I need a "work in progress" definition of "philosophy" for my college class. the definition in the dictionary falls short of what I am looking for. Any ideas would be helpful .

Welcome, dasrex. Can you give us an idea of what you're looking for, while I ponder?

Weak and wearily, I'll copy Guru's def.'s:
1. Love and pursuit of wisdom by intellectual means and moral self-discipline.
2. Investigation of the nature, causes, or principles of reality, knowledge, or values, based on logical reasoning rather than empirical methods.
3. A system of thought based on or involving such inquiry: the philosophy of Hume.
4. The critical analysis of fundamental assumptions or beliefs.
5. The disciplines presented in university curriculums of science and the liberal arts, except medicine, law, and theology.
6. The discipline comprising logic, ethics, aesthetics, metaphysics, and epistemology.
7. A set of ideas or beliefs relating to a particular field or activity; an underlying theory: an original philosophy of advertising.
8. A system of values by which one lives: has an unusual philosophy of life.

Welcome aBoard, dasrex. Me, I'd just go with #8. But then, I don't have a class.

Philosophy is the no man's land between religion and science. (after Bertrand Russell)

Jackie, how POEtic!

The phlogiston before the fire.

And welcome, dasrex. Somehow I think you'll fit right in with our Band of Merry Wordsters here!

4. The critical analysis of fundamental assumptions or beliefs.

Perfick.

Perhaps I should amend my post to this analogy:

Philosophy is to thought
as phlogiston is to fire.

how POEtic!

Give me the Archimedean point - and from there we shall define philosophy..

> the Archimedean point

Are you not getting the cart before the horse? Surely this is a fairly new product of philosophical thought despite it's grounding in old Greek philosophical imagery. If one wants to know what 'philosophy' is, then one best learn who came up with the word and why though, praps that's what you were getting at. Is 'philosophy' an attempt to reflect on an overall coherence and sense of purpose we feel in life (see 'God'), despite the man-made factioning (and thus corrupting) of it? Maybe so. It's odd, for example, that a Westerner's standard way of examining and understanding an animal is to first kill it and dissect it - so as to see what it is made of. I don't think many secular thinkers are very comfortable with the notion that in attempting to explain things you will perpetually retreat from, or 'kill' direct truth, but this notion is, or should be, self-evident to those who are religious, for to question the 'totality' becomes redundant when you evoke the notion of God. But isn't God then too totally redundant? For distilled into a word it becomes a corruption of 'true' God so-to-speak. What a funny quandary!
Clearly to argue that our theoretical thinking is in any way neutal or absolute would be a dificult task, as the Archimedean Point, erm, points out. But doesn't this therefore defeat the whole purpose of philosophy? No, it just gives thinkers more to talk about.

But doesn't this therefore defeat the whole purpose of philosophy? By no means! We just should be aware of the distinction between the purpose of philosophy and the purpose of defining it. There is always a latent risk (as with "science") of using such a definition to devalue a disliked variant of the endeavour.

The worthless maunderings of those who believe that if it works in practice but not in theory something must be wrong with the practice.

The worthless maunderings of those who believe that if it works in practice but not in theory something must be wrong with the practice.

Perfick!

The quote in today's Word is apt for this thread:
To be a philosopher is not merely to have subtle thoughts, nor even to
found a school, but so to love wisdom as to live according to its dictates,
a life of simplicity, independence, magnanimity, and trust. -Henry David
Thoreau, naturalist and author (1817-1862)

The greek word for philosopher (philosophos) connotes a distinction from sophos. It signifies the lover of wisdom (knowledge)as distinguished from him who considers himself wise in the possession of knowledge.This meaning of the word still endures:the essence of philosophy is not the possession of truth but the search for truth,regardless how many philosophers may belie it with their dogmatism, that is, with a body of didactic principles purporting to be definitive and complete. Philosophy means to be on the way. Its questions are more essential than its answers,and every answer becomes a new question. (karl jaspers)

.This meaning of the word still endures:the essence of philosophy is not the possession of truth but the search for truth. . . Its questions are more essential than its answers,and every answer becomes a new question.

"You just let the machines get on with the adding up," warned Majikthise, "and we'll take care of the eternal verities thank you very much. You want to check your legal position you do mate. Under law the Quest for Ultimate Truth is quite clearly the inalienable prerogative of your working thinkers. Any bloody machine goes and actually finds it and we're straight out of a job aren't we? I mean what's the use of our sitting up half the night arguing that there may or may not be a God if this machine only goes and gives us his bleeding phone number the next morning?"

RIP DNA.

Nietzsche warns us in philosophy:"whoever fights with monsters should see to it the he in the process does not become a monster.and when looking to the an abyss ,the abyss also looks into you."

>Nietzsche said

A whole lot of things this untermensch can't be bothered trying to wrap his head around. The quote you supplied however, is so well-known that even I understand it. I don't understand its relevance as a reply to my post, but.

regardless how many philosophers may belie it with their dogmatism - yet he still calls them philosophers: that's what I meant with the difficulty of definition.

sjmaxq It is interseting to see you use "philosophy" a philosophy you nodoubt devoloped to doubt philosophy.

You could say that every philosophy defines itself by its realization?

thank you everyone for posting it has been a great help ... thanx sjmaxq for making me think !

Then there's Ambrose Bierce's succinct definition:

PHILOSOPHY, n.
A route of many roads leading from nowhere to nothing.

The worthless maunderings of those who believe that if it works in practice but not in theory something must be wrong with the practice.

Perfick!

yeahbut®

even more perfick as a description of precriptivism in linguistics

a description of precriptivism in linguistics

Bingo! mav. That's wherefrom I stole it from myself.

>sjmaxq It is interseting to see you use "philosophy" a philosophy you no doubt devoloped to doubt philosophy.

In the immortal words of Manuel, "¿Qué?"

PHILOSOPHY, n.
A route of many roads leading from nowhere to nothing.

Even better, thanks F. I quite like this, also from the Devil's Dictionary:
PERIPATETIC, adj.
Walking about. Relating to the philosophy of Aristotle, who, while expounding it, moved from place to place in order to avoid his pupil's objections. A needless precaution -- they knew no more of the matter than he.

"To ridicule philosophy is really to philosophize."

"To ridicule philosophy is really to philosophize."

"Damned if I do, and damned if I don't". That really does sound like typical philosophical bs.

The ineluctable in pursuit of the ineffable ...

>The ineluctable in pursuit of the ineffable ...

Or, moving from Oscar to Douglas(again): "a load of useless bloody loonies."

> useless bloody loonies

yeahbut®

Keeps 'em from doing something dangerous!