Are Republic of the Philippines

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Region I
San Fernando City
La Union

MODULE & ACTIVITY SHEETS IN INTRODUCTION

TO THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE HUMAN PERSON
GRADE 11/12 1ST QUARTER, WEEK 2

MELC: 2.1. Distinguish opinion from truth.

2.2. Realize that the methods of Philosophy lead

to wisdom and truth.
2.3. Evaluate truth from opinions in different
situations using the methods of philosophizing.

 K to 12 BEC CG: PPT11/12-Ic-2.1; PPT11/12-Id-2.3;PPT11/12-

Ie-2.4

Objectives:
1. Understand the difference between opinion and truth.
2. Realize that there are methods of philosophy that can be used to find wisdom and truth.
3. Evaluate opinion from different situations.

Prepared by:

NORMA TERESITA F. CEREZO

SHS Teacher I
 What I Need to Know

Our lesson this week will introduce methods or ways of analyzing which are truths and which are
considered as opinions. Philosophizing is a way to reveal the truth about the various stages of
life and everything associated with it, and to express the way for the realization of these things in
a relevant way, in order to obtain the best compromise of all that we face.

Philosophizing should not merely be deepening our understanding about something, but also
about becoming more aware of how something can be beneficial to us in a certain way peculiar
to ourselves.

In simpler words, according to Oxford dictionary, the term “philosophizing” is used to describe
the act of engaging oneself with the question about things going on in our environment.
We philosophize to answer questions that bother our minds and co-existence as well.

In this module, we aim to understand the meaning and process of doing philosophy.

At the end of the lesson, you should be able to:

1. Understand the difference between an opinion and truth.

2. Realize that there are methods of philosophy that can be used to find wisdom and truth.
3. Evaluate opinions from different situations.

What I Know

Before going on, check how much you know about this topic. Answer
the pretest below:.

1. Describe
what is an opinion and what is a truth/fact.
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
2. What comes to mind when you hear the word philosophizing?
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
3. What is your understanding of the word fallacy?
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
 What’s In

In the previous module, the meaning and process of doing philosophy with emphasis on holism
was introduced. This chapter shall demonstrate the various ways of doing philosophy. In search
for wisdom, the learner must evaluate arguments and ways of expressing one’s beliefs, emotions,
and opinions.
Let us continue to have fun in learning, dear students!

What’s New

Directions: Let us fish for opinions and facts.

Each fish contains a statement. Identify which are opinions and which are facts.
Write the statements in their corresponding fish bowls.
 What is It

What is the difference between facts and opinion?

In today’s society, we encounter a lot of information from various sources such as the social
media and our interactions with our friends, family, and members of the community. Most of the
information we receive is helpful, but some may mislead us or may even be utterly false. Every
day we are confronted with news, claims, and announcements from our peers, family members,
figures of authority, the government, and media. How do we know if they are telling the truth?
Philosophers often grapple with the concept of truth. Knowledge must be truthful to gain validity
and acceptance. For example, when we answer a “True or False” test, we judge if the statements
we read are true or false. This means that statements may have truth or may not have truth.
Statements about the world or reality are called propositions and these propositions may or may
not carry truth.
A fact is a statement that can be proven true or false.
Example of a fact: With fewer cars on the road, there would be less air pollution and traffic
noise; therefore, the use of mass transportation should be encouraged.

An opinion is an expression of a person’s feelings that cannot be proven. Opinions can be based
on facts or emotions and sometimes they are meant to deliberately mislead others. Therefore, it is
important to be aware of the author’s purpose and choice of language. Sometimes, the author lets
the facts speak for themselves

Example of an opinion: Do you like looking at a smoggy view from a congested highway? How
do you feel about fighting road hogs and bumper to bumper traffic everyday? Mass
transportation is the solution to all these problems.

