Philosophy

[Vault Boy]

Anybody else on here interested in/studied philosophy in their time?

I've been looking at heading back to uni and as such have been trying to get back into the swing of reading some academic texts. I studied BA Philosophy previously and have been fairly out of touch with it since finishing a couple of years back, but I'm finding myself regaining the interest I once had in my teens. I'll definitely struggle to write my first couple of essays, though.

What/who are some of your favourite writers, speakers or media related to philosophy?

I've been enjoying the 'Philosophize This' podcast hosted by Stephen West, he's been covering a lot of political philosophy recently with particular focus on the development of liberalism and its critics.

Aside from this, I've been reading (and listening to) a lot of Reza Aslan, who covers interesting ground on religious studies, I'm particularly enjoying his work on the historicity of Jesus.

[Mibbes Aye]

Anybody else on here interested in/studied philosophy in their time?

I've been looking at heading back to uni and as such have been trying to get back into the swing of reading some academic texts. I studied BA Philosophy previously and have been fairly out of touch with it since finishing a couple of years back, but I'm finding myself regaining the interest I once had in my teens. I'll definitely struggle to write my first couple of essays, though.

What/who are some of your favourite writers, speakers or media related to philosophy?

I've been enjoying the 'Philosophize This' podcast hosted by Stephen West, he's been covering a lot of political philosophy recently with particular focus on the development of liberalism and its critics.

Aside from this, I've been reading (and listening to) a lot of Reza Aslan, who covers interesting ground on religious studies, I'm particularly enjoying his work on the historicity of Jesus.

In short, yes.

I have a demanding job but could fit something in around it, through the Open Universityor part-time with other universities , and I have been toying with ideas for the last year or two. Up until austerity and then Covid there was scope for my work to fund me to do a PhD. Not so sure now but you never know...

I have a Masters related to my work but I have always been tempted by taking on a Masters in philosophy. I have a couple of acquaintances who studied philosophy at post grad level and they found it hard going but positive.

I have always been intrigued by Foucault and when I did my Masters my dissertation was based on critical discourse analysis around a specific area of my profession, which was maybe verging into linguistics but clearly related to Foucauldian concepts of knowledge and power. It fascinates me.

Were I to undertake a PhD it would have to be more directly related to my work I suspect, though I would love to do more ‘pure’ work simply around critical discourse analysis. Words are knowledge, words are power :greengrin

[Mibbes Aye]

Meant to add, my father-in-law is keen I do a PhD on the adoption of the Tridentine Mass in the sixteenth century.

If you want a religious angle, going back to the Great Schism in the eleventh century is fertile soil from a philosophical stance, while still containing a healthy amount of geopolitics!

[Smartie]

I find the subject of philosophy interesting but I must admit to knowing very little about it.

To ask a daft and quite possibly offensive question - what really is the practical use of it in the modern world?

If you have a qualification in philosophy, what use is it and what can it do to help you career-wise?

My folks were often dismissive of stuff like philosophy and the Arts and were fairly determined that I'd go down a particular route. That hasn't exactly led to happiness and prosperity (although I may get there yet) and I'm curious to learn more about stuff that I had been taught to dismiss.

[CropleyWasGod]

I find the subject of philosophy interesting but I must admit to knowing very little about it.

To ask a daft and quite possibly offensive question - what really is the practical use of it in the modern world?

If you have a qualification in philosophy, what use is it and what can it do to help you career-wise?

My folks were often dismissive of stuff like philosophy and the Arts and were fairly determined that I'd go down a particular route. That hasn't exactly led to happiness and prosperity (although I may get there yet) and I'm curious to learn more about stuff that I had been taught to dismiss.

I'd say it's invaluable as a life-tool, particularly as a parent :greengrin

Your parents sound like many of their generation, where the belief was that the only subjects worth learning about were those that got you a job. (that's not a criticism, btw; it's the natural thing for parents to do.) Whilst that is important, of course, the arts and similar subjects can be so important in framing one's approach to life.

That's my philosophy, grasshopper.

[Vault Boy]

I find the subject of philosophy interesting but I must admit to knowing very little about it.

To ask a daft and quite possibly offensive question - what really is the practical use of it in the modern world?

If you have a qualification in philosophy, what use is it and what can it do to help you career-wise?

