Written by: Samriddha Sapkota - 24067, Grade XII
Posted on: 30 August, 2023
So, what does philosophy generally mean? Philosophy is the general study of theories of reality and existence. In ancient Greek, the word “philos” meant love and the word “sophia” meant wisdom. So, the literal meaning of philosophy in ancient Greek, is love of wisdom. It goes beyond mere observation and dives into the depths of critical inquiry and contemplation. The love of wisdom drives philosophers to explore the nature of reality and unravel the complexities of the human experience.
Modern philosophy branches into four primary categories, each addressing distinct aspects of human understanding. They are metaphysics, epistemology, axiology and logic. Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that deals with the study of the physical universe and the nature of ultimate reality whereas epistemology is the branch of philosophy that deals with the study of how people come to learn about what they know. Similarly, Axiology is the branch of philosophy that deals with the study of principles, moral and personal values and Logic is the branch of philosophy that deals with the study of reasoning.
My topic “Philosophy of mind” originally falls under the epistemology branch. But nowadays, Philosophy of mind has become related to cognitive science which is the branch of science that deals with the study of thought, learning and mental organization. The mind, from a philosophical view is a very tricky topic. The philosophy of mind extends its inquiry into the realm of reality, existence, and the intricate relationship between the mind and the body. This exploration evolves into a comprehensive theory, giving an idea on what it truly means to be human—a sentient being with an organ that governs all the body's functions and experiences. Philosophy of mind was originally advocated by Paramenides in the 5th century and was later continued by a rationalist Baruch Spinoza in the 17th century. Philosophy of mind is the philosophical studies of reality, existence and the nature of mind and its relationship with the body. The philosophy of mind can also be said to be a philosophical theory attempting to explain what it means to be a human being and how it's like having an organ that controls all of the body.
The aspects of the mind that are included in this branch of philosophy of mind are mental events, mental functions, mental properties, consciousness, the natural correlates of the mind, and the relation of mind to the human body. Philosophers have long debated the existence of the mind as well. The main questions that philosophy of mind is trying to solve are: What is it to think? How do we know what we think? And how can we tell if other people have minds or share our thoughts? There are major issues in philosophy of mind. They are mind-body problems, hard problems of consciousness and the nature of a particular mental state but among all, the mind-body problem is the most major one. The mind-body problem was addressed by Rene Descartes in the 17th century. Mind-body issue also addresses the question of how the body and mind function chemically and physiologically. While working on this problem, most modern philosophers state that the mind is not something separate from the body.
