Introduction: The History of Philosophy and Its Nature

I.   The Importance of Studying the History of Philosophy

All things have origin.  This origin unfolds and finds its roots in human existence.  There is always something in each thing that unfolds.  And it is where any history, like the history of philosophy, finds its niche.  Origin and history are two inseparable elements of change that can direct a learner to the basic foundation of events and realities of life. This notion also holds true in the study of the history of Philosophy.

First, it is important to study the history of philosophy so that one can see the bigger picture of philosophy unfolding in time in the course of human existence. To be more particular, history of philosophy began with the Greeks and permeated the society in the process. He makes a careful journey to its evolution, finds meanings in the truths of events, analyzes the fall and rise of philosophy in the context of change and sees himself as a seeker of knowledge in the said journey. He is properly grounded in philosophy. 

Second, having seen the bigger picture of philosophy, one can appreciate the past and present concepts and works in philosophy.  Appreciation is developed because one is able to understand the thinkers along with the processes and circumstances that paved way to the philosophical concepts and works.  For example, one cannot appreciate the Greek ways of thinking without first knowing the history of Greece itself. Being able to know these things makes one have a clearer understanding of the different philosophies made by the Greek thinkers, thus preventing the problem of misinterpretation and confusion. 

Third, it enables one to create new ideas or concepts based on the studied history and establishes deeper perspectives on it.  This is because a study of the history of philosophy reveals to one the development of thoughts and concepts of philosophy in a given period.   He looks into the positive and negative aspects that led to the development of philosophy as it unfolds in time.  One can even realize gaps and loops that the previous thinkers before him were unable to resolve.  As Frederick Copleston stated in the introductory part of his book “A History of Philosophy” :

 The study of the history of philosophy is indispensable, otherwise he will run the risk of proceeding down blind alleys and repeating the mistakes of his predecessors, from which a serious study of past thought might perhaps saved him. ¹

Lastly, it enables one to be more critical and open in his study of Philosophy. It prevents one from going to the extremes, such as treating one particular philosophical thought as the absolute source of truth.  In studying the history of Philosophy, the learner prevents himself from any biases, which can greatly contribute in deepening the understanding of philosophy and contribute to its development.

 Thus, by studying the history of Philosophy, one learns its past and present, schools of thoughts and their thinkers, and their challenges in the course of human existence. It also develops properly grounded knowers and seekers of truth who know how to separate the essential from the non-essential, and to be able to know the “what” and “why” of the history of philosophy.

II.  The Nature of the History of Philosophy

Basically, the nature of history of philosophy reveals to one that there is a particular order in all things.  There is truth in all things that happen.  These order and truth in all things give one the reason to know and understand things in order to gain wisdom.  Also, there is always the question that one can formulate about things in existence.  That is why, it is very important to study both the history of philosophy and its nature.

 It is important to know the reasons why one needs to go through the history of a given study, because it gives one the necessary foundation in starting his intellectual growth.  And in order to take the next step in this growth, one must also consider knowing the nature of the history that they are studying. The history of Philosophy, like the history of other fields of study, also has its own nature.  The nature of the history of Philosophy is described by the connections exhibited by the different philosophical thoughts developed in each period, and the aim of the search for truth by the way of “discursive reason” ².

Firstly, the nature of the history of Philosophy is described by the connections exhibited by the different philosophical thoughts developed in each period. This shows that the history of Philosophy is not merely a list of all the developed schools of thought starting from the Early Greeks to the present thinkers.  Rather, the developed philosophical thoughts are guidelines to help one understand the succeeding thoughts after it. For example, one cannot easily grasp Platonic philosophy without first going over Socratic philosophy and understanding the connection between them. 

Secondly, this does not necessarily conclude that the philosophical thought succeeding a previous one has a better perspective or is more correct that its predecessor.  The development of the philosophical thoughts does not follow a specific order.  Some philosophers often go back to past problems of other thinkers in order to develop some answers to their own questions.  Some refute the ideas presented by other thinkers.  It would be a mistake to understand the connections of the different schools of thought by their chronological order alone. This is because the history of philosophy does not necessarily go in a spiral manner or in a progressive manner.  In other words, it does not necessarily mean that the latest philosophy made is the greatest synthesis or source of truth in a particular period.

Furthermore, the aim of the method of seeking truth by “discursive reason” is another nature of the history of Philosophy. When one talks about being “discursive”, it speaks of proceeding into a subject with utmost coherence.  Although such way of reasoning in seeking the truth exists in almost all known histories of various studies, what makes Philosophy different is its aim. This aim is that, it does not seek for an absolute answer. Rather, it seeks for possible and more convincing answers.  When one observes the different answers given by philosophers of different periods, it can be seen that there is no fixed solution in the problem they were trying to solve. What one can see are different outtakes on the subject being spoken about.  If one observes the history of other studies, one can tell that there is a sure end to all of the development of thought made by their respective thinkers. It is the ongoing search for the possible solutions by coherently proceeding to the subjects involved in philosophical thinking which identifies Philosophy from other studies.   

In conclusion, the nature of the history of Philosophy shows that there is always a purpose in all things.  This is shown by the contributions and connections of every school of thought in each period. They are interconnected and in continuous progression as time unfolds.  Each period leaves a challenge to the next and it is up to the learner to discover and understand such in the process of knowing. 

References:

1.       Frederick Copleston, “Introduction”, (New York: Doubleday), In A History of Philosophy, 3.

2.       Frederick Copleston, “Introduction”, (New York: Doubleday), In A History of Philosophy, 6.