INTRODUCTION

Temperament and line of thinking these are two factors that trace Philosophy in history. The Ancient Greeks concern themselves with the cosmos- the world and the beginning of life, the medieval era focuses on God, metaphysics and the after life and here comes the offshoot of a different temperament, of a different line of thinking that we call the Modern Philosophy. This paper is a historical survey of four different philosophers namely Rene Descartes, David Hume, Immanuel Kant, and Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel. The researcher focuses more on the epistemological theories of these philosophers under the modern tradition. Epistemology also named as Criteriology and Theories of Knowledge basically sought answer to the questions: how can we know? What do we know? And how do we know the things we know? These questions appeals to the ability of the mind to know cognition. Aptly, modern philosophers focus more on the philosophy of the mind, epistemology and metaphysics. How did this period begin? Modern philosophy must not be confused with modernity though it has semblance to it and second it has nothing to do with time though it was specifically between the 17th to the 20th century. It is a rebellion against the medieval era marked by great changes such as the scientific revolution, technological progress, reason thus and reformation, the Counter and Reformation universal and religious The pluralism, rise of nations, the Enlightenment, the supremacy of individual in the education. reliability of wisdom of the medieval thinkers was attacked and creating into cracks two Western the intellectual tradition. and the Major figures in this period such as the four philosophers were divided groups Rationalists

Empiricists. But these two already have prejudice that is man does not know things directly but only grasps impressions. Rationalism is concerned with the impressions on the intellect while Empiricism the impressions on the senses. Further explanations will be given as each philosopher is discussed.
RATIONALIST RENE DESCARTES (31 March 1596 11 February 1650) LIFE and WORKS A French philosopher, mathematician, physicist and a writer often credited as the Father of Modern Philosophy. Fittingly, because of his break with the Scholastic-Aristotelian philosophy with a new mechanistic science. He was born at La Haye, Tourraine to Joachim Descartes and Jeanne Brochard on March 31, 1596. Ren is thought to have been a sickly and fragile child, so much so that when he was sent to board at the Jesuit College at La Fleche on Easter of 1607. After graduation, he studied at the University of Poitiers, earning a Baccalaurat and Licence in law in 1616, in accordance with his father's wishes that he should become a lawyer. In the summer of 1618 he joined the army of Maurice of Nassau in the Dutch Republic.[6] On 10 November 1618, while walking through Breda, Descartes met Isaac Beeckman, who sparked his interest in mathematics and the new physics, particularly the problem of the fall of heavy bodies. While in the service of the Duke Maximilian of Bavaria, Descartes was present at the Battle of the White Mountain outside Prague, in November 1620. In 1621 he left the army and devoted himself to study and travel. Four years later he associated with scientific friends in Paris (1625-1628). Feeling the need of solitude he removed to Holland and busied himself with the preparation of his writings. After twenty years (1629-1649) he was invited by Queen

Christina

of

Sweden

to

Stockholm

as

her

teacher

and

discusses

philosophy. The climate undermined his health he caught pneumonia and died in 1650. His chief works: Discourse on Method (1637), Meditations on First Philosophy (1641), Principles of Philosophy (1644), and The Passions of the Soul (1650). PHILOSOPHY Descartes time was entrenched with Aristotleianism which was taken as the Word of God and any refutations made are contrary to the Word of God and will be punished. His decisive break from this tradition was two-fold. First, Descartes thought that the Scholastics method was prone to doubt given their reliance on sensation as the source for all knowledge. Second, he wanted to replace their final causal model of scientific explanation with the more modern, mechanistic model. His project is to deduce clear and distinct ideas under the uncertain premises derived from the senses us. He which according the to him is unreliable of and often deceives emphasized practical character Philosophy.

