La Profesión Filosófica

Explaining the Philosophy Major
by Elizabeth Hanna - February 16, 2011
Reprinted with permission from our good friends at InsideCatholic.com, the leading online journal of Catholic faith, culture,and politics.
For someone who doesn't feel very comfortable with small talk, college has been a great help. By the time eleventh grade rolled around, conversations with strangers were easy. Why?Because I didn't have to start them.
"What schools are you looking at?" "Have you applied?" "Have you gotten in?" Once I entered college, the questions changed only slightly: "What's your major?" "Whatdorm are you living in?" "Are you in a sorority?" "I bet you love it there!"
And so on. But all this changed when I chose to major in philosophy. Now, all questions have narrowed to one: "What are yougoing to do with that?"
I'm never sure how to respond. Is this more small talk, or do they want a real answer?
Here's the truth: With philosophy, I am going to do absolutely everything.
The word"philosophy," at its Greek root, means "love of wisdom." This love, at first glance, seems entirely impractical – maybe even a bit selfish. Why spend our precious time in pursuit of something soabstract? Philosophers aren't going to save the world, we're told, so what good do they do sitting around thinking?
I would respond that philosophy is actually the most practical subject one can study.This does not mean that other fields are insignificant or irrelevant, only that philosophy is the root of all subjects. Really a scientist at his core, the philosopher seeks to understand. While the hardscientist spends time studying (say) how a leaf grows, the philosopher begins with more fundamental questions: Why and how is the leaf there at all?
Philosophy is human curiosity at its most humanlevel. Animals can perceive and comprehend certain things about the world, but they will never ponder why the world is here. Only humans have the ability to love and seek wisdom; in that way,...