Language and Philosophy

Structuralism is a theoretical framework in psychology, anthropology, linguistics, and philosophy, among others, that emerged in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It is concerned with the analysis of the underlying structures that shape human thought, behavior, and culture. Principles The central principle of structuralism is that everything in human experience can be broken down into basic structures or elements . These structures are the building blocks of human experience, and their analysis is the key to understanding how human experience is constructed. Structuralists believe that these underlying structures are universal , and that they can be analyzed using rigorous scientific methods. Moreover, they argue that the relationships between different elements of human experience are as important as the elements themselves , as these can be used to uncover the underlying structures of human experience. Specifically, structuralists are interested in the way that these structure...

The term “ethics” comes from the Greek word “ ethos ,” which means character or custom. Ethics is the branch of philosophy that studies the rightness or wrongness of human actions. It is concerned with defining, through the use of reason, what a good action is, what the good life is, and how human persons ought to act. Ethics vs. Morality It is important to note that ethics is not the same as morality. Ethics is more theoretical. It centers on a more general problem, that is, on the theory of good action and the ultimate good. It seeks to understand, through systematic and critical study, the underlying assumptions and principles of morality. Morality , on the other hand, is more practical and prescriptive. It proposes norms and actions that ought to be done in particular situations in order to attain the greatest good. It aims to guide human action while taking into account the interests of the people affected by it. Based on these general descriptions, it may be said that ethics is t...

The term “logic” comes from the Greek word “ logos ,” which has many translations including word, reason, order, etc. Logic is the philosophical study of correct reasoning, specifically of the rules and methods that distinguish correct reasoning from incorrect reasoning. In logic, reasoning is the act of drawing a conclusion from given premises, or what is referred to as “inference.” On the other hand, a set of premises together with a conclusion is what is called an “ argument .” Logic studies whether the reasoning or inference in an argument is correct or incorrect; meaning, whether the premises support its conclusion or not. Logic has been studied since antiquity. Early approaches include Aristotelian and Stoic logic in Europe (4th c. BC), Mohism in China (5th c. BC), and Nyaya in India (1st c. AD). In the Western world, Aristotelian logic was considered the main system of logic until it was replaced in the 19th century by modern formal logic, based on the works of George Boole (181...

The term “metaphysics” comes from the ancient Greek “ ta metá ta physiká ”, which means “the ones [i.e., books] after the ones about nature." “ Ta metá ta physiká ” is the title given by the editor of Aristotle’s 14 books that came after his works on nature. It is from here that the Latin term “ metaphysica ” was derived, the term now used as the title of Aristotle’s treatise and as the name of its subject matter. Metaphysics is traditionally defined as the study of the nature of being or of the first principles of things. Today, however, this definition is considered inaccurate. This is because, starting from the 17th century, the term metaphysics has been applied to a wider range of philosophical problems—most of which are in no way related to traditional metaphysics—such as the problem of free will and the problem of the physical and the mental. To understand metaphysics more accurately, therefore, scholars divide it into two periods based on the problems they tried to answer: ...

The term “philosophy” comes from the two Greek words “ philos ” (φίλος) which means lover and “ sophia ” (σοφία) which means wisdom. Etymologically speaking, philosophy means “love of wisdom.” It must be noted that love here ( philos ) is different from the other kinds of love the Greeks distinguished, namely eros and agape . Love in philosophy must be understood as a strong desire for a particular object, while wisdom as the knowledge of the ultimate causes and principles. Philosophy as the love of wisdom, therefore, refers to the strong desire of the human person to possess the definitive answers to life’s deepest questions. It is no coincidence then that most philosophers in the ancient world, such as Socrates, Buddha and Confucius, were wise men. Philosophy: A General Definition Traditionally, philosophy is defined as the science that studies beings in their ultimate causes, reasons, and principles through the aid of human reason alone . Here, when we speak of being or beings, we ...