Historically, many of the individualsciences, such asphysics andpsychology, formed part of philosophy. However, they are considered separate academic disciplines in the modern sense of the term. Influential traditions in thehistory of philosophy includeWestern,Arabic–Persian,Indian, andChinese philosophy. Western philosophy originated inAncient Greece and covers a wide area of philosophical subfields. A central topic in Arabic–Persian philosophy is the relation between reason andrevelation. Indian philosophy combines thespiritual problem of how to reachenlightenment with the exploration of the nature of reality and the ways of arriving at knowledge. Chinese philosophy focuses principally on practical issues about right social conduct, government, andself-cultivation.
The wordphilosophy comes from theAncient Greek wordsφίλος (philos)'love' andσοφία (sophia)'wisdom'.[2][a] Some sources say that the term was coined by thepre-Socratic philosopherPythagoras, but this is not certain.[4]
The word entered the English language primarily fromOld French andAnglo-Norman starting around 1175 CE. The Frenchphilosophie is itself a borrowing from the Latinphilosophia. The termphilosophy acquired the meanings of "advanced study of the speculative subjects (logic,ethics,physics, andmetaphysics)", "deep wisdom consisting of love of truth and virtuous living", "profound learning as transmitted by the ancient writers", and "the study of the fundamental nature ofknowledge,reality, andexistence, and the basic limits of human understanding".[5]
Before the modern age, the termphilosophy was used in a wide sense. It included most forms ofrational inquiry, such as the individualsciences, as its subdisciplines.[6] For instance,natural philosophy was a major branch of philosophy.[7] This branch of philosophy encompassed a wide range of fields, including disciplines like physics,chemistry, andbiology.[8] An example of this usage is the 1687 bookPhilosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica byIsaac Newton. This book referred to natural philosophy in its title, but it is today considered a book of physics.[9]
The meaning ofphilosophy changed toward the end of the modern period when it acquired the more narrow meaning common today. In this new sense, the term is mainly associated with disciplines like metaphysics, epistemology, and ethics. Among other topics, it covers the rational study of reality, knowledge, and values. It is distinguished from other disciplines of rational inquiry such as the empirical sciences andmathematics.[10]
The practice of philosophy is characterized by several general features: it is a form of rational inquiry, it aims to be systematic, and it tends to critically reflect on its own methods and presuppositions.[11] It requires attentively thinking long and carefully about the provocative, vexing, and enduring problems central to the human condition.[12]
The philosophical pursuit of wisdom involves asking general and fundamental questions. It often does not result in straightforward answers but may help a person to better understand the topic, examine their life, dispel confusion, and overcome prejudices and self-deceptive ideas associated with common sense.[13] For example,Socrates stated that "the unexamined life is not worth living" to highlight the role of philosophical inquiry in understanding one's own existence.[14][15] And according toBertrand Russell, "the man who has no tincture of philosophy goes through life imprisoned in the prejudices derived from common sense, from the habitual beliefs of his age or his nation, and from convictions which have grown up in his mind without the cooperation or consent of his deliberate reason."[16]
Attempts to provide more precise definitions of philosophy are controversial[17] and are studied inmetaphilosophy.[18] Some approaches argue that there is a set of essential features shared by all parts of philosophy. Others see only weaker family resemblances or contend that it is merely an empty blanket term.[19] Precise definitions are often only accepted by theorists belonging to a certainphilosophical movement and are revisionistic according to Søren Overgaard et al. in that many presumed parts of philosophy would not deserve the title "philosophy" if they were true.[20]
Some definitions characterize philosophy in relation to its method, like pure reasoning. Others focus on its topic, for example, as the study of the biggest patterns of the world as a whole or as the attempt to answer the big questions.[21] Such an approach is pursued byImmanuel Kant, who holds that the task of philosophy is united by four questions: "What can I know?"; "What should I do?"; "What may I hope?"; and "What is the human being?"[22] Both approaches have the problem that they are usually either too wide, by including non-philosophical disciplines, or too narrow, by excluding some philosophical sub-disciplines.[23]
Many definitions of philosophy emphasize its intimate relation to science.[24] In this sense, philosophy is sometimes understood as a proper science in its own right. According to somenaturalistic philosophers, such asW. V. O. Quine, philosophy is an empirical yet abstract science that is concerned with wide-ranging empirical patterns instead of particular observations.[25] Science-based definitions usually face the problem of explaining why philosophy in its long history has not progressed to the same extent or in the same way as the sciences.[26] This problem is avoided by seeing philosophy as an immature or provisional science whose subdisciplines cease to be philosophy once they have fully developed.[27] In this sense, philosophy is sometimes described as "the midwife of the sciences".[28]