Philosophy is a perfect knowledge of all that man can know, as well for the conduct of his life as for the preservation of his health and the discovery of of all arts. As geometrician he believes and in the certainty of mathematics hence he developed the Cartesian method which consists mathematical basis. These deductions principles form generalized, the starting selffor observations. He maintains that sound judgments must be mathematical made from point

deduction and from then other propositions follow logically, hence the method of deduction. In the first meditations, he lays out his doubt on his previous beliefs. What is the difference between the experience in the waking life and dreams for there is no principle that distinguishes the two? Experimental because most science of then or thought on the experiment senses that is not reliable shown these rely have been

doubtful. Beliefs made out sensations are cast into doubting because it might be all just dreams. But mathematical beliefs whether one is

awake or dreaming are consistent and are not called to doubt. Another argument people commit mistakes and this is not consistent with Gods goodness so even the existence of God is in question. In his second meditations, Descartes sought answer to what ideas are certain. He established his famous reasoning: cogito ergo sum. In his entire doubting one thing was certain someone was doubting, and this must exist. This just means that the mere fact that I am thinking, regardless of whether or not what I am thinking is true or false, implies that there must be something engaged in that activity, namely an I. Hence, I exist is an indubitable and, therefore, absolutely certain belief that serves as an axiom from which other, absolutely certain truths can be deduced. He continues that man is a thinking thing a mind that doubts, understands, affirms, denies, is willing, is unwilling, and also imagines and has sense perceptions. He then proceeds to explain the nature of the mind. Unextended substance that requires the concurrence of God therefore mind is an immaterial thinking substance and ideas are its mode. He established also that reality which is other than the I and it is God. That infinite substance is the cause of infinite ideas and that the finite substance is dependent on. Now establishing Gods existence from the Is own imperfection it is in fact an innate idea. In the first meditation an evil demon bent on deceiving people was mentioned. Decieving could never be a nature of God nor is he capable of that but still man fell in error. What causes human error? For Descartes neither God created a faculty in man that generates error or an evil demon that deceives. In fact the cause of error is not using the faculty of judgement correctly. If one only makes judgments about what is clearly and distinctly understood and abstains from making judgments about things that are not, then error would be avoided altogether. In fact, it would be impossible to go wrong if this rule were unwaveringly followed. The classic mind-body problem was for Descartes two distinct things. The mind is immaterial and non-extended on the other hand the body is an extended and non-thinking thing. It is possible to think of a soul without a body.

The infinite

development substance

of

Cartesian the finite

Rationalism substance;

left 2)

two

questions

unsolved: 1) the determination of the relationship of between the and the relatiosnhip between the human soul and the baby. EMPIRICIST DAVID HUME (7 May 1711 25 August 1776) LIFE AND WORKS David Englishthe Hume last the of most the important philosopher of ever to write in

great

triumvirate

British

empiricists

well-known in his own time as an historian and essayist. Originally known as David Home he was born on April 26, 1711 in Edinburgh. difficulty attended He changed his his of name name in in 1734 the because Scottish at the the English He had pronouncing manner. of never He

married but spent occasionally at his family home at Ninewells. He the University Edinburgh age twelve. considered a career on law but he had an aversion except to everything except Philosophy and General Learning, he followed a rigorous program of reading and reflection for three years until there seemed to be opened up to me a New Sceneof Thought. He had a breakdown and decided to have a n active life as he tried the world of commerce, as a clerk for a Bristol sugar importer. He moved to France and settled in La Fleche, best known for its Jesuit College. Between 1734 and 1737, he drafted A Treatise of Human Nature. But his work was castrated describing it as abstract and unintelligible. After recovering from his disappointment he wrote the Abstract without revealing his authorship. In 1744 his book Essyas of Moral and Political was published. From 1746, Hume served for threee years as Secretary to Lieutenant-General St. Clair, and wrote Philosophical Essays Concerning Human Understanding later published as

An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding. His other works My Own Life (1752), The Natural History of Religion and A Dissertations on the Passions (1755). Upon finding that he had intestinal cancer, Hume prepared for his death with the same peaceful cheer that characterized his life. He arranged for the posthumous publication of his most controversial work, the Dialogues concerning Natural Religion; it was seen through the press by his nephew and namesake in 1779, three years after his uncle's death. PHILOSOPHY Hume accepts the empiricism of John Locke and develops it

logically to its extreme conclusions by denying the objective value of the principle of causality and the existence of any substance, either material or spiritually. For Hume, all the materials of thinking perceptions are derived either from sensation (outward sentiment) or from reflection (inward more sentiment). He divides ideas, perceptions are into two categories, from our distinguished by their different degrees of force and vivacity. Our feeble perceptions, ultimately derived livelier impressions. Hume begins both the Treatise and the Enquiry with an account of impressions and ideas because he thinks that all contentful philosophical questions can be asked and answered in those terms. Although we permute and combine ideas in the imagination to form complex ideas of things we haven't experienced, Hume is adamant that our creative powers extend no farther than the materials afforded us by the senses and experience. Complex ideas are composed of simple ideas, which are fainter copies of the simple impressions from which they are ultimately derived, to which they correspond and exactly resemble.Impressions and ideas maybe connected with one another to form a complexity through fundamental laws of asssociation. These complexities suffice to explain all things both in the materila and spiritual world.

