Topics Philosophy

Question I hope no one is offended by this question: if you like doing philosophy much in college but are not particularly good at it (in the sense that he/she only gets average grades at it) and if you aren't quite well off economically to be reading philosophy every day, would you say that philosophy is low at the priority list? On another note: do you really need college philosophy education to understand complex philosophical books?

Accepted:
July 13, 2009

Comments

Whether we realize it or not, philosophy is something that is 'important, but never urgent'. Everyone lives by a philosophy, which is a set of assumptions concerning the ultimate nature of reality, ethics, knowledge, and what is important in life. However, not everyone has reflected upon these issues very deeply. Even if someone is not 'good' at philosophy, these issues are still of immense importance to his or her life. And the kind of life one lives is largely shaped by his or her philosophical assumptions. So, I would say that philosophy might be low on the priority list, but it is never low in importance. I'd also point out that virtually everyone finds time to do many things that are unimportant such as watching television.

Also, I don't know if everyone NEEDS a college philosophical education to understand philosophical books, but philosophy is much easier to understand if you have such an education.