who is a philosopher?

[xxx200]

there are many misconception about philosophy and philosopher. this thread is to clear those misconception.

who is a philosopher?

popular misconception is one who only ask question and do nothing. but is it true? is it what a philosopher is doing? lets study some ancient philosophers and what they teach:

1] plato

he taught metaphysics, epistemology, politics(state), dialectics

2] aristotle

geology, physics, biology and medicine, metaphysics, psychology, ethics, politics, rhetoric and poetics

3] theon

he taught mathmetics and astronomy.

4] hypatia

astronomy, mathmetics

5] pliny the elder

natural science


so we see that philosophers study and teach about almost entire cosmos. so they are not just the people who ask question and do nothing. philosophers clear one's mind, open it up to new possibility.

the most important library containing works of philosophers is library of alexandria.

watch this video to get an idea about what philosophers are doing there

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQ_S9WkOnCs

[phyllo]

Anyone who loves wisdom.

[Helandhighwater]

Yeah almost if not everyone is a philosopher to some extent, although not everyone is a Philosopher. Philosophers don't do nothing, but their job does involve thinking deeply about things and that is best done whilst physically doing nothing, well nothing that is liable to distract you, like doing a job outside of the field for example.

[James S Saint]

phi·los·o·phy (f-ls-f)
n. pl. phi·los·o·phies
1. Love and pursuit of wisdom by intellectual means and moral self-discipline.
2. Investigation of the nature, causes, or principles of reality, knowledge, or values, based on logical reasoning rather than empirical methods.
3. A system of thought based on or involving such inquiry: the philosophy of Hume.
4. The critical analysis of fundamental assumptions or beliefs.
5. The disciplines presented in university curriculums of science and the liberal arts, except medicine, law, and theology.
6. The discipline comprising logic, ethics, aesthetics, metaphysics, and epistemology.
7. A set of ideas or beliefs relating to a particular field or activity; an underlying theory: an original philosophy of advertising.
8. A system of values by which one lives: has an unusual philosophy of life.

[Drusus]

phi·los·o·phy (f-ls-f)
n. pl. phi·los·o·phies
1. Love and pursuit of wisdom by intellectual means and moral self-discipline.
2. Investigation of the nature, causes, or principles of reality, knowledge, or values, based on logical reasoning rather than empirical methods.
3. A system of thought based on or involving such inquiry: the philosophy of Hume.
4. The critical analysis of fundamental assumptions or beliefs.
5. The disciplines presented in university curriculums of science and the liberal arts, except medicine, law, and theology.
6. The discipline comprising logic, ethics, aesthetics, metaphysics, and epistemology.
7. A set of ideas or beliefs relating to a particular field or activity; an underlying theory: an original philosophy of advertising.
8. A system of values by which one lives: has an unusual philosophy of life.

While this is very true, most philosopher doesn't comprehend the signifigance in factual knowledge, like science where the average philosopher only loves beautiful rethorics thus doesn't comprehend when truth is counter intuitive.

[Stoic Guardian]

A Philosopher In my opinion is someone who thinks deeply of this experiance we call Existence, What it is, Why it is, How it is. Along with eveything associated with that which in terms of human perception is "everything".

And many people can and do think philosophically at times, but a Philosopher being a lover of wisdom takes it up as a profession/hobby.

[finishedman]

Who is a philosopher …

The question implies that there are many and is interested in finding out which one is the real one or the right one, unless it’s not a question and ‘who’ IS a philosopher. Either way the question suggests an assumption that there is this phenomenon called philosophy of which it cannot perfectly know. So, out of some strange curiosity, I would ask when you were introduced to this idea. What were the circumstances when you learned of this word philosophy? … so you can tell me what you know about it.

But why would I want to ask someone what he knows about philosophy when he is trying to find out what a philosopher is?

[Drusus]

People only think in black and white, when there are many lvls of grey inbetween.

It isn't that one is a philosopher or not, it's how good one is. Sure one can call one self a philosopher just thinking deeply about things, but if one is sorely ignorent about simple physics, psychology and simple facts of life, one is a very poor philosopher and only really falls to cozy chat, not philosophy.

[James S Saint]

A Philosopher In my opinion is someone who thinks deeply of this experiance we call Existence, What it is, Why it is, How it is. Along with eveything associated with that which in terms of human perception is "everything".

And many people can and do think philosophically at times, but a Philosopher being a lover of wisdom takes it up as a profession/hobby.

Just curious...

What happens, in your view, after "the philosopher" actually answers those questions?

[Stoic Guardian]

A Philosopher In my opinion is someone who thinks deeply of this experiance we call Existence, What it is, Why it is, How it is. Along with eveything associated with that which in terms of human perception is "everything".

And many people can and do think philosophically at times, but a Philosopher being a lover of wisdom takes it up as a profession/hobby.

Just curious...

What happens, in your view, after "the philosopher" actually answers those questions?

A lot of times he doesn't been when he does...
He tries to answer other ones.

[James S Saint]

A Philosopher In my opinion is someone who thinks deeply of this experiance we call Existence, What it is, Why it is, How it is. Along with eveything associated with that which in terms of human perception is "everything".