2 Methods of Philosophizing
A. Phenomenology
Phenomenology is the study of structures of consciousness as experienced from the first-
person point of view. The central structure of an experience is its intentionality, its being directed
toward something, as it is an experience of or about some object. An experience is directed
toward an object by virtue of its content or meaning (which represents the object) together with
appropriate enabling conditions.
Phenomenology as a discipline is distinct from but related to other key disciplines in philosophy,
such as ontology, epistemology, logic, and ethics. Phenomenology has been practiced in various
guises for centuries, but it came into its own in the early 20th century in the works of Edmund
Husserl, Heidegger, Sartre, Merleau-Ponty and others

Edmund Husserl
The discipline of phenomenology may be defined initially as the study of structures of
experience, or consciousness. Literally, phenomenology is the study of “phenomena”:
appearances of things, or things as they appear in our experience, or the ways we experience
things, thus the meanings things have in our experience. Phenomenology studies conscious
experience as experienced from the subjective or first person point of view.
What makes an experience conscious is a certain awareness one has of the experience while
living through or performing it. Conscious experience is the starting point of phenomenology,
but experience shades off into less overtly conscious phenomena. As Husserl and others stressed,
we are only vaguely aware of things in the margin or periphery of attention, and we are only
implicitly aware of the wider horizon of things in the world around us.
To begin an elementary exercise in phenomenology, consider some typical experiences one
might have in everyday life, characterized in the first person:

 I hear that helicopter whirring overhead as it approaches the hospital.

 I imagine a fearsome creature like that in my nightmare.
 I intend to finish my writing by noon.
 I walk carefully around the broken glass on the sidewalk.
 I am searching for the words to make my point in conversation.
Here are rudimentary characterizations of some familiar types of experience. Each sentence is a
simple form of phenomenological description, articulating in everyday English the structure of
the type of experience so described. The subject term “I” indicates the first-person structure of
the experience: the intentionality proceeds from the subject.
A. Existentialism

Existentialism is a philosophy that emphasizes individual existence, freedom and choice. It is

the view that humans define their own meaning in life, and try to make rational
decisions despite existing in an irrational universe. It focuses on the question of human
existence, and the feeling that there is no purpose or explanation at the core of existence. It
holds that, as there is no God or any other transcendent force, the only way to counter this
nothingness (and hence to find meaning in life) is by embracing existence.

Thus, Existentialism believes that individuals are entirely free and must take personal
responsibility for themselves (although with this responsibility comes angst, a profound anguish
or dread). It therefore emphasizes action, freedom and decision as fundamental, and holds that
the only way to rise above the essentially absurd condition of humanity (which is characterized
by suffering and inevitable death) is by exercising our personal freedom and choice (a
complete rejection of Determinism).

Existentialism originated with the 19th Century philosophers Søren Kierkegaard and Friedrich
Nietzsche, although neither used the term in their work. In the 1940s and 1950s, French
existentialists such as Jean-Paul Sartre, Albert Camus (1913 - 1960), and Simone de
Beauvoir (1908 - 1986) wrote scholarly and fictional works that popularized existential themes,
such as dread, boredom, alienation, the absurd, freedom, commitment and nothingness.
 Søren Kierkegaard and Friedrich Nietzsche,

B. Postmodernism

Postmodernism in Western philosophy is a late 20th-century movement characterized by

broad skepticism, subjectivism, or relativism; a general suspicion of reason; and
an acute sensitivity to the role of ideology in asserting and maintaining political and economic
power.

Postmodernism is largely a reaction against the intellectual assumptions and values of the
modern period in the history of Western philosophy (roughly, the 17th through the 19th century).
Indeed, many of the doctrines characteristically associated with postmodernism can fairly be
described as the straightforward denial of general philosophical viewpoints that were taken for
granted during the 18th-century Enlightenment, though they were not unique to that period.
C. Analytic Tradition
Another method of philosophizing is analytic tradition or philosophy. It is the conviction that to
some significant degree, puzzles, and philosophical problems are solved through scientific
process. It is about having clear language,

The picture above shows an example of analytic tradition. Those questions require the process of
logic, the search for a single truth using scientific processes, beliefs, and experiment.
Analytic tradition features a related set of approaches to philosophical problems, dominant in
Anglo-American philosophy from the early 20th century, that emphasizes the study of language
and the logical analysis of concepts.

