Metaphysics- It is the theory of reality.
It covers sub – branches as cosmology
 Cosmology
 Nature of man
 Conceptions about God
 Theology
 Ontology
Metaphysical Axiom- An axiom is an irreducible
primary. It doesn’t rest upon anything in order to be
valid, and it cannot be proven by any “more basic”
premises.
A true axiom cannot be refuted because the act of
trying to refute it requires that very axiom as a
premises.
1. Existence exists is an axiom which states that there is
something, as opposed to nothing.
2. The Law of Identity. To have identity means to have a
single identity; an object cannot have two identities.
3. Consciousness – is axiomatic because you cannot
logically deny your minds existence at the same time as
using your mind to do the denying.
Implications of these Axioms
1. Reality is absolute. The Primary of Existence – This
means that reality is not subject to wishes, whims,
prayers, or miracles.
- if you what to change the world, you must act
accordingly to reality.
2. Causality – causality is the law of identity applied
over time. It is the identity of actions. Action is a change
in the identity of an entity.
3. Every effect must have a cause – That cause, however,
is an effect of a previous cause. Causality is the law that
states that each causes has specific effect, and that this
effect is dependent on the identities of the agents
involved.
4. Nothing. Nothing or non- existence is that which
doesn’t exist. It is not a metaphysical entity. It doesn’t
exist. It has no identity.
5. Contradiction – Contradiction don’t exist in reality
because reality simply is as it is and does not contradict
itself.
6. An Entity is the sum of its parts – assuming there are
basic building blocks of the universe, it is conceivable
that these entities have a fixed identity, except location.
They do not change. They act, and interact, but do not
ever actually change their identity.
Metaphysical Theories
Idealism
Believed that the physical world around us is not real; it
is constantly changing and thus you can never say what
it reality is.
There is a world of ideas which is a world of unchanging
and absolute truth. This is reality for Plato.
Whenever we grasp an idea, or see something with our
mind’s eye, we are using our mind to conceive of
something in the ideal world.
Since concept could not come from the physical world,
it must come from an ideal world.
Dualism- Dualism is the philosophy that there are two
kinds of reality: material and immaterial.
There is a physical world as well as a non – physical or
spiral world.
Ideas in the mind come from the physical world of
experienced by the senses.
Truth can be verified through its existence in the natural
world.
Materialism
On this view only the world of matter is real.
Thoughts, ideas, and other, non – physical things are
merely movements of physical matter or chemical
reactions.
There is no reality beyond the physical.
Epistemology
It is the theory of knowledge.
Its major concern are the nature of knowledge itself and
the grounds for its validity.
Positions in relation to KNOWLEDGE
AGNOTICISM – by Thomas Huxley which means “not
being able to know” or belief in the impossibility of
knowledge.
SKEPTICISM – Is the doubting or questioning attitude
towards knowledge.
AFFIRNMATION OF KNOWLEDGE – it is the possibility of
knowledge
Types of knowledge in Relation to OBSERVATION
A PRIORI – knowledge not requiring observation;
literary means “before” or “priori to”.
A POSTERIORI – knowledge based on observation
literally means “before” or “posteriori to”.
Types of knowledge according to
MEANS/INSTRUMENTS
a. EMPIRICAL – knowledge acquired through senses
perception. EMPERICISM
b. RATIONAL – knowledge acquired primarily through
reason and belief is called rationalism.
Minor types
c. INTUITIVE – knowledge acquired primary
intuition( sudden insight) and the belief is known as
Intuitionism.
d. AUTHORITIVE – knowledge acquired through an
authority (expertise) and the belief is known as
authoritarianism.
e. REVEALED - knowledge acquired through
revelation( what God discloses to man) - Revelationism /
Religious Belief
Criterion of Truth
What are the factors you consider before you BELIEVE in
things, or in person?
Anu ang mga bagay na isinaalang alang mo bago ka
MANIWALA sa isang bagay or sa isang tao?
Criterion of Truth
NAÏVE REALISM – argue that reality is precisely what it
APPEARS TO BE. “seeing is believing “
FEELINGS - the belief that one feels is the truth and that
the best criterion of truth is a hunch.
CUSTOMS/TRADITIONS – this is used by many as a
criterion of truth particularly in matters pertaining to
morals, politics, dress, and etc.
TIME - is regarded as an excellent test if not the final
test of truth.
The disadvantage of this is that _______?