Other definitions focus on the contrast between science and philosophy. A common theme among many such conceptions is that philosophy is concerned withmeaning,understanding, or the clarification of language.[29] According to one view, philosophy isconceptual analysis, which involves finding thenecessary and sufficient conditions for the application of concepts.[30] Another definition characterizes philosophy asthinking about thinking to emphasize its self-critical, reflective nature.[31] A further approach presents philosophy as alinguistic therapy. According toLudwig Wittgenstein, for instance, philosophy aims at dispelling misunderstandings to which humans are susceptible due to the confusing structure ofordinary language.[32]
Phenomenologists, such asEdmund Husserl, characterize philosophy as a "rigorous science" investigatingessences.[33] They practice a radicalsuspension of theoretical assumptions about reality to get back to the "things themselves", that is, as originally given in experience. They contend that this base-level of experience provides the foundation for higher-order theoretical knowledge, and that one needs to understand the former to understand the latter.[34]
An early approach found inancient Greek andRoman philosophy is that philosophy is the spiritual practice of developing one's rational capacities.[35] This practice is an expression of the philosopher's love of wisdom and has the aim of improving one'swell-being by leading a reflective life.[36] For example, theStoics saw philosophy as an exercise to train the mind and thereby achieveeudaimonia and flourish in life.[37]
As a discipline, the history of philosophy aims to provide a systematic and chronological exposition of philosophical concepts and doctrines.[38] Some theorists see it as a part ofintellectual history, but it also investigates questions not covered by intellectual history such as whether the theories of past philosophers are true and have remained philosophically relevant.[39] The history of philosophy is primarily concerned with theories based on rational inquiry and argumentation; some historians understand it in a looser sense that includesmyths,religious teachings, and proverbial lore.[40]
Aristotle was a major figure in ancient philosophy and developed a comprehensive system of thought including metaphysics, logic, ethics, politics, and natural science.[42]
TheRenaissance period started in the 14th century and saw a renewed interest in schools of ancient philosophy, in particularPlatonism.Humanism also emerged in this period.[48] The modern period started in the 17th century. One of its central concerns was how philosophical and scientific knowledge are created. Specific importance was given to therole of reason andsensory experience.[49] Many of these innovations were used in theEnlightenment movement to challenge traditional authorities.[50] Several attempts to develop comprehensive systems of philosophy were made in the 19th century, for instance, byGerman idealism andMarxism.[51] Influential developments in 20th-century philosophy were the emergence and application offormal logic, the focus on therole of language as well aspragmatism, and movements incontinental philosophy like phenomenology,existentialism, andpost-structuralism.[52] The 20th century saw a rapid expansion of academic philosophy in terms of the number of philosophical publications and philosophers working atacademic institutions.[53] There was also a noticeable growth in the number offemale philosophers, but they still remained underrepresented.[54]
Arabic–Persian philosophy arose in the early 9th century CE as a response to discussions in theIslamic theological tradition. Its classical period lasted until the 12th century CE and was strongly influenced by ancient Greek philosophers. It employed their ideas to elaborate and interpret the teachings of theQuran.[55]
Al-Kindi (801–873 CE) is usually regarded as the first philosopher of this tradition. He translated and interpreted many works of Aristotle and Neoplatonists in his attempt to show that there is a harmony betweenreason andfaith.[56]Avicenna (980–1037 CE) also followed this goal and developed a comprehensive philosophical system to provide a rational understanding of reality encompassing science, religion, and mysticism.[57]Al-Ghazali (1058–1111 CE) was a strong critic of the idea that reason can arrive at a true understanding of reality and God. He formulated a detailedcritique of philosophy and tried to assign philosophy a more limited place besides the teachings of the Quran and mystical insight.[58] Following Al-Ghazali and the end of the classical period, the influence of philosophical inquiry waned.[59]Mulla Sadra (1571–1636 CE) is often regarded as one of the most influential philosophers of the subsequent period.[60] The increasing influence of Western thought and institutions in the 19th and 20th centuries gave rise to the intellectual movement ofIslamic modernism, which aims to understand the relation between traditional Islamic beliefs and modernity.[61]