And many people can and do think philosophically at times, but a Philosopher being a lover of wisdom takes it up as a profession/hobby.

Just curious...

What happens, in your view, after "the philosopher" actually answers those questions?

A lot of times he doesn't been when he does...
He tries to answer other ones.

And when he can no longer find unanswered questions of any relevance?

[xxx200]

can you people provide some basis of your definition: from where you know philosophers are this and not that?

[Doubledip]

Anyone who loves wisdom.

I would myself not accept this as a sort of criterion for demarcation; it implies that an individual is a philosopher if they love mathematics, or science, or history, or geography, or geology, or astronomy and so forth. Not only does it allow for non-philosophical subject matter to constitute "philosophy" but it also allows for pseudoscientific knowledge to constitute "philosophy" or even "knowledge".

To the matter in question: I feel that Quine's view of philosophy as a logical and systematical tool will be a good answer. Quine did not believe that metaphyical questions constituted philosophy; only logical issues.

[volchok]

I think philosophy shouldn't be considered a quality but a state.
The question should be what is philosophizing and not who/what is the philosopher.

Some people just tend to be in state more then others.

[Drusus]

can you people provide some basis of your definition: from where you know philosophers are this and not that?

If you don't know, how do you expect others to know?

This is the typically behavour of demanding others to provide info, and be too lazy to gain information on your own, thereby the majority will stay glaringly ignorent.

[finishedman]

And when he can no longer find unanswered questions of any relevance?

Clarity begins.

[James S Saint]

And when he can no longer find unanswered questions of any relevance?

Clarity begins.

Dunno.. I got kind of bored with sitting up on the mountain being all clear.
But your right in that it is a beginning.

My question is "a beginning of what".. that doesn't involve merely seeking answers.

[Drusus]

And when he can no longer find unanswered questions of any relevance?

Clarity begins.

Dunno.. I got kind of bored with sitting up on the mountain being all clear.
But your right in that it is a beginning.

My question is "a beginning of what".. that doesn't involve merely seeking answers.

James S Saint, what clarity? Only seen mere spekulative talk based on mere guesswork and assumtions, not works based on actual factual knowledge nor any science involved.

[Frankenstein]

I'm going to answer this question with another question:

Why did Pythagoras, who might be the first to coin the term, call himself a philosopher?

[xxx200]

can you people provide some basis of your definition: from where you know philosophers are this and not that?

If you don't know, how do you expect others to know?

This is the typically behavour of demanding others to provide info, and be too lazy to gain information on your own, thereby the majority will stay glaringly ignorent.

please read my first post at the begining of the thread. i showed what philosophers like plato, aristotle, pliny did in their time. based on these real facts i deduce my theory what a philosopher should be and should do. none of you showed any real basis in support of your definition.

[xxx200]

I'm going to answer this question with another question:

Why did Pythagoras, who might be the first to coin the term, call himself a philosopher?

only Pythagoras can answer. i can't.

[James S Saint]

please read my first post at the begining of the thread. i showed what philosophers like plato, aristotle, pliny did in their time. based on these real facts i deduce my theory what a philosopher should be and should do. none of you showed any real basis in support of your definition.

A) The video was pure propaganda designed for social engineering influence,
B) Some of us have done exactly what you have pointed out to be "philosophy",
C) "Philosophy" is a word used to describe both what those people were said to have done and also what the dictionary defines the word to mean.

Your question was answered in many ways besides merely the obvious.
If you think it wasn't, I suspect you have more to learn concerning it.

[Drusus]

please read my first post at the begining of the thread. i showed what philosophers like plato, aristotle, pliny did in their time. based on these real facts i deduce my theory what a philosopher should be and should do. none of you showed any real basis in support of your definition.

I find many of these categories severly outdated and not relevant to modern philosophy, we no longer deal with superstition and "shaking christmas presents", modern western philosophy deals with factual knowledge and science.

Philosophy and science has split up, ie we don't consider math philosophically, so we consider them two seperate diciplins, but can apply math to philosophy and philosophy to math, in a complimentary way, but still seperate.

[xxx200]

A) The video was pure propaganda designed for social engineering influence,

why do you think that the video was a pure propaganda? do you think that library of Alexandria was not a storehouse of knowledge of the ancient world? or is that anything that does not match your own views or mainstream ideas is a pure propaganda?

Your question was answered in many ways besides merely the obvious

.

thanks very much.

[xxx200]

I find many of these categories severly outdated and not relevant to modern philosophy

,

why do you find so? please give reason. don't just say that some who's who philosophers and scientists think that way.

we no longer deal with superstition and "shaking christmas presents", modern western philosophy deals with factual knowledge and science.

what is superstition in my post? please clarify.

Philosophy and science has split up, ie we don't consider math philosophically, so we consider them two separate disciplines, but can apply math to philosophy and philosophy to math, in a complimentary way, but still separate.

i don't think that philosophy and science are different because in my example i show that ancient philosophers taught geology, physics, math, cosmology which are branches of modern science. they were not separate.