the daughter of the
accused, I believe that I have
the right to express my opinion
on the issue of his alleged
corrupt practices.
Cultural bias Analyzing an event or
issue based on one’s
cultural standards
I do not agree with this
Western practice of placing the
elderly in retirement homes.
We Filipinos take care of our
family members.
Framing Focusing on a certain
aspect of a problem while
ignoring other aspects
Preliminary evidence has still
not pointed out the actual
cause of the plane crash, but
investigators are currently
focusing on the possibility of
pilot error.
Hindsight
(knew-it-all-along
phenomenon)
Is when, after an event
occurs, we feel we already
knew what was going to
happen
When you put a glass on the
edge of a table and you start
cleaning and bumped the glass
and it fell to the ground and