One of the distinguishing features of Indian philosophy is that it integrates the exploration of the nature of reality, the ways of arriving at knowledge, and thespiritual question of how to reachenlightenment.[62] It started around 900 BCE when theVedas were written. They are the foundational scriptures ofHinduism and contemplate issues concerning the relation between theself andultimate reality as well as the question of howsouls are reborn based on theirpast actions.[63] This period also saw the emergence of non-Vedic teachings, likeBuddhism andJainism.[64] Buddhism was founded byGautama Siddhartha (563–483 BCE), who challenged the Vedic idea of apermanent self and proposeda path to liberate oneself fromsuffering.[64] Jainism was founded byMahavira (599–527 BCE), who emphasizednon-violence as well as respect toward all forms of life.[65]
The subsequent classical period started roughly 200 BCE[b] and was characterized by the emergence of the sixorthodox schools of Hinduism:Nyāyá,Vaiśeṣika,Sāṃkhya,Yoga,Mīmāṃsā, andVedanta.[67] The school ofAdvaita Vedanta developed later in this period. It was systematized byAdi Shankara (c. 700–750 CE), who held thateverything is one and that the impression of a universe consisting of many distinct entities is anillusion.[68] A slightly different perspective was defended byRamanuja (1017–1137 CE),[c] who founded the school ofVishishtadvaita Vedanta and argued that individual entities are real as aspects or parts of the underlying unity.[70] He also helped to popularize theBhakti movement, which taughtdevotion toward the divine as a spiritual path and lasted until the 17th to 18th centuries CE.[71] The modern period began roughly 1800 CE and was shaped by encounters with Western thought.[72] Philosophers tried to formulate comprehensive systems to harmonize diverse philosophical and religious teachings. For example,Swami Vivekananda (1863–1902 CE) used the teachings of Advaita Vedanta to argue that all the different religions are valid paths toward the one divine.[73]
The teachings ofConfucius on ethics and society shaped subsequent Chinese philosophy.
Chinese philosophy is particularly interested in practical questions associated with right social conduct, government, andself-cultivation.[74] Manyschools of thought emerged in the 6th century BCE in competing attempts to resolve the political turbulence of that period. The most prominent among them wereConfucianism andDaoism.[75] Confucianism was founded byConfucius (551–479 BCE). It focused on different forms of moralvirtues and explored how they lead to harmony in society.[76] Daoism was founded byLaozi (6th century BCE) and examined how humans can live in harmony with nature by following theDao or the natural order of the universe.[77] Other influential early schools of thought wereMohism, which developed an early form of altruisticconsequentialism,[78] andLegalism, which emphasized the importance of a strong state and strict laws.[79]
Buddhism was introduced to China in the 1st century CE and diversified intonew forms of Buddhism.[80] Starting in the 3rd century CE, the school ofXuanxue emerged. It interpreted earlier Daoist works with a specific emphasis on metaphysical explanations.[80]Neo-Confucianism developed in the 11th century CE. It systematized previous Confucian teachings and sought a metaphysical foundation of ethics.[81] The modern period in Chinese philosophy began in the early 20th century and was shaped by the influence of and reactions to Western philosophy. The emergence ofChinese Marxism—which focused onclass struggle,socialism, andcommunism—resulted in a significant transformation of the political landscape.[82] Another development was the emergence ofNew Confucianism, which aims to modernize and rethink Confucian teachings to explore their compatibility with democratic ideals and modern science.[83]
Other traditions
Traditional Japanese philosophy assimilated and synthesized ideas from different traditions, including the indigenousShinto religion and Chinese and Indian thought in the forms of Confucianism and Buddhism, both of which entered Japan in the 6th and 7th centuries. Its practice is characterized by active interaction with reality rather than disengaged examination.[84] Neo-Confucianism became an influential school of thought in the 16th century and the followingEdo period and prompted a greater focus on language and the natural world.[85] TheKyoto School emerged in the 20th century and integrated Eastern spirituality with Western philosophy in its exploration of concepts like absolute nothingness (zettai-mu), place (basho), and theself.[86]
Latin American philosophy in thepre-colonial period was practiced by indigenous civilizations and explored questions concerning the nature of reality and the role of humans.[87] It has similarities toindigenous North American philosophy, which covered themes such as the interconnectedness of all things.[88] Latin American philosophy during thecolonial period, starting around 1550, was dominated by religious philosophy in the form ofscholasticism. Influential topics in the post-colonial period werepositivism, thephilosophy of liberation, and the exploration of identity and culture.[89]
Early African philosophy was primarily conducted and transmitted orally. It focused on community, morality, and ancestral ideas, encompassing folklore, wise sayings, religious ideas, and philosophical concepts likeUbuntu.[90] Systematic African philosophy emerged at the beginning of the 20th century. It discusses topics such asethnophilosophy,négritude,pan-Africanism, Marxism,postcolonialism, the role of cultural identity,relativism,African epistemology, and the critique ofEurocentrism.[91]
