The Philosophical disciplines Are each and every one of the branches of study that are in charge of analyzing a specific problem or a part of the whole studied in philosophy, which is nothing other than the search for answers to the questions Main questions of the human being .
Some of these questions are as determinant as the existence of it, its reason for being, morality, knowledge and other so many transcendental topics, always analyzed under a rational eye.
This rational view distances the philosophy of religion, mysticism or esotericism, where arguments of authority abound over reason. Also, and although philosophy is often referred to as a science, it is not so, since its studies are not Empirical (Based on experience).
In this way, Bertrand Russell could be quoted as saying that"philosophy is something intermediate between theology and science.
Like theology, it consists of speculations on subjects in which up to now knowledge has not been able to reach; But like science, it appeals to human reason instead of authority."
8 Main Philosophical Disciplines
1- Logic
Logic, although it is a formal and not empirical science, is also considered a fundamental discipline of Philosophy. The term comes from the Greek Lógos, meaning thought, idea, argument, principle or reason.
Logic is, therefore, the science that studies ideas, therefore, is based on inferences, which is nothing other than conclusions from certain premises. These inferences can be valid or not, and it is the logic that allows to differentiate one from another based on its structure.
Inferences can be divided into three groups: inductions, deductions, and abductions.
Since the twentieth century, logic has been associated almost exclusively with mathematics, giving rise to the so-called"Mathematical Logic"applied to the resolution of problems and calculations and being of great application in the field of computer science.
2 - Ontology
Ontology is responsible for studying which entities exist (or not) beyond simple appearances. Ontology comes from the Greek"Onthos"which means to be, so Ontology analyzes the being in itself, its principles and the different kinds of beings that can exist.
According to some scholars, Ontology is considered part of Metaphysics, which studies the knowledge in its ontological sphere as to the subject and the more general relations between the subjects.
Metaphysics studies the structure of nature to achieve a greater empirical understanding of the world. Try to answer questions such as"What is being? What is there? Why is there something rather than nothing?
You may be interested in Top 50 books on metaphysics .
3- Ethics
Ethics is the Philosophical discipline that studies morality , The principles, foundations and elements of moral judgments. It is derived from the Greek"Ethikos"meaning character.
The ethics , Therefore, it analyzes, defines and differentiates what is good and what is bad, what is obligatory or permissible concerning human action. In short, it determines how members of a society should act.
An ethical sentence is nothing other than a moral judgment. It does not impose punishments but it is a fundamental part in the drafting of legal regulations in a State of law. This is why Ethics is commonly understood as the set of norms that guide human behavior within a group, community or society.
About Ethics is, perhaps, what most philosophers and authors have written over time, especially because the dilemma of what is good, from the perspective of who, what situation and many others Questions
In this sense, the German philosopher Immanuel Kant Was the one who wrote the most on the subject, trying to give sufficient explanation to such matters as moral limits and freedom.
4- Aesthetics
Aesthetics is the philosophical discipline that studies beauty; The conditions that make someone or something perceive beautiful or not. It is also called Theory or Philosophy of Art, because it studies and reflects on art and its qualities.
The term comes from the Greek"Aisthetikê"which means perception or sensation. Already from this first approach, Aesthetics - like the Ethics - falls in the field of subjectivity, because the study of beauty also involves the study of experiences and aesthetic judgments.
Is beauty present objectively in things or depends on the look of the individual who qualifies it? What is beautiful, from the perspective of who, at what place or historical moment, are questions that make"beautiful"? Can not be determined sharply.
Although the concept of beauty and harmony have been present throughout history and has been the subject of study by many philosophers since Plato onwards, the term"Aesthetics"was coined only in the middle of the eighteenth century, thanks to the German philosopher Alexander Gottlieb Baumgarten , Who grouped all the material on the subject.
5. Epistemology
The word Epistemology comes from the Greek"Episteme"which means knowledge. Therefore, Epistemology is the study of knowledge, dealing with the historical, psychological and sociological facts that lead to the obtaining of scientific knowledge, as well as the judgments by which they are validated or rejected. It is also known as the Philosophy of Science.
Epistemology studies the different types of knowledge possible, their degrees of truth and the relationship between the subject that knows the known object. It deals with the contents of thought, but also with its meaning.
Until the middle of the last century, Epistemology was considered a chapter of the Gnoseología (call also Theory of the Knowledge), since at that time the ethical, semantic or axiological problems in the scientific investigation had not yet come into conflict.
Now Epistemology has gained importance not only within the philosophy itself, but in the conceptual and professional area within the sciences.
Gnoseology
The term comes from"Gnosis", which in Greek means knowledge, which is why it is also defined as Theory of Knowledge. Gnoseology studies the origin of knowledge in general, as well as its nature, foundations, scope and limitations.
Basically, the difference between Gnoseology and Epistemology is based on the fact that the latter is dedicated specifically to the study of scientific knowledge, whereas Gnoseology is a broader term. In part, the confusion of terms may be due to the fact that, in the English language, the word"Epistemology"is used to define Gnoseology.