D. Logic and critical thinking

Logic is the truth based on reasoning and critical thinking. It includes analysis and construction
of arguments. It serves as a path to freedom from half-truths and deception.

Deductive vs. Inductive

As you can see in the figure above, deductive reasoning is a top-down logic while inductive
reasoning is a bottom-up logic.

1. Deductive Reasoning
In this type of reasoning, conclusion comes first, followed by main points, and the last will be the
supporting data, facts, examples, and evidences. General idea comes first before the specific or
particular idea.

In this reasoning, the general idea is all men are mortal. Because of this general reasoning, we
can conclude that Socrates is a man and he is mortal because all men are mortal.
In this case, the general idea is if A then B. Because of this general reasoning, we can conclude
that A is true and B is also true since the general idea says that A is same as B.

2. Inductive Reasoning
In this type of reasoning, supporting data, facts, examples, and evidences come first followed by
the main points and conclusion will be the last part. This is the vice versa of the deductive
reasoning because particular idea comes first before the general idea.

The person says that he exists and he is a human. He also thinks that his pencil sharpener exists.
Therefore, he concluded that his pencil sharpener is human because he concluded that they both
exist.

To make it short, logic features the reasoning and critical thinking. It uses the observation,
pattern, hypothesis, and theory.

E. Fallacies

“It’s a fallacy that eggs are bad for you.” You’ve probably heard the word fallacy used this
way – to refer to false beliefs. Logical fallacies, or just “fallacies” in philosophy, are not false
beliefs; to oversimplify, they are logical errors in argumentation, reasoning, explanation,
rhetoric, or debate. But their precise definition is elusive and controversial.

Fallacies are an important aspect of our lives. Without being able to identify bad reasoning,
humans can be sold all kinds of harmful beliefs with dreadful consequences. Politics,
advertising, and human manipulation in general are full of fallacies; personal and societal
health might depend on being able to spot them.
1. Ad hominem

A theory is discarded not because of any evidence against it or lack of evidence for it, but
because of the person who argues for it. Example:
 A: The Government should enact minimum-wage legislation so that workers are not
exploited.
B: Nonsense. You say that only because you cannot find a good job.

2. Ad ignorantiam (appeal to ignorance)

The truth of a claim is established only on the basis of lack of evidence against it. A simple
obvious example of such fallacy is to argue that unicorns exist because there is no evidence
against such a claim. At first sight it seems that many theories that we describe as scientific
involve such a fallacy. Example:

Since the students have no questions concerning the topics discussed in class, the students are
ready for a test.

3. Ad misericordiam (appeal to pity)

In offering an argument, pity is appealed to. Usually this happens when people argue for special
treatment on the basis of their need. E.g. a student argues that the teacher should let him/her pass
the examination because he/she needs it in order to graduate. Of course, pity might be a relevant
consideration in certain conditions, as in contexts involving charity.
Examples:
If we don't adopt that puppy today, they might put him down. Do you want to be
responsible for that?

4. Ad populum (appeal to popularity)

The truth of a claim is established only on the basis of its popularity and familiarity. This is the
fallacy committed by many commercials. Surely you have heard of commercials implying that
we should buy a certain product because it has made to the top of a sales rank, or because the
brand is the city's "favourite".
Example: These days everyone (except you) has a car and knows how to drive.
So, you too should have a car and know how to drive.

5. Ad baculum (appeal to threat)

The ad baculum fallacy is one of the most controversial because it is hard to see that it is
a fallacy or even that it involves bad reasoning. Ad baculum means “appeal to the stick”
and is generally taken to involve a threat of injury of harm to the person addressed.

Example:
If you don’t join our demonstration against the expansion of the park, we will evict you
from your apartment;
So, you should join our demonstration against the expansion of the park.

