MODULE 3:

THE METHODS OF
PHILOSOPHY
 Philosophy as:
• Speculations/ Speculative thinking
• Critical thinking /Analysis
• Reflective Inquiry
PHILOSOPHY as
Speculations/
Speculative Thinking
 SPECULATION

specula= “watch tower”

A vision above that of an
ordinary person
BIGGER
Picture.
 Speculation is…
• Sometimes considered as detached
because it is an activity best done alone
and in isolation.
• A result of contemplation which you can
do on your own.
 Speculation is…
• But still, is said to be a philosopher’s
vision because to speculate means to
participate in the world and use the
experience as basis to resource of ideas.
 Speculation is…
• As a mode of philosophical inquiry, will
help you EXPLORE and TAKE IN a variety
of perspectives about the human person
through personal contemplation while
having an experience of the world.
PHILOSOPHY as
Critical thinking/ Analysis
 CRITICIZE

“judge” or “analyze”
 Philosophy as critical thinking…
• Questions, Judges and Evaluates any and
all principles and premises that may be
gained through speculation.
Clarity
of knowledge

validity
of insights
 Modes of Critical Analysis

LOGICAL LINGUISTIC
 LOGICAL
• Philosophical problems are solved through a
careful analysis of the logical structure of the
philosophical assertions.
• A statement is reduced into its simplest form

“elementary sentence”
 LINGUISTIC
• Meanings of words are analyzed for their
clarity and consistency.
• It requires a clear definition of words to avoid
ambiguity or vagueness and therefore ensure
clarity of claims.
Plato defined man thus:
“Man is a two-footed, featherless animal,”
and was much praised for the definition;
so Diogenes plucked and a cock brought it
into his school an said “This is Plato’s
man. “On which account this addition was
made to the definition, “With broad flat
nails.”
-Laertius, 1895
Man is a two-footed, featherless animal.
CONSISTENCY
with the
Man is a two-footed, featherless animal.

with broad flat nails

 Thus, Criticism…
• Is the method of VERIFYING whether
what was stated is clear or
unambiguous and can correspond with
reality
PHILOSOPHY as
Reflective Inquiry
REFLECTIVE THINKING

A kind of thought where the

grounds for the belief is
deliberately sought and the
adequacy to support the
belief examined
REFLECTIVE THINKING

Meaning-
Making
REFLECTIVE THINKING
A process that moves a learner from
one experience into the next with a
deeper understanding of its
relationship with connections to
other experiences and ideas.
6 Phases of reflective inquiry
The Experience
Spontaneous Interpretation of the
experience
Naming the problems or questions
which arise
Generating possible explanations
Ramifying the explanations into full
blown hypothesis
Experimenting the hypothesis