REASONING

THROUGHOUT much of the history of philosophy, there was no such thing as science in its modern form: in fact, it was from philosophical enquiry that modern science has evolved. The questions that metaphysics set out to answer about the structure and substance of the universe prompted theories that later became the foundations of natural philosophy, the precursor of what we now call physics. The process of rational argument, meanwhile, underpins the ‘scientific method’.

. Previously (Philosophy) Essential Thinkers: Friedrich Nietzsche

Since the 18th century, many of the original questions of metaphysics have been answered by observation, experiment and measurement, and philosophy appeared to be redundant in these areas. Philosophers have since changed their focus to examine science itself. Some, like Hume, challenged the validity of inductive reasoning (empiricism) in science, while others sought to clarify the meaning of terms used by science, opening up a ‘philosophy of science’ that considers areas such as scientific ethics and the way science makes progress.

Logic

In seeking answers to questions about the universe and our place in it, philosophy is distinguished from religion or mere convention by its use of reasoning. Philosophy proposes ideas because of thought with the assertions justified with sound rational argument. Convention or mere belief is not enough. Various logical techniques have been devised to show whether an argument is valid or fallacious.

In simple terms, logic is the process of inferring a conclusion from statements known as premises, either deriving a general principle from specific examples (inductive reasoning) or reaching a conclusion from general statements (deductive reasoning). The classical form of logical argument, the syllogism, consisting of two premises and a conclusion, was officially formalised by Aristotle and has remained the mainstay of philosophical logic until advances in mathematical logic brought in new ideas in the 19th century. Later, in the 20th century, symbolic logic opened new fields still further within philosophy.

Metaphysics

For the first philosophers, the burning question was: ‘What is everything made of?’ At its most basic, this is the central question of a branch of philosophy known as metaphysics. Many of the theories proposed by the ancient Greek philosophers – the notions of elements, atoms, and so on – formed the basis of modern science, which has since provided evidence-based explanations for these fundamental questions.

Metaphysics, however, has evolved into a field of enquiry beyond the realms of science: as well as dealing with the make-up of the cosmos, it examines the nature of what exists, including such ideas as the properties of material things, the difference between mind and matter, cause and effect, and the nature of existence, being and reality (ontology).

Although some philosophers have challenged the validity of metaphysics in the face of scientific discovery, recent developments in areas such as quantum mechanics have renewed interest in metaphysical theories.

. See also Philosophy: An introduction…