Philosophical questions can be grouped into several branches. These groupings allow philosophers to focus on a set of similar topics and interact with other thinkers who are interested in the same questions. Epistemology, ethics, logic, and metaphysics are sometimes listed as the main branches.[92] There are many other subfields besides them and the different divisions are neither exhaustive nor mutually exclusive. For example, political philosophy, ethics, andaesthetics are sometimes linked under the general heading ofvalue theory as they investigatenormative or evaluative aspects.[93] Furthermore, philosophical inquiry sometimes overlaps with other disciplines in the natural and social sciences, religion, and mathematics.[94]
Epistemology is the branch of philosophy that studies knowledge. It is also known astheory of knowledge and aims to understand what knowledge is, how it arises, what its limits are, and what value it has. It further examines the nature oftruth,belief,justification, andrationality.[95] Some of the questions addressed by epistemologists include "By what method(s) can one acquire knowledge?"; "How is truth established?"; and "Can we prove causal relations?"[96]
Epistemology is primarily interested indeclarative knowledge or knowledge of facts, like knowing that Princess Diana died in 1997. But it also investigatespractical knowledge, such as knowing how to ride a bicycle, andknowledge by acquaintance, for example, knowing a celebrity personally.[97]
One area in epistemology is theanalysis of knowledge. It assumes that declarative knowledge is a combination of different parts and attempts to identify what those parts are. An influential theory in this area claims that knowledge has three components: it is abelief that isjustified andtrue. This theory is controversial and the difficulties associated with it are known as theGettier problem.[98] Alternative views state that knowledge requires additional components, like the absence of luck; different components, like the manifestation ofcognitive virtues instead of justification; or they deny that knowledge can be analyzed in terms of other phenomena.[99]
Another area in epistemology asks how people acquire knowledge. Often-discussed sources of knowledge areperception,introspection,memory,inference, andtestimony.[100] According toempiricists, all knowledge is based on some form of experience. Rationalists reject this view and hold that some forms of knowledge, likeinnate knowledge, are not acquired through experience.[101] Theregress problem is a common issue in relation to the sources of knowledge and the justification they offer. It is based on the idea that beliefs require some kind of reason or evidence to be justified. The problem is that the source of justification may itself be in need of another source of justification. This leads to aninfinite regress orcircular reasoning.Foundationalists avoid this conclusion by arguing that some sources can provide justification without requiring justification themselves.[102] Another solution is presented bycoherentists, who state that a belief is justified if it coheres with other beliefs of the person.[103]
Many discussions in epistemology touch on the topic ofphilosophical skepticism, which raises doubts about some or all claims to knowledge. These doubts are often based on the idea that knowledge requires absolute certainty and that humans are unable to acquire it.[104]
"The utilitarian doctrine is, that happiness is desirable, and the only thing desirable, as an end; all other things being only desirable as means to that end." —John Stuart Mill,Utilitarianism (1863)[105]
Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, studies what constitutes rightconduct. It is also concerned with the moralevaluation of character traits and institutions. It explores what the standards ofmorality are and how to live a good life.[106] Philosophical ethics addresses such basic questions as "Are moral obligations relative?"; "Which has priority: well-being or obligation?"; and "What gives life meaning?"[107]
The main branches of ethics aremeta-ethics,normative ethics, andapplied ethics.[108] Meta-ethics asks abstract questions about the nature and sources of morality. It analyzes the meaning of ethical concepts, likeright action andobligation. It also investigates whether ethical theories can betrue in an absolute sense and how to acquire knowledge of them.[109] Normative ethics encompasses general theories of how to distinguish between right and wrong conduct. It helps guide moral decisions by examining what moral obligations and rights people have. Applied ethics studies the consequences of the general theories developed by normative ethics in specific situations, for example, in the workplace or for medical treatments.[110]
Within contemporary normative ethics, consequentialism,deontology, andvirtue ethics are influential schools of thought.[111]Consequentialists judge actions based on their consequences. One such view isutilitarianism, which argues that actions should increase overall happiness while minimizing suffering.Deontologists judge actions based on whether they follow moral duties, such as abstaining from lying or killing. According to them, what matters is that actions are in tune with those duties and not what consequences they have.Virtue theorists judge actions based on how the moral character of the agent is expressed. According to this view, actions should conform to what an ideally virtuous agent would do by manifesting virtues likegenerosity andhonesty.[112]