Gnoseology also studies phenomena, experience and its different types (perception, memory, thought, imagination, etc.). This is why Phenomenology can also be said to be a philosophical branch derived from Gnoseology.
Gnosis basically raises three premises:"know what,""know how"and properly"know."
On the subject of knowledge, it encompasses most philosophical thought and they do so from different conceptions or angles, depending on the historical moment and the predominant philosophers in each one, so it is worth briefly describing each of these doctrines or positions:
- Dogmatism. Man acquires universal knowledge that is absolute and universal. The known things as they are.
- Skepticism. It opposes dogmatism and argues that firm and secure knowledge is not possible.
- Criticism. It is an intermediate position between dogmatism and skepticism. It posits that knowledge is possible, but does not accept that this knowledge in itself is definitive. All truth is open to criticism.
- Empiricism. Knowledge lies in intelligible reality in consciousness. Experience is the foundation of knowledge.
- Rationalism. Knowledge lies in reason. It leaves the consciousness to enter the evidence.
- Realism. Things exist, regardless of the subject's consciousness or reason. In fact, it raises knowledge as an exact reproduction of reality.
- Gnoseological Idealism. It does not deny the existence of the outside world, but raises that it can not be known through immediate perception. The known is not the world, but a representation of it.
- Relativism. Defended by the sophists, he denies the existence of an absolute truth. Each individual has its own reality.
- Perspectivism. He says that there is an absolute truth, but that it is much bigger than what each individual can appreciate. Each has a small part.
- Constructivism. Reality is an invention of the one who builds it.
7- Axiology
Axiology is the philosophical discipline that studies values. Although the concept of value was the subject of profound reflections on the part of ancient philosophers, the term as such was first used in 1902 and it was from the second half of the nineteenth century when Axiology was formally studied as a discipline.
Axiology seeks to distinguish the"being"from the"valer". The value was commonly included in the being and both were measured by the same rod. The axiology began to study values in isolation, both positive and negative (anti-values).
Now, the study of values presupposes value judgments, with which again subjectivity is presented, the personal appreciation of the subject who studies the value of the object and is given by his moral, ethical and aesthetic concepts, his experience, Their religious beliefs, etc.
Values can be divided into objective or subjective, permanent or dynamic, can also be categorized according to their importance or hierarchy (what is called a"scale of values"). As a philosophical discipline, Axiology is closely linked to ethics and aesthetics.
8- Philosophical Anthropology
Philosophical Anthropology focuses on the study of man in himself as object and at the same time as subject of philosophical knowledge.
The conception of anthropology as the first philosophy is attributed to Kant in his"logic", when his questions"What can I know?"(Epistemology),"what should I do?"(Ethics) and"what can I expect ?"(Religion) all refer to a great question:"what is man?".
Philosophical anthropology differs from Ontology in that it studies"being"in its essence of being, while anthropology analyzes the most differential and personal of the being, which determines the rational and spiritual condition of man.
Extra data of the philosophy
Philosophy has its origins In ancient Greece and throughout the ages has been diversifying and complexing, attending to the questions raised in each historical moment of humanity.
Therefore, the various philosophical disciplines have also been gaining prominence, losing it or modifying its degree of importance throughout history.
Depending on the Philosophical current Or of the moment of history, will find diverse disciplines or branches of study.
As Proudfoot and Lacey explain, philosophy is an"a priori study that from the ancient to the modern age has been detached from the sciences as they become susceptible to systematic empirical research rather than speculation, however rational That this speculation may be."
This means that as the world advances, scientific answers are found to ancient philosophical questions, and this is one of the reasons why there is no unanimity as to how many and which philosophical disciplines exist.
However, there are some that are of unanimous acceptance due, mainly, to the importance of its object of study.
References
- Russell, Bertrand (1945). Introduction. A History of Western Philosophy.
- Proudfoot, Michael, Lacey, A. R. Philosophy and analysis. The Routledge Dictionary of Philosophy.
- Carlos Garay (2000). Philosophical Disciplines. Recovered from eurofilosofia.com.ar.
- Methodology of Research I. (1988). Topic: Knowledge and Science (Part 1) Recovered from ceavirtual.ceauniversidad.com.
- Immanuel Kant, C.R. Baker and R.R. Aramayo (1988). Ethics lessons. Barcelona: Criticism.
- AG Baumgarten (1936) Aesthetica. Retrieved from philpapers.org.
- P. Thuillier (1993). Philosophy of human and social sciences. Ed. Fontamara, Mexico.
- Bohuslaw BLAŽEK (1979) Dialectic. Can Epistemology as a Philosophical Discipline Develop a Science? Retrieved from the Wiley Online Library.
- Risieri Frondizi (1997) What are values? Recovered from pensamientopenal.com.ar.
- Tugendhat, Ernst (1997). Anthropology as first philosophy. Recovered from idus.us.es.