My folks were often dismissive of stuff like philosophy and the Arts and were fairly determined that I'd go down a particular route. That hasn't exactly led to happiness and prosperity (although I may get there yet) and I'm curious to learn more about stuff that I had been taught to dismiss.

It's a fair question and it's really something I asked myself a lot when it came to picking my subject at uni.

The first thing I'd say is Philosophy actually ranks well on the employment/wage statistics, outperforming most other humanities subjects quite significantly. Part of this will be to do with there being fewer philosophy grads than say history or English, however I think a large contributing factor are the skills it encourages. Learning formal logic, fairly intense writing and debate, reason and rationality are all valued traits for employers. It's still considered a fairly hefty and difficult degree to pursue, so doing well in it is more a proof of capability than anything, at least that's what a few employers have said to me.

As for its purpose as a subject in the modern world, I think this largely comes down to its diversity. There are always fundamental questions that humanity asks itself, and where science is no longer a useful tool to try to answer them, philosophy steps in. There are areas of philosophy that tie in very closely to most any other topic you could think of - philosophy of history, philosophy of science, philosophy of politics, philosophy of art... Etc. Really it can pertain to any level of in depth thought on a given subject, but in an academic sense it would be a very thoroughly researched and argued exploration of it.

More specifically, I'd say that science is very good at testing a hypothesis and collecting data, but is often not so good at talking about the implications of their work. Philosophy isn't so great at data creation, but usually does a convincing job at considering the ramifications of new discoveries, be they political, existential or social, and nurturing debate.

Finally, some areas where academic philosophers are used directly are - the Middle East schism, environmental ethics, journalism, policy advising, historical research, sociological research etc.

What interests you about philosophy, Smartie?

[Vault Boy]

Meant to add, my father-in-law is keen I do a PhD on the adoption of the Tridentine Mass in the sixteenth century.

If you want a religious angle, going back to the Great Schism in the eleventh century is fertile soil from a philosophical stance, while still containing a healthy amount of geopolitics!

Glad there's another interested dot netter! Sounds like you've got quite an interesting and specialised background there! Linguistics isn't my strongest suit, though I know I'll probably have to do a bit of it if I'm back in uni in September, so might refer to this thread for help... :greengrin

The Schism is fascinating and it's clear that some areas are still doing their best to get over it *ahem*. I've kind of been working my way forward from the start of the New Testament - I've got a fairly decent background knowledge of the ancient Greeks, but realised that the closer I got to -the year 0, the less I knew. I think once I learn a bit more about the historical and social context of that famous ol' Nazarean, I might jump to mediaeval practice. Religious studies are definitely an interest of mine but I should probably be reading the more standard Descartes and **** in preparation. 😅

How much scope is there for you to study some philosophy if you were to do a PhD related to your work?

[Pretty Boy]

It was something I was quite interested in when I was younger. Like may things I lost interest for a long while before picking it up again as I got older.

I've always been drawn towards theology and religious philosophy. I read The Presumption of Atheism by Flew when I was about 16 and that set me down that path. Richard Swinburnes theism trilogy is fascinating but a far from an easy read. Is There a God? is probably the most accessible of his work. Swinburne tempted me to try and get to grips with Thomas Aquinas as well but I never really did. I also like some of the ideas of Charles Hartshorne. From a more explicitly religious and theological point of view the prominent Catholic theologians from the Nouvelle théologie movement, most notably Joseph Ratzinger who became Pope, are worth a read if you are interested in the shifting of doctrines.

[Pretty Boy]

Meant to add, my father-in-law is keen I do a PhD on the adoption of the Tridentine Mass in the sixteenth century.

If you want a religious angle, going back to the Great Schism in the eleventh century is fertile soil from a philosophical stance, while still containing a healthy amount of geopolitics!

Out of interest what is your father in laws stance or opinion on the Tridentine Mass? Or is it just an area that interests him.

I'm aware I may have just entered dangerous territory:greengrin

[pollution]

Only on Hibs.net :rolleyes:

[Vault Boy]

Only on Hibs.net :rolleyes:

What does that even mean?

