Methods of Philosophizing

Vocabulary terms and definitions from the lecture on Methods of Philosophizing, covering phenomenology, existentialism, postmodernism, analytic philosophy, logic, and informal fallacies.

Philosophizing

To think or express oneself in a rational and logical manner.

Phenomenology

A philosophical method where truth is based on the person’s consciousness and the careful inspection of appearances based on what we are conscious of.

Phainomenon

A Greek word meaning "appearance."

Edmund Husserl

The founder of phenomenology who studied the reality and structures of consciousness in $2005$.

Phenomenological method

A series of steps that continuously revises our perceptions of reality by removing or bracketing out nonessentials.

Existentialism

A philosophical outlook where truth is based on exercising choices and personal freedom, centering on themes like human condition and responsibility.

Sartre

A French philosopher who emphasized that consciousness (being-for-itself) is always free to choose and free to negate features of the world.

Postmodernism

An attitude and reaction to modernism that rejects absolute truth and emphasizes relational, holistic approaches and cultural diversity.

Modernism

A worldview of order, logic, and authority based on knowledge.

Humanism

A philosophical perspective that stresses the importance of human dignity.

Posthumanism

A movement advocating the use of science and technology to transcend human nature and processes like reproduction, aging, and death.

Techno sapiens

A category of human-machine interfaces including clones, cyborgs, and other similar forms.

Analytic Tradition

A school of thought where truth is viewed as socially conditioned by language or based on physical facts.

Ludwig Wittgenstein

A philosopher who argued that language cannot objectively describe truth because the meaning of words is socially conditioned.

Alfred Tarski

A mathematician and logician who defined truth through the semantic notion of satisfaction.

Logic and Critical Thinking

Tools in reasoning used to interpret the meaning of facts by considering cultural systems, values, and beliefs.

Premises

Statements in an argument that claim to present evidence or reasons.

Conclusion

The statement in an argument that the evidence is claimed to support or imply.

Deductive reasoning

A type of reasoning that draws a conclusion from one broad judgment or definition and one specific assertion.

Inductive reasoning

Reasoning based on observations used to make generalizations, predictions, or forecasts.

Validity

A quality of an argument where the conclusion follows logically from two constructed premises, though it is not necessarily true or false.

Strong argument

An inductive argument that succeeds in providing probable support for its conclusion.

Fallacy

A defect in an argument resulting from errors in reasoning, leading to false conclusions or distorted truth.

Argumentum ad misericordiam

Also known as appeal to pity, it involves exploiting an opponent's feelings of pity or guilt.

Argumentum ad ignorantiam

Also known as appeal to ignorance, it claims something is true because it hasn't been proven false, or vice versa.

Equivocation

A fallacy where a particular word is used in the same context but with a different meaning each time.

Composition

The fallacious assumption that what is true of a part must be true of the whole.

Division

The fallacious assumption that what is true of the whole must be true of all or some of its parts.

Argumentum ad hominem

Also known as "against the person," it links the validity of a premise to the personal characteristics of the supporter.

Argumentum ad baculum

Also known as appeal to force, it uses coercion or the threat of force as a justification for a conclusion.

Argumentum ad populum

Also known as appeal to the people, it exploits vanities, popularity, or the desire for esteem.

Post hoc

Also known as false cause, it assumes a coincidental correlation is a causal relationship.

Hasty generalization

A fallacy where a conclusion is based on a small group statistics that inadequately represent the whole population.

Petitio principii

Also known as begging the question, where the proposition to be proven is assumed in the premise.

Opinion

A belief or judgment that rests on grounds insufficient to produce complete certainty.

Value claims

Assessment of the merit of an idea or practice according to positive or negative attitudes that drive decisions and behavior.