Philosophical Differentiation
05/21/03 (Edited 02/27/12)

There are a few things that make philosophy different from other ways of knowing and worldviews. Primarily, philosophy doesn't restrict itself to any outlined method or way of thinking. In fact, much of philosophy is itself about determining ways of identifying and knowing truth and proving things. Much of philosophy itself is about the analysis of methods of thinking, and how humans perceive the world as compared to the objective world. Just about the only thing that philosophy adheres to to any degree would be a bare-bones form of logic - and even this is questioned in some philosophical literature and circles. Most practical philosophy works on a fairly elementary logic based on basic axioms from a central foundation. Upon these fundamental principles, entire worldviews can be founded.

The other aspect of philosophy that differs from other social and natural sciences is its scope. Philosophy by its very nature and definition encompasses almost everything. Almost all questions can be analyzed for their philosophical implications and philosophy has a great impact on other natural and social sciences. Philosophy is what answers the motivations and ethical considerations of other sciences, and it attempts to answer questions intrinsic to human nature.

Even within philosophy, there is no established method, no particular way of practicing it, no formalized way of making developments in the field. There is not even any kind of outlined way of reasoning. Almost the only rules that are consistently followed within philosophical writings and debates are the three basic foundations of logic - Identity, Non-Contradiction, and Excluded Middle.

Identity basically says that A is A. In terms of truth: if a proposition is true it is true (and false if it is false). To put it in logical symbols: (p = p) & (-p = -p). Non-contradiction is a law that requires that no thing is both itself and something else. Or, in terms of truth: no proposition is both true and false. To put it in logical symbols: -(p & -p). Excluded middle says that either A or not A. Or, all propositions are either true or false. To put it in logical symbols: p V -p. This law is called Excluded Middle because it says there can be no middle position between A and not A.

Using these basic rules of reasoning, many "ways of knowing" or ways of discerning truth, many outlooks have been formed - some by famous philosophers. The long list would include: Static Foundationalism, Empirical Foundationalism, Anti-Foundationalism, Empiricism, Pragmatism, Rationalism, Dogmatism, Local Skepticism, Global Skepticism, Realism, and Idealism.

What all of these beliefs have in common (except for Dogmatism) is that they provide some form of answering questions that can't be answered by any of the other natural or social sciences. In some cases the answer is a simple "we can't know" or "it is impossible to know" but nevertheless all these philosophical outlooks provide a unique route to answering questions intrinsically important to humans, that are impossible to answer within the realm of social or natural sciences that are based on practical investigations and use of real or circumstantial evidence.

What philosophy does best is it caters to abstractions or questions for which there is not necessarily any absolute answer. It also provides a basis for justifying investigation into all other knowledge. Although some would relegate philosophy to being by nature impractical, having to attempt to answer questions that have been debated for thousands of years already with no forthcoming answer, it also serves an invaluable role in simply attempting to answer these questions. Without the political and purely philosophical musings of famous philosophers throughout history, our world would not be the same. Many important events throughout history such as the American, and French revolutions were the results in sweeping changes in philosophy brought on by ideas of famous philosophers. In some senses, through logical debate and dialogue best answers to questions are produced and this is strikingly similar to the scientific method. Where philosophy branches off is that there is never any absolute - even though a best answer is reached, there is still room for speculation and introduction of new information to the debate. So although philosophy can reach a practical conclusion on many things, it still retains the sanctity of being "open". Philosophy is the art of continuing dialogue.