Philosophy is an attempt to get clear on some fundamental and important issues in
our lives. These include questions about the existence of
God, whether we can ever get the truth about the world, and
whether we are able to know the right thing to do. In trying to
find answers to these questions, lots of other problems emerge. These include:
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Are the past and future just as real as the present?
Could time come to an end?
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Are moral values objective? If two people disagree in
their moral judgments, must one of them be mistaken?
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Do non-human animals think? Are they conscious? Do they
have rights?
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Do computers think? Could they ever be conscious?
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Can we tell whether other people's experiences are like
our own?
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If our actions can be explained scientifically, does
this mean that we are not free agents?
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Do we really know the things we think we know?
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What are the conditions that reasoning should satisfy if
we are to accept it?
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Does science reveal how the world really is? How does
the scientific view fit with common sense?
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Is it really true that (as is commonly said) everyone is
entitled to their own opinion?
Anyone who has ever asked
questions like these has already started to do philosophy.
Philosophy is one of the world's
oldest subjects of study. In ancient Greece, philosophers
pursued many questions which would nowadays be regarded as
scientific as well as philosophical ones. During the sixteenth
century, physics became a separate subject, and in the
nineteenth century psychology gradually developed a separate
identity. New subjects continue to emerge from work in
philosophy. These include areas like cognitive science where
philosophers, psychologists and computer scientists work with
other experts to try to unravel the nature of intelligent
systems and to understand consciousness, thinking, speech and
reason.
Philosophy cannot be learnt by
rote or from a text book. Studying it in depth develops
reasoning powers by requiring focus on some of the most
difficult, abstract and persistently worrying questions that
have always engaged reflective people. Philosophical studies
leave a deep mark on the mind, and provide intellectual virtues
in demand beyond the university. Employers are becoming
increasingly aware of the value of the imagination and rigour
which philosophy students need to acquire.
Examples of transferable skills
and personal characteristics developed by the practice of
philosophy are the following:
reasoning skills: logic;
analysis and synthesis; handling of concepts; critical ability;
identifying and questioning assumptions; arguing a case;
problem solving and decision making
handling symbolism:
formal systems; statistical arguments; computer literacy
communication skills:
clarity, relevance, and succinctness in written and oral
presentations
comprehension: mastery of
difficult and complex texts; listening to what others say, and
appreciating different points of view; coping with a high level
of uncertainty
depth and breadth of
view: seeing beyond traditional disciplinary boundaries;
identifying first principles and practical applications;
tracing connections; objectivity
reflexivity: handling of
second-order questions; awareness of one's own thinking and use
of language; ability to assess one's own strengths and
weaknesses, and those of others
originality: independence
of thought; flexibility of approach; adaptability to a changing
environment; inventiveness in producing examples and
counter-examples
co-operativeness: ability
to work in teams in different capacities; constructive
contribution to group discussion and joint products
responsibility: ability
to act autonomously and to learn independently; awareness of
ethical implications.
It is common for employers of
graduates to ask academic referees to assess candidates under
headings such as the above. Studies in the USA have shown that
philosophy majors consistently outperform graduates of all
other disciplines in reasoning and verbal aptitude tests; and
among Arts and Social Studies graduates, they come behind only
economists on quantitative skills (see Peter Ratcliffe and
Martin Warner, Philosophy Graduates and Jobs,
Royal Institute of Philosophy and the University of Warwick,
1986). This suggests that philosophy is in fact effective in
developing transferable skills, even if they are not included
among the explicit objectives of philosophy courses.
A very short, clear, straightforward and useful introductory
book is Thomas Nagel's What Does It All Mean? (New
York: Oxford University Press, 1987), which is normally in
stock at the UWA Co-Op Bookshop.
If you want to pursue philosophy through the Internet before
committing yourself to a full university course, you could try
Pathways, an
independent distance learning project which offers guidance as
you proceed.
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