The word Philosophy is composed of two other words of Greek origin: phyla, which means love, friendship, and Sofia, which we translate as wisdom or knowledge. It is Pythagoras de Samos (571 a. Ç. – 496 a. C.) which is attributed to the invention of the word. The latter, when asked by a king to demonstrate his knowledge, told him that he was not wise, but Philosopher, that is, friend of wisdom.
Still in Ancient Greece, and trying to better define the meaning of Philosophy, Plato (428 a. Ç. – 347 a. C.) shows that love (phyla) is lack, desire for something that you don't have. Therefore, Philosophy is a lack, but also resources to seek what is needed, and the philosopher it is not the one who possesses knowledge, but the one who seeks to know continuously.
In the Medieval period, Philosophy became rational investigation placed at the service of faith. This is because with the advent of Christianity and its adoption by the Roman Empire, as well as with the emergence of the Church Catholic, a model of knowledge was developed in which the discursive reason would justify the understanding of the texts sacred.
In the Classic period (Renaissance and Modernity), Philosophy became confused with the study of wisdom understood as a perfect knowledge of everything that man can know to lead his life (moral), to preserve his health (medicine) and create all the arts (mechanics). Today, in the period we call contemporary or post-modern, Philosophy receives several meanings, among which are:
- A correspondence of being in language;
- Critical analysis of the methods used in science;
- Instrument for criticizing the dominant forms of power, as well as for raising awareness of the man inserted in the world of work.
Viewed in this way, Philosophy cannot be confused with either myth or science. This is because at the same time that it requires analysis, criticism, clarity, rigor, objectivity (as in science), it is clear that discourses in search of knowledge of the whole are constructed in history according to models of rationality that are revised and replaced over time (which brings it closer together of the myth). She remains in a constant search for wisdom.
By João Francisco P. Cabral
Brazil School Collaborator
Graduated in Philosophy from the Federal University of Uberlândia - UFU
Master's student in Philosophy at the State University of Campinas - UNICAMP
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Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
CABRAL, João Francisco Pereira. "The concept of Philosophy"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/filosofia/a-filosofia-grega.htm. Accessed on June 28, 2021.
