Worldview intro

Worldview : 

Worldview

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Attempt to describe your philosophical reaction to the horribly tragic events in Haiti. Philosophical = How easily do you make sense of it (or not make sense of it)? How does it gel with how you see the nature of the universe and our place in it? Try to separate your philosophical reaction from your emotional reaction.

Worldview – A definition : 

Worldview – A definition The set of beliefs about fundamental aspects of reality that ground and influence all of one's perceiving, thinking, knowing, and doing.

What shapes your worldview? : 

What shapes your worldview?

Epistemology : 

Epistemology Beliefs about the nature and sources of knowledge What is knowledge? What is knowing? What is the basis for knowledge? What is the difference between knowledge and faith? Is certainty possible?

Basic Distinction : 

Basic Distinction Objectivism vs. Constructivism

Slide 7: 

The objectivist view - objects have intrinsic meaning, and knowledge is a reflection of a correspondence to reality. In this tradition, knowledge should represent a real world that is thought of as existing, separate and independent of the knower; and this knowledge should be considered true only if it correctly reflects that independent world. Knowledge is stable because the essential properties of objects are knowable and relatively unchanging. The important metaphysical assumption of objectivism is that the world is real, it is structured, and that structure can be modeled for the learner. Objectivism holds that the purpose of the mind is to "mirror" that reality and its structure through thought processes that are analyzable and decomposable. The meaning that is produced by these thought processes is external to the person who understands them, and it is determined by the structure of the real world.

Slide 8: 

The constructivist view argues that knowledge and reality do not have an objective or absolute value or, at the least, that we have no way of knowing this reality. A concept of reality is made up of the network of things and relationships that we rely on in our living, and on which, we believe, others rely on, too. The knower interprets and constructs a reality based on his experiences and interactions with his environment. Rather than thinking of truth in terms of a match to reality, the knower focuses on viability: To the constructivist, concepts, models, theories, and so on are viable if they prove adequate in the contexts in which they were created.

Cosmology : 

Cosmology Beliefs about the origin of the universe, of life, and particularly, of Man. What is the origin of the universe? What is the origin of life? What is the origin of Man?

Teleology : 

Teleology Beliefs about the causes and purposes of the Universe Does the universe have a purpose? If the universe has a purpose, whose purpose is it? What is the purpose of the universe?

Basic Distinction : 

Basic Distinction Intrinsic Finality – A thing or action has an intrinsic finality when it is not for the sake of something external to itself. vs. Extrinsic Finality - A thing or action has an extrinsic finality when it is for the sake of something external to itself.

Theology : 

Theology Beliefs about God Is there a God? What is God's nature? What is the relationship of God to the material universe? What is the relationship of God to Man?

Anthropology : 

Anthropology Beliefs about the nature of Man What is Man? What is Man’s place in the universe? Does Man have free will? Is Man basically good or evil or neither?

Axiology : 

Axiology Beliefs about the nature of value What kinds of value are there? (aesthetic, moral, economic, etc.) Is value objective or relative? Is value absolute? What is the source of value? What is the highest good? What is right? What is beauty? What good is beauty?