8. Philosophy is:
a set of assumptions
which may be true or false
which we hold
consciously or
subconsciously
about the world around us
9. • Ancients
Earth, Air, Fire, Water
• Socrates (470-399BC)
Asked questions
• Plato (427-327BC)
Theory of ideas
• Aristotle (384-322BC)
Logic, Physics
Traditionalism
Who am I?
Where did the
world come
from?
What is it
made of?
Plato and Socrates
10. Crisis in Physics
• There is no ‘objective’
observer
Existentialism
• Criticism of positivism,
rationalism, empiricism
Critical Theory
• Mind and culture
influence knowledge
Postmodernism
Werner
Heisenberg
(1901-1976)
Albert Einstein
(1875-1955)
Soren
Kierkegaard
(1813-1855)
Friedrich
Nietzsche
(1800-1899)
12. So… do we just agree to
disagree with others who hold
different philosophies to our own?
13. ANDREW WYETH
Christina’s World (1948)
A complex philosophy
emphasizing the
absurdity of reality
and the human
responsibility to make
choices and accept
consequences!
14. Why do I exist?Why am I here?
What is my
purpose in life?
What is my
essence?
29. GEORGIA O’KEEFFE
Sky Above White Clouds I (1962)
Human existence cannot be captured by
reason or objectivity –– it must include
passion, emotion and the subjective.
Each of us is responsible for
everything and to every
human being.
–Simone de Beauvoir
55. KIERKEGAARD
In the early 1800’s, philosophy was dominated by
the work of idealists like Hegel, whose thought
postulated grand theories that explained how
thought, societies and nations changed and
evolved over time.
i.e. Hegel’s Thesis + Antithesis = Synthesis
57. KIERKEGAARD
This may have been great for explaining the
inception of a nation, ideology or economic
system, but it reduces the individual to a mere
faceless cog in the workings of the universe.
“Hey! Look at me!”
60. NIETZSCHE
Nietzsche predicted that gradually, belief in
religion and philosophy would diminish, moving
civilization towards a day where people would
have no “belief” in anything. Nietzsche called
this “belief in nothing”
NIHILISM
62. NIETZSCHE
Man is Free
(without God – really free)
This will further unleash the individual’s
WILL TO POWER
that drives the ascent of civilization.
This would free the strong-willed to lord over the
weak-minded.