As by

for

Causationof the

causality mind. Hume

is

the

fundamental the

principle between

of A

metaphysics and the sciences, is a complex idea, and hence is produced associations reduces relation (cause) and B (effect) to the chronoligical association of the two ideas A and B, and denies any necessary connection between them. Hume also demolishes the concept of the substance. Substance, either material or spiritual, is nothing other than the constant association of impressions. Granted the negation of substance, the existence of God and the immortality of the soul are only hypothetical. In regard to Ethics, Hume admits only a natural morality. Hume, lacking metaphysics had recourse to practical exigencies in order to justify the value of ethics and of religion as well. The distiction between theoreticl and practical through motives, and the justification were to of insuppresible as a values to practical motives alone, pass heritage

Immanuel Kant, and to form one of the pillars of Kants critical philosophy.

IDEALISM IMMANUEL KANT (22 April 1724-12 February 1804) LIFE and WORKS Immanuel Kant was born in the East Prussian city of Konigsberg on April 22, 1724. He was fourth of the nine children, three of whom died in infancy. His mother, Anna Regina, died when he was thirteen. Kant acknowledged a lasting debt to her love and instruction. His father, Johann Georg, was a harness-maker, and died when Kant was twenty-two. He grew up in an intensely Pietist milieu. Between 1732 and 1740, he went at the College Fridericianum, a private Pietist foundation. Afterwhich he went to University of Konigsberg.

In 1747, largely for economic reasons he left Konigsberg to work on the countryside as a domestic tutor. In 1755, he gained his Masters degree and the right to teach as Privatdozent. He held his forst lecture in autumn of 1755 at a proffesors house. His first works Thoughts on the True Estimation of Living Forces (1747), Universal Natural History and Theory of Heavens (1755), New Elucidation of the First Principles of metaphysical Cognition (1755) are mostly cosmological and has the idea of the divine presence. In the Inaugural Dissertation, On the Form and Principle of the Sensible and Intelligible from World the (1770), science of Kant the changed the definition forces to of the metaphysics substantial

science of limits of human reason. His idea of Philosophy as an end in itself, with reference to knowledge, formed the basis for the first Critique, the Critique of Pure Reason (1781). The period from 17701780 is known as the Silent Decade, since Kant published very little during this time. Kant did not form any close relationship with either sex. In his middle years his life was ordered with utmost regurality. The Critique of Practical Reason (1788) deals with questions of freedom and of universal moral law. In 1784he published What is Enlightenment? as a response to the question posted by the editors. Kants last day was captured in the article of Thomas de Quincey The Last Days of Immanuel Kant. He developed a cerebral asteriosclerosis. He lost all accurate measurement of time, and became impatient with his servants. He died on February 12, 1804, just two months before his eightieth birthday. His fame ensured a public funeral in the cathedral of Konigsberg, attended by dignitaries form all over Prussia. PHILOSOPHY Kants examination of Humean skepticism gave him a good reason to distrust physical sicence as a complete explanation for knowledge. Knowledge, Kant declared, maybe considered under two aspects: 1) the sensory, which correpsonds to what-we-perceive, the data and the

experience; and 2) the logical, which correponds to what we think about this experience. The subject-matter of knowledge comes from knowledge but this is only fraction knowledge. Whence then comes the relatedness in space and time since we have no sense-organs for these aspects of experience? Understanding cognizes form through space and time. There are two pure forms of sensible namely intuition, and and serving as principles turns thought of a priori the knowledge, space time. time This are traditional of as the