Logic is the study ofcorrect reasoning. It aims to understand how to distinguish good from badarguments.[113] It is usually divided into formal andinformal logic. Formal logic usesartificial languages with a precise symbolic representation to investigate arguments. In its search for exact criteria, it examines the structure of arguments to determine whether they are correct or incorrect. Informal logic uses non-formal criteria and standards to assess the correctness of arguments. It relies on additional factors such as content and context.[114]
Logic examines a variety of arguments.Deductive arguments are mainly studied by formal logic. An argument is deductivelyvalid if the truth of itspremises ensures the truth of its conclusion. Deductively valid arguments follow arule of inference, likemodus ponens, which has the followinglogical form: "p; ifp thenq; thereforeq". An example is the argument "today is Sunday; if today is Sunday then I don't have to go to work today; therefore I don't have to go to work today".[115]
The premises of non-deductive arguments also support their conclusion, although this support does not guarantee that the conclusion is true.[116] One form isinductive reasoning. It starts from a set of individual cases and uses generalization to arrive at a universal law governing all cases. An example is the inference that "all ravens are black" based on observations of many individual black ravens.[117] Another form isabductive reasoning. It starts from an observation and concludes that the best explanation of this observation must be true. This happens, for example, when a doctor diagnoses a disease based on the observed symptoms.[118]
Logic also investigates incorrect forms of reasoning. They are calledfallacies and are divided intoformal andinformal fallacies based on whether the source of the error lies only in the form of the argument or also in its content and context.[119]
Metaphysics is sometimes divided into general metaphysics and specific or special metaphysics. General metaphysics investigates being as such. It examines the features that all entities have in common. Specific metaphysics is interested in different kinds of being, the features they have, and how they differ from one another.[123]
An important area in metaphysics isontology. Some theorists identify it with general metaphysics. Ontology investigates concepts likebeing,becoming, and reality. It studies thecategories of being and asks what exists on the most fundamental level.[124] Another subfield of metaphysics isphilosophical cosmology. It is interested in the essence of the world as a whole. It asks questions including whether the universe has a beginning and an end and whether it was created by something else.[125]
A key topic in metaphysics concerns the question of whether reality only consists of physical things like matter and energy. Alternative suggestions are that mental entities (such assouls andexperiences) andabstract entities (such as numbers) exist apart from physical things. Another topic in metaphysics concerns the problem ofidentity. One question is how much an entity can change while still remaining the same entity.[126] According to one view, entities haveessential andaccidental features. They can change their accidental features but they cease to be the same entity if they lose an essential feature.[127] A central distinction in metaphysics is betweenparticulars anduniversals. Universals, like the color red, can exist at different locations at the same time. This is not the case for particulars including individual persons or specific objects.[128] Other metaphysical questions are whether the pastfully determines the present and what implications this would have for the existence offree will.[129]
There are many other subfields of philosophy besides its core branches. Some of the most prominent are aesthetics, philosophy of language, philosophy of mind, philosophy of religion, philosophy of science, and political philosophy.[130]
Aesthetics in the philosophical sense is the field that studies the nature and appreciation ofbeauty and other aesthetic properties, likethe sublime.[131] Although it is often treated together with thephilosophy of art, aesthetics is a broader category that encompasses other aspects of experience, such as natural beauty.[132] In a more general sense, aesthetics is "critical reflection on art, culture, andnature".[133] A key question in aesthetics is whether beauty is an objective feature of entities or a subjective aspect of experience.[134] Aesthetic philosophers also investigate the nature of aesthetic experiences andjudgments. Further topics include the essence ofworks of art and the processes involved in creating them.[135]
Thephilosophy of language studies the nature and function oflanguage. It examines the concepts ofmeaning,reference, and truth. It aims to answer questions such as how words are related to things and how language affects humanthought and understanding. It is closely related to the disciplines of logic and linguistics.[136] The philosophy of language rose to particular prominence in the early 20th century inanalytic philosophy due to the works ofFrege and Russell. One of its central topics is to understand how sentences get their meaning. There are two broad theoretical camps: those emphasizing the formaltruth conditions of sentences[d] and those investigating circumstances that determine when it is suitable to use a sentence, the latter of which is associated withspeech act theory.[138]