[Mibbes Aye]

Glad there's another interested dot netter! Sounds like you've got quite an interesting and specialised background there! Linguistics isn't my strongest suit, though I know I'll probably have to do a bit of it if I'm back in uni in September, so might refer to this thread for help... :greengrin

The Schism is fascinating and it's clear that some areas are still doing their best to get over it *ahem*. I've kind of been working my way forward from the start of the New Testament - I've got a fairly decent background knowledge of the ancient Greeks, but realised that the closer I got to -the year 0, the less I knew. I think once I learn a bit more about the historical and social context of that famous ol' Nazarean, I might jump to mediaeval practice. Religious studies are definitely an interest of mine but I should probably be reading the more standard Descartes and **** in preparation. 😅

How much scope is there for you to study some philosophy if you were to do a PhD related to your work?

In answer to your last point, definitely I guess. In your response to Smartie you highlighted that there are philosophies of thematic areas and that would apply to me. I would want to try and find a connection with critical discourse analysis because that really does intrigue me. I suspect that I would probably require to mainly self-fund and do it part-time, resources are tight and will likely get tighter in my line of work and at the moment I am a few years in to learning a relatively challenging foreign language. Conscious though that I can keep putting it off for ‘valid’ reasons and never get round to it!

If it was work-related it would definitely link to Foucault and his ilk, constructions of knowledge and power etc.

[Mibbes Aye]

Out of interest what is your father in laws stance or opinion on the Tridentine Mass? Or is it just an area that interests him.

I'm aware I may have just entered dangerous territory:greengrin

He’s a semi-retired CoS minister but did a lot of ecumenical and cross-faith work internationally. It is fair to say we have broad-ranging and interesting conversations given I am as loose RC as could be possible!

I think he is like me and interested in ideas and change, and what brings them about. So the Tridentine Mass and how it came about and how it was subsequently revised is fascinating, in terms of politics, sociology, societal change amongst the population and attitudinal changes in the priesthood and so on, as much as being theological.

I don’t think he has a strong view, doesn’t see it as his turf as it were, but he was an inveterate student for decades, racking up degrees and I suspect he would like to do a PhD on the development of the subject but feels it is maybe beyond him now, hence encouraging me.

The problem is the historical context, it suddenly runs out of control because you want to factor in the Council of Trent and the Thirty Years War and so on!

[Mibbes Aye]

I find the subject of philosophy interesting but I must admit to knowing very little about it.

To ask a daft and quite possibly offensive question - what really is the practical use of it in the modern world?

If you have a qualification in philosophy, what use is it and what can it do to help you career-wise?

My folks were often dismissive of stuff like philosophy and the Arts and were fairly determined that I'd go down a particular route. That hasn't exactly led to happiness and prosperity (although I may get there yet) and I'm curious to learn more about stuff that I had been taught to dismiss.

In terms of application, a lot of senior people in the NHS are not from a clinical background, they are graduates in philosophy, geography or whatever. They enter into NHS management training schemes, get shunted around managing orthopaedic/stroke recovery services, substance misuse teams, primary care services, strategic planning, finance, HR and so on and so forth. And climb the slippery pole.

[Bishop Hibee]

My youngest brother teaches RME at an Edinburgh non-denominational secondary school. His Higher Philosophy classes have 50 pupils in total which I was impressed at. Not a Higher that existed as an option in my day.

I’ve enjoyed a few of these during lockdown

https://www.theosthinktank.co.uk/comment/2017/12/06/introducing-the-sacred-podcast

[Mibbes Aye]

Glad there's another interested dot netter! Sounds like you've got quite an interesting and specialised background there! Linguistics isn't my strongest suit, though I know I'll probably have to do a bit of it if I'm back in uni in September, so might refer to this thread for help... :greengrin

The Schism is fascinating and it's clear that some areas are still doing their best to get over it *ahem*. I've kind of been working my way forward from the start of the New Testament - I've got a fairly decent background knowledge of the ancient Greeks, but realised that the closer I got to -the year 0, the less I knew. I think once I learn a bit more about the historical and social context of that famous ol' Nazarean, I might jump to mediaeval practice. Religious studies are definitely an interest of mine but I should probably be reading the more standard Descartes and **** in preparation. 😅

How much scope is there for you to study some philosophy if you were to do a PhD related to your work?

Have you got a strong idea about your dissertation topic or thesis?

I think nailing your ‘question’ and accepting you will give a few years of your life to it is the big step. Got to be something that motivates you, because at some points it will unmotivate you, but if it is a topic you are passionate about or are really interested in, then it should see you through.