metaphysics on its head, where space and time has been cognized via object. Traditionally, space conditions of the existence of things, operating as all-encompassing eternal elements. Kant changes this idea and proposes that space and time cannot exist, because the void and the infinityu are incapable of being thought. It is only by virtue of the very fact that they cannot be thought, that they exist as the a priori conditions of the existence of things. CRITIQUE OF PURE REASON Kant observes that there are three kinds of judgment: 1) Analytical, which is achieved when the predicate of a proposition is known through the analysis of the subject; 2) Synthetic a posteriori, which is achieved when the predicate is attributed to the subject by force of experience; 3) Synthetic a priori, or that which enjoys universality and necessity. He is concerned with sensibility or sensible intuition, for which the faculty of imagination is responsible. Sensibility is a passive power for receiving data. Kant is solely concerned with the form this data it takes rather In than with its matter. of Unlike the the tradition of metaphysics, he is not concerned with the data that might be and what represents. another section Critique, entitled Transcendental Dialectic, Kant shows how false ideas can occur with regard to reasons ideas of the soul, the cosmos and God. A false idea of God can arise via the Ideal of Pure Reason, that is, through reasoning by ontology (the nature of being), cosmology and psycho-

theology, which propose to establish the existence of God. Through critique, the question of the transcendental survives, and reasons giving of itself to understanding reamins of value. CRITIQUE OF PRACTICAL REASON Kant studies the problem of what makes a human action morally good. Rationalism suggested that free will arose in the difference between the production of knowledge (philosophy) and Nature (as that which produces itself). But Rationalism was still forced to sanction this difference (i.e.free will) through appeal to a higher Being or Good or value. Kant states that the practical interest refers to everything that is possible thorugh freedom. Specifically, it is concerned with free will. The overriding question asks whether there is a higher faculty of desire. Kant observes that the a priori forms of the intellect are empty and need to be applied to some empirical element in order to become effective. On the other hand, the categorical imperative is already determined in itself nad itself determines the empirical element (the human action to be performed; it is the will which make the human act good, not vice versa. Thus the will belongs to the world of noumena, of the absolute and the unconditioned. Kant teaches that the categorical imperatives can only be explained on the basis of three postulates namely, liberty, immortality of the soul and God. CRITIQUE OF JUDGMENT Kant studies the judgment of sentiments. These judgments of sentiment arise: 1) From the finality of nature the ego reflecting upon the mechanical succession of nature, a harmonious ordering of the different parts to the same end and judges this to be the result of the purposeful action of the rational mind; 2) From the aesthetic vision here the ego considers the elements of bature as the means by which its spiritual faculties can be satisfied.

The contemporary philosopher Jean-Francois Lyotard writes, The name of Kant marks at once the prologue and epilogue to modernity. And as epilogue to modernity, it is also a prologue to postmodernity. As Lyotard suggests, and Kants philosophical as that which legacy borders is perhaps best understood negotaiated upon different

historical eras. It marks out modernitys philosophical directions and concerns -without necessarily over-determoning them whilst it crosses into further epoch. GERMAN IDEALIST GEORG WILHELM FRIEDRICH HEGEL (August 27, 1770 November 14, 1831) Hegel was a German philosopher, one of the creators of German Idealism. His historicist and idealist account of the total reality as a whole His revolutionized close family European called philosophy simply, and was an was important born in precursor to continental philosophy. him "Wilhelm" Stuttgart on the 27th of August 1770 His father Georg Ludwig (1733-

1799) born in Tbingen to a family of civil servants and pastors, was an ordinary revenue officer in the fiscal service of Wrttemberg. His mother, Maria Magdalena Louisa (nee Fromm, 1741-1783) came from a well-to-do family of Stuttgart, home to some of the foremost theologians, lawyers and high-ranking bureaucrats in Wrttemberg. She was well-educated for her time and had sufficient scholastic ability to teach young Hegel the elements of Latin. Education: Age of three- attended a German School; Age of five Latin schools; Age 7-18- Struttgart Gymnasium; At 18(1788) he entered the Stift Theological Seminary in Tbingen. However, he soon showed little interest in traditional theology, as it was taught in Tbingen; 1790- he obtained the degree of PhD 1793- theological certificate. He was often called as the old man. He was not content with simply pub crawling, carousing and making merry; he was still reading quite a bit and still remained extremely serious about learning".