Thephilosophy of mind studies the nature of mental phenomena and how they are related to the physical world.[139] It aims to understand different types ofconscious andunconsciousmental states, likebeliefs,desires,intentions,feelings,sensations, and free will.[140] An influential intuition in the philosophy of mind is that there is a distinction between the inner experience of objects and their existence in the external world. Themind-body problem is the problem of explaining how these two types of thing—mind and matter—are related. The main traditional responses arematerialism, which assumes that matter is more fundamental;idealism, which assumes that mind is more fundamental; anddualism, which assumes that mind and matter are distinct types of entities. In contemporary philosophy, another common view isfunctionalism, which understands mental states in terms of the functional or causal roles they play.[141] The mind-body problem is closely related to thehard problem of consciousness, which asks how the physical brain can producequalitatively subjective experiences.[142]
Thephilosophy of religion investigates the basic concepts, assumptions, and arguments associated withreligion. It critically reflects on what religion is, how to define thedivine, and whether one or more gods exist. It also includes the discussion ofworldviews that reject religious doctrines.[143] Further questions addressed by the philosophy of religion are: "How are we to interpret religious language, if not literally?";[144] "Is divine omniscience compatible with free will?";[145] and, "Are the great variety of world religions in some way compatible in spite of their apparently contradictory theological claims?"[146] It includes topics from nearly all branches of philosophy.[147] It differs fromtheology since theological debates typically take place within one religious tradition, whereas debates in the philosophy of religion transcend any particular set of theological assumptions.[148]
Thephilosophy of science examines the fundamental concepts, assumptions, and problems associated with science. It reflects on what science is and how to distinguish it frompseudoscience. It investigates the methods employed by scientists, how their application can result in knowledge, and on what assumptions they are based. It also studies the purpose and implications of science.[149] Some of its questions are "What counts as an adequate explanation?";[150] "Is a scientific law anything more than a description of a regularity?";[151] and "Can some special sciences be explained entirely in the terms of a more general science?"[152] It is a vast field that is commonly divided into the philosophy of thenatural sciences and the philosophy of thesocial sciences, with further subdivisions for each of the individual sciences under these headings. How these branches are related to one another is also a question in the philosophy of science. Many of its philosophical issues overlap with the fields of metaphysics or epistemology.[153]
Political philosophy is the philosophical inquiry into the fundamental principles and ideas governing political systems and societies. It examines the basic concepts, assumptions, and arguments in the field ofpolitics. It investigates the nature and purpose ofgovernment and compares its different forms.[154] It further asks under what circumstances the use of political power islegitimate, rather than a form of simple violence.[155] In this regard, it is concerned with the distribution of political power, social and material goods, andlegal rights.[156] Other topics arejustice,liberty,equality,sovereignty, andnationalism.[157] Political philosophy involves a general inquiry into normative matters and differs in this respect frompolitical science, which aims to provide empirical descriptions of actually existing states.[158] Political philosophy is often treated as a subfield of ethics.[159] Influential schools of thought in political philosophy areliberalism,conservativism,socialism, andanarchism.[160]
Methods of philosophy are ways of conducting philosophical inquiry. They include techniques for arriving at philosophical knowledge and justifying philosophical claims as well as principles used for choosing between competing theories.[161] A great variety of methods have been employed throughout the history of philosophy. Many of them differ significantly from the methods used in thenatural sciences in that they do not use experimental data obtained through measuring equipment.[162] The choice of one's method usually has important implications both for how philosophical theories are constructed and for the arguments cited for or against them.[163] This choice is often guided by epistemological considerations about what constitutes philosophicalevidence.[164]
Methodological disagreements can cause conflicts among philosophical theories or about the answers to philosophical questions. The discovery of new methods has often had important consequences both for how philosophers conduct their research and for what claims they defend.[165] Some philosophers engage in most of their theorizing using one particular method while others employ a wider range of methods based on which one fits the specific problem investigated best.[166]
Conceptual analysis is a common method in analytic philosophy. It aims to clarify the meaning of concepts by analyzing them into their component parts.[167] Another method often employed in analytic philosophy is based oncommon sense. It starts with commonly accepted beliefs and tries to draw unexpected conclusions from them, which it often employs in a negative sense to criticize philosophical theories that are too far removed from how the average person sees the issue.[168] It is similar to howordinary language philosophy approaches philosophical questions by investigating how ordinary language is used.[169]