6. Equivocation
 The fallacy of equivocation is an argument which exploits the ambiguity of a term or
phrase which has occurred at least twice in an argument, such that on the first occurrence
it has one meaning and on the second another meaning.

Example: The end of life is death.

Happiness is the end of life.
So, death is happiness.

7. Begging the question (petito principii)

The argument begs the question because the premise and conclusion are the very same
proposition, albeit expressed in different words. It is a disguised instance of repetition which
gives no reason for its apparent conclusion.

In arguing for a claim, the claim itself is already assumed in the premise. Example: "God exists
because this is what the Bible says, and the Bible is reliable because it is the Word of God."

*petito principia - Latin word for question begging.

8. Composition (opposite of division)

The whole is assumed to have the same properties as its parts. Anne might be humorous and fun-
loving and an excellent person to invite to the party. The same might be true of Ben, Chris and
David considered individually. But it does not follow that it will be a good idea to invite all of
them to the party. Perhaps they hate each other and the party will be ruined.

9. Division (opposite of composition)

The parts of a whole is assumed to have the same properties of the whole. It is possible that, on a
whole, a company is very effective, while some of its departments are not. It would be
inappropriate to assume they all are.

10. False dilemma

Presenting a limited set of alternatives when there are others that are worth considering in the
context.

Example: "Every person is either my enemy or my friend. If he/she is my enemy, I should hate
him/her. If he/she is my friend, I should love him/her. So I should either love him/her or hate
him/her." Obviously, the conclusion is too extreme because most people are neither your enemy
nor your friend.

11. Hasty Generalization - This fallacy is committed when one reaches a generalization
based on insufficient evidence.

Example: Our neighbor who is a police officer was convicted of being a drug dealer;
therefore, all police officers are drug dealers.
 12. Cause and Effect - Assuming that the effect is related to a cause because both events
occur one after the other.

Example: “My teacher didn’t collect the homework two weeks in a row when my friend
was absent. Therefore, my friend being absent is the reason why my teacher doesn’t
collect the homework.”

What’s More

For you to understand the lesson well, do the following activities.

Have fun and good luck!

Convince Me!
Look at the pictures below. Using the photo as your spring board, convince someone
to do something. Apply any of the methods of philosophizing.

_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
 _________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________

What I Have Learned

Each of the items in the crossword puzzle is a method of Philosophizing. Analyze the clues and
answer them based on the lesson.
 What I Can Do

Here are some enrichment activities for you to work on to master and
I. “ Thisstrengthen
coronavirus pandemic
the basic conceptscan
youmake us better
have learned persons!”
from this lesson.
Write a
short essay
why. Use a combination of opinions and facts.
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________

Great job! You have understood the lesson.

Are you now ready to summarize?

Assessment

I. Read the statements carefully. Evaluate if these are opinions or truths/facts.

1. I know you do not love me. But if we do not get married, it will break my mother’s
heart.
Do you want to break her heart? If not, then we should get married.
Truth Opinion
2. “Dad, everyone in the world has a Facebook account. You should have one.”
Truth Opinion

3. One way to catch coronavirus is when you touch surfaces that someone who has the virus
has coughed or sneezed on. You may touch a countertop or doorknob that's contaminated and
then touch your nose, mouth, or eyes. Therefore, you must wash your hands often.
 Truth Opinion

4. Arvin often eats lumpianada, ice cream, and burgers. He is thin. Lumpianada, ice cream,
and burgers make you thin.
Truth Opinion

5. Our principal, Sir Elmer, said the best mobile phone is Oppo. So, I will buy Oppo
Truth Opinion

II. Give your own examples of at least five (5) fallacies.

1. ___________________________________________________________________

2. ___________________________________________________________________

3. ____________________________________________________________________

4. ___________________________________________________________________

5. ____________________________________________________________________

III Buy me a new phone please! Convince your parents to buy you a new phone. Give your
convincing statements using any of the methods of Philosophizing.
____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

Additional Activities
Buy This! Promote a product you are endorsing. Imagine you are employed by Unilever
Philippines as a script writer to endorse a new product. A new brand of toothpaste will be
launched soon. You will create the spiel to be used in an ad to promote the toothpaste. Write
down the script below. Apply any of the Fallacies.