Hegel did not enter the ministry after leaving college, rather, hoping for some leisure to study philosophy and Greek literature, he became a private tutor in Berne. He wrote the Life of Jesus and The Positivity of the Christian Religion (1797). While in Frankfurt Hegel composed the essay "Fragments on Religion and Love". In 1799 he wrote another essay entitlted "The Spirit of Christianity and Its Fate" (1799) which was not published during his lifetime. In Jena he became an Privatdozent (unsalaried lecturer) after submitting a dissertation on the orbits of planets. The Difference between Fichtes and Schellings Systems of Philosophy. In 1805, he was In promoted 1807he as Extraordinary to Bamberg Professor where he (unsalaried).The became the following of the year, 1806, his fortunes were at lowest ebb.Phenomenology of Spirit moved editor newspaper, Bamnerg, Zeitung. In 1808-1816 he was appointed headmaster of gymnasium in Nuremberg. Phenomenology of the Mind, and Science of Logic was published in 1812, 1813, and 1816. He moved to Heidelberg in 1816. The encyclopedia of the Philosophical Sentences in Outline (1817) was published. In 1818, he accepted the renewed offer of chair of philosophy ay University of Berlin. Here he published the Philosophy of Right (1821). He was appointed rector of the University in 1830, when he was 60.In 1831, Frederick William III decorated him for his service to the Prussian state. In August 1831 a cholera epidemic reached Berlin and Hegel left the city, taking up lodgings in Kreuzberg. Now in a weak state of health, Hegel went out little. By November 14, 1831 Hegel was dead. He is said to have uttered the last words "And he didn't understand me" before expiring. In accordance with his wishes, Hegel was buried on November 16 in the Dorotheenstadt Cemetery next to Fichte and Solger. Hegel's writing style is difficult to read; he is described by Bertrand Russell in the History of Western Philosophy as the single most difficult philosopher to understand. PHILOSOPHY

Following Kant, Hegel asserts that the supreme demand of the modern age is that thought derive all its knowledge and values freely and autonomously consists we must through of get pure rid Reason.The wholly of first the principle is we reason to for and the reason things non-sensuous universals.If sensuous explain

element,

sensuous element is just element of things, the things that have to be explained. To show that the world is deducible from the categories is the discovery of his DIALECTIC METHOD. Thought is dialectical and evolves out of itself: the thought of being tuns into the thought of nothing and then as a result, into the thought of becoming. This is the Hegelian Triad of being, nothing and becoming. Being is nothing, or that being and nothing are identical must not be understood in the absurd sense that a particular sort of being is same as nothing because these are pure abstraction of categories. Being is the first category of reason where all character, all determinations of any kind is abstracted from. Hence being has no character and empty it is equivalent to nothing. Being passes into nothing and nothing passes into being example the thought of nothing is the thought of emptiness and this emptiness is pure being and this passage is called becoming.First beginning, arising, coming into being, second ending, ceasing, passing away second categories. Hegel arranges categories of thought in a sequential order: quality, quantity, specificity, essence and existence, substance and causality, followed ultimately by self-determining reason. From this Hegel derives an method of immanent development and criticism, in which each category reveals the truth in trems of both potential and limit of the previous determination in ascending order. This principle is the soul of all truly scientific knowledge. Idea, Nature and Spirit Logic treats of the idea as it is itself- thesis, nature is the idea in its otherness- antithesis and Spirit is the unity of idea and nature- synthesis.

Hegels

genius

in

the

history

of

philosophy

and

history

of

religion produced a school of great historians of philosophy. His work influenced much on the study of history, jurisprudence and politics and mental sciences. CONCLUSION Situated at the threshold of modern thought, these philosophers are marked by skepticism and a loss of faith in both religion and meatphysics. lies. Yet, in the face of this overwhelming demolition of traditional beliefs, their philosophies develop a new and profound sense of affirmation. It affirms the limits of human knowledge and creating possiblities resulting from an acknowledgement of these limits. In place of superstition and dogma, Descartes, Hume, Kant and Hegel and other philosophers that belong to this epoch embrace change and human fallibility, progress and recognizing places their these qualities within to the be the sources turmoil of of pleasure. Such an outlook exceeds modernisms desire for order and tgoughts brewing postmodern. Their wirtings are remarkable for the way they systematically refute any claim to know what the truth is, or where it

Ateneo de Naga University

MODERN PHILOSOPHY:

RENE DESCARTES, DAVID HUME, IMMANUEL KANT and GEORG WILHELM FRIEDRICH HEGEL

GLADYS BERGADO ESTEVE

AB Philosophy-3

DR. DANILO MADRID GERONA

Professor

March 10, 2010