Topics Philosophy

Question Do you think "philosophy" defines a set of knowledge (facts, data, beliefs) or a system of thought ("if we approach this problem philosophically...")? I think the discipline is unnecessarily saddled with the idea that only 'weighty' questions fall in philosophy's domain. Why don't we see more mundane questions? Is a philosopher really only qualified to answer questions about the finite set of categories on this site?

Accepted:
October 14, 2005

Comments

Philosophy is one of the few disciplines (the only discipline?) thestudy of whose own nature is still part of that very discipline. Youcan investigate the nature of chemistry, but that's no longer part ofchemistry. You can reflect on the nature of religious belief, butthat's no longer to be entertaining religious beliefs. But to thinkabout the nature of philosophy is very much a part of philosophy.(That's why one of the Categories of this site is "Philosophy" itself.)So it shouldn't be a surprise to you that philosophers have said a lotabout what you ask and offered different views. Some believe thatphilosophical reflection does have as its end the articulation ofclaims, philosophical truths. Others have held that there are noproperly philosophical assertions: philosophy isn't a field of inquiry,like biology, that seeks to articulate truths — it's rather a methodfor clarifying the claims of, say, the natural sciences.

As foryour second question, aren't many of the questions posed on this site"mundane"? At least, "mundane" in the sense that they are prompted byeveryday features of our lives? The ever amazing thing is that inthinking about those mundane features of life we rapidly realizehow complex, subtle, and (I suppose you could say) "weighty" thingsreally are.