Thetrolley problem is a thought experiment that investigates the moral difference between doing and allowing harm. This issue is explored in an imaginary situation in which a person can sacrifice a single person by redirecting a trolley to save a group of people.[170]
Various methods in philosophy give particular importance tointuitions, that is, non-inferential impressions about the correctness of specific claims or general principles.[171] For example, they play an important role inthought experiments, which employcounterfactual thinking to evaluate the possible consequences of an imagined situation. These anticipated consequences can then be used to confirm or refute philosophical theories.[172] The method ofreflective equilibrium also employs intuitions. It seeks to form acoherent position on a certain issue by examining all the relevant beliefs and intuitions, some of which often have to be deemphasized or reformulated to arrive at a coherent perspective.[173]
Pragmatists stress the significance of concrete practical consequences for assessing whether a philosophical theory is true.[174] According to thepragmatic maxim as formulated byCharles Sanders Peirce, the idea a person has of an object is nothing more than the totality of practical consequences they associate with this object. Pragmatists have also used this method to expose disagreements as merely verbal, that is, to show they make no genuine difference on the level of consequences.[175]
Phenomenologists seek knowledge of the realm of appearance and the structure of human experience. They insist upon the first-personal character of all experience and proceed by suspending theoretical judgments about the external world. This technique of phenomenological reduction is known as "bracketing" orepoché. The goal is to give an unbiased description of the appearance of things.[176]
Methodological naturalism places great emphasis on the empirical approach and the resulting theories found in the natural sciences. In this way, it contrasts with methodologies that give more weight to pure reasoning and introspection.[177]
Relation to other fields
Judith Butler is one of the philosophers responsible for the cultural influence of philosophy on the feminist movement.
Philosophy is closely related to many other fields. It is sometimes understood as a meta-discipline that clarifies their nature and limits. It does this by critically examining their basic concepts, background assumptions, and methods. In this regard, it plays a key role in providing aninterdisciplinary perspective. It bridges the gap between different disciplines by analyzing which concepts and problems they have in common. It shows how they overlap while also delimiting their scope.[178] Historically, most of the individual sciences originated from philosophy.[179]
The influence of philosophy is felt in several fields that require difficult practical decisions. Inmedicine, philosophical considerations related tobioethics affect issues like whether anembryo is already aperson and under what conditionsabortion is morally permissible. A closely related philosophical problem is how humans should treat other animals, for instance, whether it is acceptable to use non-human animals as food or forresearch experiments.[180] In relation tobusiness and professional life, philosophy has contributed by providing ethical frameworks. They contain guidelines on which business practices are morally acceptable and cover the issue ofcorporate social responsibility.[181]
Philosophical inquiry is relevant to many fields that are concerned with what to believe and how to arrive at evidence for one's beliefs.[182] This is a key issue for the sciences, which have as one of their prime objectives the creation of scientific knowledge. Scientific knowledge is based onempirical evidence but it is often not clear whether empirical observations are neutral or alreadyinclude theoretical assumptions. A closely connected problem is whether the availableevidence is sufficient to decide between competing theories.[183] Epistemological problems in relation to thelaw include what counts as evidence and how much evidence is required to find a personguilty of a crime. A related issue injournalism is how to ensure truth andobjectivity when reporting on events.[178]
In the fields oftheology and religion, there are many doctrines associated with the existence and nature of God as well as rules governing correct behavior. A key issue is whether a rational person should believe these doctrines, for example, whetherrevelation in the form of holy books andreligious experiences of the divine are sufficient evidence for these beliefs.[184]
Philosophy in the form of logic has been influential in the fields of mathematics andcomputer science.[185] Further fields influenced by philosophy includepsychology,sociology, linguistics,education, andthe arts.[186] The close relation between philosophy and other fields in the contemporary period is reflected in the fact that many philosophy graduates go on to work in related fields rather than in philosophy itself.[187]
The idea that philosophy is useful for many aspects of life and society is sometimes rejected. According to one such view, philosophy is mainly undertaken for its own sake and does not make significant contributions to existing practices or external goals.[193]
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