By Margot Lyttleton, Year 11
What’s the point of philosophy in a modern era?
Philosophy has always been an interesting subject for humanity. Most people need to seek meaning or understanding. Once we get past the basic survival needs of; food, shelter, and safety we wonder what’s our purpose? Why am I here? I decided to interview our philosophy teacher and find out more about the topic. She expresses that we all have a desire within to actualise our human potential, whether it be to build statues, write books, produce artwork or even begin a family. Philosophy is always relevant in our day to day lives and will continue to be as it shapes the mind of individuals and helps answer our existential questions such as: what is our purpose, what is justice and how do we live a good life?
How philosophy helps us
Philosophy doesn’t just help us understand our purpose but to be critical thinkers. With the world of artificial intelligence and social media, we can so easily get lost in the rabbit hole of information. Through the study of philosophy, we learn the skill of critical and analytical thinking. We are constantly living inside our own minds and the skill of critical thinking allows you to engage in both external and internal assumptions made in our modern-day society. This can make us more flexible-minded and not take things as the only view of reality.
Finding your own philosophy
Mrs Shibaru feels getting “lost” within their own mind exploring different ideas and asking questions about life develops a sense of self. This is why she values philosophy as it helps us to see through multiple lenses. We can develop a wider perspective on life and belief systems. It is also through the study of philosophy that when applied to our own life experience we can start to compose our own personal philosophies. The practice of writing philosophy essays helps to deconstruct certain views and put playful twists on them. Learning and writing about philosophers helps to not attach too much importance to singular views on life.
Philosophy gives perspective
We concluded that the study of philosophy is a way to understand the thought process of those who came before us. This can help us to appreciate and further understand the development of research, science, art, ethics and politics. For example, neuroscience helps to understand the working of the brain while the Enlightenment philosophers looked at how we formed ideas.
Learning how to construct a good argument
Being able to curate a good argument is a useful skill in our society which shows one is educated and not just reactive. Mrs Shibaru feels that “ Philosophy or the skills you learn through it are those of empowering, emancipating and enabling”. We can learn from the analytical skills in the philosopher’s dialogue and how they engage with one another. It helps us understand how to have a constructive debate with one another. “I engage with you and a bit of your thinking is engaged with me” – Mira Shibaru. Alongside all these analytical skills there is a beauty in philosophy where humanity learns to be cohesive, empathetic and kind.
The rise of philosophy
Philosophy is taking more of an upsurge in modern society and working with philosophers is becoming increasingly popular. Whether they are a UN worker looking at ethics or simply a student in a philosophy class there is always a perspective being added. Philosophers are always one’s to consider different vantage points and be able to bring critical analysis to arguments while evaluating them. “Philosophy is like a creative sport, a sport of trying to find meaningfulness in our lives.” – Mira Shibaru.
