What is Philosophy? And Why Study It?

At its root, philosophy is a rational method, a way of thinking clearly, not a "subject" in the ordinary sense. That is, philosophy does not seek a particular way of understanding human behavior, as does, for example, history or sociology or psychology. Neither does philosophy teach a particular set of techniques meant to help solve empirical problems, as in a science classroom.

Rather, the philosopher is most concerned with conceptual questions, with tackling and (hopefully) "dissolving" conceptual problems. Which conceptual problems exactly? Well, it depends on the interests of the philosopher. Philosophical reasoning improves almost any inquiry, and, as a matter of fact, philosophers might inquire about law, science, art, religion, ethics, and the nature of existence and experience. (Just take a look at our courses offered.) With regard to the content of its inquiries, philosophy can be an exceedingly broad discipline.

To be sure, the student of philosophy learns some history -- a great deal of Western intellectual history in particular. And it should be pointed out that engaging with the ideas of great past thinkers is not a small task, either, as far as it goes; this challenge may be part of the reason why less than 1% of all undergraduates major in philosophy. It should ultimately be understood, however, that the point of mastering the historical canon is to become a better thinker by "standing on the shoulders of giants." The job of thinking well may not be an easy one, but it is ultimately rewarding.

So, philosophy is both broad and demanding, a good challenge and a personally rewarding pursuit. But is it relevant to the world in any wider sense? Yes! -- It is true, as with any academic pursuit, that one may practice philosophy for its own sake, but philosophy, we think, is best practiced when the philosopher cares about the importance of his task. Practiced this way, philosophers have managed to help generate modern science, liberal government, anti-liberal government, and computer programming and machine logic, for examples. Philosophers have also made important contributions to mathematics, religion, psychology, linguistics, and ethics. Philosophy has been and continues to be deeply relevant to the "real world."

Still not sure that philosophy is for you? Then consider that philosophy majors score higher on graduate and law school tests than nearly any other major in the humanities. As a result, a philosophy degree really can launch one into any career, as our own alumni show. Philosophy majors at Wooster have gone on to successful careers in law, business, computer programming, teaching, social work, ministry, journalism, publishing, and medicine. For example, Kathleen Dean Moore '69 chairs the Department of Philosophy at Oregon State University; Solomon Oliver '69 is a U.S. District Court judge; Margaret Plews-Ogan '77 is a physician and professor at the University of Virginia medical school; Tom Hetrick '84 works as a special agent for the FBI; Richard Crouse '88 is a vice president at Ohio Savings Bank; Emily Lyons '93 is a research biologist with her Ph.D. from Cambridge University; and Ashok Pakiam '96 is a research analyst for Fox television. In addition, recent philosophy majors have gone on to study philosophy in graduate school at The University of Maryland, Boston College, Duke University, Tulane University, and University of London.

So, if you're a thinker with a range of interests, and want to join a community of people who are not necessarily like-minded -- except that they value the tools of philosophical reasoning and are broad in their interests as well -- then you ought to consider philosophy! Take a few classes, come to the roundtable, stay for lunch and conversation afterwards -- and join a community of thinkers.