We have to wait until the end of time to be really
certain of truth.
INTUITION - “Truth comes from one knows not where.”
it is not a test of truth but but a source of truth.
REVELATION – “Truth comes from God” this is also a
source of truth and not a test of it.
INSTINCT – what is instinctive must by virtue of that fact
be true since nature deemed it so. But most knowledge
is beyond the bounds of instinct. It is not therefore a
test of truth.
MAJORITY, PLURALITY, CONSENSUS GENTIUM – the
number of people who believes in the truth determines
its truthfulness. However, truth is not necessarily
dependent on how many believes it has to be true.
AUTHORITY – certain individuals who have mastered a
field of study maybe a criterion of truth but authority
gives only opinion which could be true or which could
be false.
CORRESPONDENCE – a belief that when an idea agrees
with its object, it is proof of its truth. However, it is a
definition of truth not a criterion.
PRAGMATISM – if an idea works then it is true, but not
all truths work. It cannot be ultimate criterion of truth.
CONSISTENCY – means the absence of contradiction.
But there is a possibility to be constantly false
sometimes.
COHERENCE – a sytematic consistent explanation of all
the facts of experience. Its technical name is reason.
This is Humanity’s criterion of Truth.
Epistemological Theories
1. Empiricism - Empiricist claims knowledge is a product
of human experience.
Statements of observation take pride of place Empiricist
theory.
Naïve empiricism holds simply that our ideas and
theories need to be tested against reality and accepted
or rejected on the basis of how well they correspond to
observed facts.
For any knowledge to be properly inferred or deduced,
it is to be gained ultimately from one’s sense – based
experienced.
2. Idealism- A theory of reality and knowledge that
attributes to consciousness., or the immaterial mind, a
primary role in the constitution of the world.
All physical objects are mind – dependent and can have
no existence apart from the mind that is conscious of
them.
What we refer to and perceive as the external world is
in something artifice of the mind.
Analytic statements ( ex. Mathematical truths) are held
true without reference to the external world, and these
are taken exemplary knowledge statements.
3. Phenomenalism
Phenomenalism is a development from George Berkely’s
claim that to be is to be perceived.
When you see a tree, you see a certain perception of a
brown shape, when you touch it, you get a perception
of pressure against your palm.
One shouldn’t think of objects as distinct substances ,
which interact with our senses so that we may perceive
them; rather we should conclude that all that really
exists is the perception itself.
4. Pragmatism
It holds that what is important about knowledge is that
it solves certain problems that are constrained both by
the world and human purposes.
Adherents of this position hold that one can never
obtain true knowledge, since justification is never
certain.
Scientific skepticism is the practical stance that one
should not accept the veracity of claims until solid
evidence is produced.

The place of knowledge in human activity is to resolve

the problems that arise in conflicts between belief and
action.

Pragmatism is committed to the use of the experimental

method in all forms of inquiry, a non-skeptical fallibilism
about our current store of knowledge, and the
importance of knowledge proving itself through future
testing.

5. Rationalism - Rationalists believe that there are a

priori or innate ideas that are not derived from sense
experience.

These ideas may in some way derive from the structure

of the human mind, or they may exist independently of
the mind.

If they exist independently, they may be understood by

a human mind once it reaches a necessary degree of
sophistication.

6. Representationalism- Representationalism or
representative realism, unlike naïve realism, proposes
that we cannot see the external world directly, but only
through our perceptual representations of it.

The objects and the world that you see around you are
not the world itself, but merely an internal – reality
replica of that world.

The veil of perception removes the real world from our

direct inspection.

7. Relativism

Protagoras maintains that all things are true and in a

constant state of flux, revealing certain aspects of truth
at one time while concealing them another.

Relativism claims that there is no objective truth, it also

holds that anything which a man can perceive is true,
but not necessarily true to the next person.

8. Skepticism

Philosophical skepticism is the position which critically

examines whether the knowledge and perceptions
people have is true.