Philosophy and Psychology of Life

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About the Book Earlier traditions of philosophy placed more emphasis on the study of the arts and science of life: a general theory and a commendation of way of life. In this sense, philosophy is concerned with the practical bits of how to live rather than a theoretical attempt to understand. This legacy was derived from some of the earliest philosophers known to us: the Sophists, who were the teachers of rhetoric, grammar and science of the ancient world.

About the Author S.K. Rastogi has completed his M.A. in Psychology and M.Phill. from Allahabad University. He has a vast experience of more than fifteen years as teacher with reputed College and presently providing education to the graduate students in Dehradun. He has written and edited many articles for the journals of repute. He has also attended seminars conducted by the department time to time.

Preface The essence of philosophy is the study and development of fundamental ideas and methods that are not adequately addressed in specialized empirical disciplines, such as physics or history. As such, philosophy provides the foundations upon which all belief structures and fields of knowledge are built. It is responsible for the definitions of, and the approaches used to develop the theories of, such diverse fields as religion, language, science, law, psychology, mathematics, and politics.

It also examines and develops its own structure and procedures, and when it does so is called met philosophy: the philosophy of philosophy.

The nineteenth century, which began with high philosophical inspirations, has turned decidedly toward natural science; the description of the universe by dissolving it into atomistic elements, and the explanation of it by natural laws without regard for the meaning and value of the world, has been the scientific goal. But this movement toward naturalistic dissolution has also gone through several phases. It started with the rapid development of physics and chemistry, which brought as a practical result the wonderful gifts of technique.

From the inorganic world scientific interest turned toward the organic world. For a few decades, physiology, the science of the living organism, enjoyed an almost unsurpassed development, and brought as its practical outcome modem medicine.

If the physical and the chemical, the physiological and the biological world, in short the whole world of outer experience, is atomized and explained, there remains only the world of inner experience, the world of the conscious personality, to be brought under the views of natural science.

As the earlier stages of naturalistic interests, the rush toward physics, physiology, biology, were each, as we have seen, of characteristic influence on the practical questions of real life, it is a matter of course that this highest and most radical type of naturalistic thinking, the naturalistic dissolution of mental life, must stir up and even revolutionize the whole practical world. From the nursery to the university, from the hospital to the court of justice, from the theatre to the church, from the parlor to the parliament, the new influence of psychology on the real daily life is felt in this country as in Europe, producing new hopes and new fears, new schemes and new responsibilities.

The major topics dealt in this book are : Introduction to Philosophy; Psychology and Life; Thinking and Philosophy; The Law of Habit; Relation between Feeling and the Idea; Nature of Wants, Interests and Motives; Moral Control; Association of Ideas; Formal Feeling; Emotions and Expression; Intellectual Feelings; Psychology and History; The Change in Character; Psychological Law of fontanel; Behavior of Imitation; Facilitation and Inhibition; Public Discussion on Psychoanalysis; Will and Ideals; etc.

No doubt, these will serve the purpose of trainees and trainers, professionals and policy planners in the field. Since the sources of information are all secondary, we express our gratitude to the scholars whose works are cited or substantially made use of. We are thankful to all those who rendered ready help and 'cooperation while working On this project.

Introduction Philosophy is a broad field of knowledge in which the definition of knowledge itself is one of the subjects investigated.

It spans the nature of the universe, the mind, and the body; the relationships between all three, and between people. . Philosophy is a field of inquiry - the pursuit of wisdom; the predecessor and complement of science, developing the issues which underlie science and pondering those questions which are beyond the scope of science.

The essence of philosophy is the study and development of fundamental ideas and methods that are not adequately addressed in specialized empirical disciplines, such as physics or history. As such, philosophy provides the foundations upon which all belief structures and fields of knowledge are built. It is responsible for the definitions of, and the approaches used to develop the theories of, such diverse fields as religion, language, science, law, psychology, mathematics, and politics.

It also examines and develops its own structure and procedures, and when it does so is called meta philosophy: the philosophy of philosophy.

Philosophy has a rich literary heritage, including the writings and teachings of profound thinkers from many cultures throughout history. Philosophers seek to understand the principles that underlie all knowledge and being. For this purpose, they develop methods of thinking, including logic, introspection, and meditation. Applying these methods, they investigate the most fundamental questions, such as "What isthe nature of the universe?" (metaphysics), "What do we know, and how do we know it?" (epistemology), "What is the difference between good and evil?" (ethics), "What is beauty?"

(aesthetics), and "What is the meaning of life?" (teleology).

Philosophical Perspectives & Traditions

'Philosophy' translates literally from the original Greek as 'love of wisdom'. 'What is philosophy', is Itself a philosophical question. This is a clue to the nature of philosophy. It is very general in scope; so general that it, perhaps uniquely among the disciplines, includes itself in its scope. What is clear is that philosophy is, in some sense, thinking about thinking.

In the analytic tradition of Europe and its subsequent transplanting to the Americas, philosophy has reinvented itself with a new set of techniques that would be out of place in the world of the ancient Greeks, where philosophy started.

It centers on logic and conceptua1.analysis. Topics at its centre include the theory of knowledge, ethics, the nature of language, and the nature of mind. Earlier traditions of philosophy placed more emphasis on the study of the arts and science of life: a general theory and a commendation of way of life. In this sense, philosophy is concerned with the practical bits of how to live rather than a theoretical attempt to understand. This legacy was derived from some of the earliest philosophers known to us: the Sophists, who were the teachers of rhetoric, grammar and science of the ancient world. Though somewhat akin to sages these Sophists played an important role in the development of philosophy.

In the subsequent analytic tradition that developed after the Sophists, philosophy became a subject you could pursue for purely abstract and metaphysical reasons.

Book's Contents and Sample Pages