Philosophy, the second topic

Philosophy The primacy of philosophical studies is quite contentious among academicians. On one hand, philosophical doctrines are at best deductive. This is applicable for both natural as well as applied branches of epistemological studies. It makes for synthesis of knowledge and arguments at an intellectual level which is beyond the so-called ordinary ambit of other academic disciplines. Plato in Republic argues that the importance of studying philosophy should not be diminished on account of its impracticality, which is a grossly mistaken approach (Plato 197). Drawing on from this statement made by Plato, one can say that philosophy is not just about pursuing one’s idealistic goals in an idle manner. Aristotle’s viewpoints also underscore Plato’s assertion in that philosophy has a purpose of practicality attached to it. Gaining knowledge for its own sake does not restrict the projection of the acquired knowledge in any way. Rather, practical philosophy can be attributed to numerous situations that are intrinsically separated from merely conjectural inquiries made for the sake of flaunting one’s pedantic affectations. The rational components of practical philosophy have, however, been questioned by modern scientific innovations that strive to theorize every phenomenon. This is the main point of debate in this paper. What is the purpose of philosophy in real life? Does philosophy have any bearing on human life, individual or collective? The paper shall examine the arguments propounded by five seminal thinkers from the world of philosophy: Jean-Paul Sartre, Karl Marx, Friedrich Nietzsche, and Sigmund Freud.
The existential quandaries of modern men have been addressed in-depth by the French thinker Jean-Paul Sartre. Commenting on philosophy, he claims that philosophy as an abstraction of human perception is only a vague concept which does not yield any ethical or realistic principles. The basis of his argument involves the interdependency of existentialism and Marxism for the sake of comprehending reality and its evolution from the past. This is an interesting premise because Marxist philosophy is different from existentialist philosophy in terms of explaining idealism (Sartre and Priest 17). Marx’s investigation is more akin to presenting every individual within a social setup which should be in perfect accord with a totalitarian worldview. Hence, the existential essence of subjective idealism is not the point of philosophical contention for Marx. He argues that betterment of living can be achieved not by the subjective process of alienation, but by objectively aligning the self with social requirements asked of any individual. The urge to own or possess is not recommended by Marx in his philosophy.
Similar socialist approach may also be found in the works of German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. His methodologies are based on dissociating natural science from natural philosophy so that the moral issues involved with the postmodern account of knowledge may lead to layered interpretations. Knowledge as an essential output of philosophical studies does not interfere with how human beings should lead their lives. Scientific moderations on this topic create ambiguous rationales that are not natural of a better and worthy human existence in a collective setup.
The Freudian school of though is more inclined to subjective psychology than true philosophy. His ‘ reality principle’ challenges the socialistic takes on collectivism and consciousness (Belgrad 57). It may be argued that the Freudian concept of philosophy places firm focus on individualistic search for pleasure as a compulsive human tendency.
It may be concluded in relation to the thesis question that philosophy anchors human lives to finding a meaningful foothold in the world. It does so by garnering individual thoughts within a collective framework of society. The pragmatism of practicality (an offshoot of modern science) and emotional bends are complementary to each other from philosophical points of view in general.
Works Cited
Belgrad, Daniel. The Culture of Spontaneity: Improvisation and the Arts in Postwar
America. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1999.
Plato. The Republic. Trans. Benjamin Jowett. New York: Cosimo, Inc., 2008.
Sartre, Jean-Paul, and Stephen Priest. Jean-Paul Sartre: Basic Writings. Ed. Stephen
Priest. New York: Routledge, 2001.