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

Answer Key:

Let Us Do Some Crosswords!

 Convince Me!

Help the needy/donations to help the poor/

Endorse a lipstick/toothpaste product

A boss sending an employee to do a task

Is it True?
1. I know you do not love me. But if we do not get married, it will break my mother’s
heart.
Do you want to break her heart? If not, then we should get married.
Truth Opinion 
2. “Dad, everyone in the world has a Facebook account. You should have one.”
Truth Opinion 

3. One way to catch coronavirus is when you touch surfaces that someone who has the
virus has coughed or sneezed on. You may touch a countertop or doorknob that's
contaminated and then touch your nose, mouth, or eyes. Therefore, you must wash your
hands often.
Truth  Opinion
 4. Arvin often eats lumpianada, ice cream, and burgers. He is thin. Lumpianada, ice
cream, and burgers make you thin.
Truth Opinion 

5. Our principal, Sir Elmer, said the best mobile phone is Oppo. So, I will buy Oppo
Truth opinion 

RUBRICS

Needs
Excellent Good Satisfactory Poor
Improvement
Total points Total points Total points Total points Total points
(90-100) ( 80-89) (70-79) (60-69) (59 below)

25 – 30 pts 19 – 24 pts 13 – 18 pts 7 - 12 pts below 6 pts

Max: 30 -pts
Opinions/Facts 3 pts per correct answer

Crossword 3 pts per correct answer

Is it True 3 pts per correct answer

25 – 30 pts 19 – 24 pts 13 – 18 pts 7 - 12 pts below 6 pts

Max 30 pts
Fairly
Describes
Describe Truth describes Partially Slightly Unable to
well with
& Fact support well with describes well describes describe
support
Can
Fairly Slightly Cannot
Convince Me convince Convinces
with support convinces convinces convince
Clear and Unclearly
Own Example Well written Fairly written Poorly written
well written written
Statements examples examples examples examples
examples

34 – 40 pts 26 – 33 pts 18 – 25 pts 9 – 17 pts. 8 pts below

Max 40 pts
Expressed Expressed Expressed Unable to
This pandemic Expressed
personal personal personal express
can make us views and
personal views
views and views and personal views
better persons facts well or facts slightly
facts facts fairly or facts
Buy Me a Uses Uses Uses opinions Uses an opinion Does not use
 opinions and
opinions and or facts only
Phone facts well
facts fairly or a fact only any
slightly
well
Uses Uses Uses opinions Uses opinions
Unable to
Promote a opinions and opinions and and facts and facts
facts well to
promote the
Product facts to fairly to slightly to
promote product well
promote promote promote

References:

A. Books
Christine Carmela R. Ramos, PhD. 2016. Introduction to the Philosopy of the Human
Person. Quezon City: Rex Bookstore, Inc.
pp. 28 - 42.

B. Online and Other Sources

Department of Education. http://www.deped.gov.ph/
World facts: https://bestlifeonline.com/world-facts/
Wikipedia : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phenomenology_(philosophy)
https://www.uvu.edu/writingcenter/docs/handouts/writing_process/logicalfallacies.pdf
Power Point Presentation: https://www.slideshare.net/arielgilbuena7/intro-to-the-philosophy-
of-the-human-person-chapter-1-the-process-of-doing-philosophy
https://highexistence.com/topic/what-is-philosophy-how-do-we-do-philosophizing
https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/phenomenology/
https://www.philosophybasics.com/branch_existentialism.html
https://www.britannica.com/topic/postmodernism-philosophy
https://gillemanalo.wordpress.com/2016/12/04/methods-of-philosophizing
https://philosophyterms.com/logical-fallacies/