Key Words For Philosophy

Chapter 1 Key Concepts • Philosophy: from Greek roots meaning “the love of wis¬dom.” • The primary areas of philosophy are metaphysics, which addresses the problem of what is real; epistemology, which is the study of knowledge; axiology, which is the study of values in general; ethics, which concerns itself with the good life and with moral value and moral reasoning; aesthetics, which is the study of art in all its forms; political philosophy, which is the study of the state and the nature of sovereignty; social philosophy, which is the study of social institutions and relations; and logic, which is the study of the rules of correct reasoning. • Philosophy seeks wisdom through human reasoning and experience, whereas religion receives wisdom through divine revelations. • Philosophers distinguish between knowledge (justified belief) and belief (subjective mental acceptance that a claim is true). Mere belief is a conviction that something is true for which the only evidence is the sincere conviction of the believer.
• Philosophical archetypes are philosophers who express an original or influential point of view in a way that signifi¬cantly affects subsequent philosophers and nonphilosophers. They are powerful representations of fundamental responses to universal experiences of suffering, death, loss, society, wealth, knowledge, love, and purpose. • Theoretical knowledge is accurate compilation and assessment of factual and systematic relationships. Practical knowledge consists of the skills needed to do things. Both kinds of knowledge require demonstration (evidence) in the form of argu¬ments, predictions, or performance, depending on the kind of knowledge.
• Wisdom is general knowledge of what does and does not pro¬duce human happiness, including the difference between right and wrong, combined with the desire and ability to act in basic accord with that knowledge. It is traditionally associated with maturity (experience) and moral