[Mibbes Aye]

My youngest brother teaches RME at an Edinburgh non-denominational secondary school. His Higher Philosophy classes have 50 pupils in total which I was impressed at. Not a Higher that existed as an option in my day.

I’ve enjoyed a few of these during lockdown

https://www.theosthinktank.co.uk/comment/2017/12/06/introducing-the-sacred-podcast

It has changed a lot since my day, but my son is going into Highers and likely to pick RME and Modern Studies amongst his options. I don’t think Philosophy is on offer otherwise he would be up for it. It is a really good comp, one of the best in the region, and I am not unhappy with what they offer. Higher Philosophy would be nice though, maybe a bit mind-jangling for some other teens

[Peevemor]

Although things are due to change a wee bit next year, "philo" is obligatory to the tune of 4 hours per week in French lycées (equivalent S4-S6) and is always the most awaited/dreaded part of the final baccalauréat exams.

[Vault Boy]

Dragging up this old thread again.

In the last couple of days I've been accepted to uni and registered all the necessary details etc. My course starts on the 28th, I'm really excited to go back (particularly at a time where the job market is questionable), but I'm also quite nervous about how I'll adapt, given it's been over three years since I've written an essay or sat an exam.

Does anyone else have first hand experience of returning to higher education after a hiatus? If so, any reflections, tips, warnings or general thoughts? Your insights would be really appreciated! I'm concerned that I'll never be able to write a proper essay again, let alone perform well under the time crunch of an exam. :greengrin

It looks like 90%+ of the course will be online, which will bring its own quirks, but no different to any other online learning that existed prior to lockdown I suppose.

[H18 SFR]

Dragging up this old thread again.

In the last couple of days I've been accepted to uni and registered all the necessary details etc. My course starts on the 28th, I'm really excited to go back (particularly at a time where the job market is questionable), but I'm also quite nervous about how I'll adapt, given it's been over three years since I've written an essay or sat an exam.

Does anyone else have first hand experience of returning to higher education after a hiatus? If so, any reflections, tips, warnings or general thoughts? Your insights would be really appreciated! I'm concerned that I'll never be able to write a proper essay again, let alone perform well under the time crunch of an exam. :greengrin

It looks like 90%+ of the course will be online, which will bring its own quirks, but no different to any other online learning that existed prior to lockdown I suppose.

I’ve experienced being a returning learner.

My tip, study, study, study and then study more.

Eat, sleep and breathe learning.

[Hibernia&Alba]

I studied History and Philosophy at BA and MA. There are so many great thinkers I enjoy reading, though my speciality is modern Existentialism: Kierkeegard, de Beauvoir, Satre; the literature of Dostoevsky, Samuel Beckett, Knut Hamsun. I tell everyone who will listen to read Dostoevsky and then go further back to Hamlet plus the Classical Greeks and Romans, e.g. Seneca and Marcus Aurelius. What is it to be human? You can't get more fundamental than that; cut to the chase. Philosophy (and its offshoots) prepares us for no career yet teaches us everything about who we are, and I have no regrets studying it. My personal favourite thinkers for starters, fiction and non-fiction, and in no order at all:

Bertrand Russell
Isaiah Berlin
Seneca
Marcus Aurelius
Simone de Beauvior
Michel de Montaigne
Thomas Paine
Karl Marx
John Stuart Mill
Fyodor Dostoevsky
Leo Tolstoy
Knut Hamsun
Samuel Beckett
William Shakespeare
Albert Camus

There are so many others I could mention, but these are the thinkers I find myself returning to again and again for my interests.

Just a few ideas, yet it depends upon what your particular interests are and what you want to study. Your interests in the vast subject of philosophical study might be very different from mine. Just explore and enjoy.

[Hibernia&Alba]

Dragging up this old thread again.

In the last couple of days I've been accepted to uni and registered all the necessary details etc. My course starts on the 28th, I'm really excited to go back (particularly at a time where the job market is questionable), but I'm also quite nervous about how I'll adapt, given it's been over three years since I've written an essay or sat an exam.

Does anyone else have first hand experience of returning to higher education after a hiatus? If so, any reflections, tips, warnings or general thoughts? Your insights would be really appreciated! I'm concerned that I'll never be able to write a proper essay again, let alone perform well under the time crunch of an exam. :greengrin

It looks like 90%+ of the course will be online, which will bring its own quirks, but no different to any other online learning that existed prior to lockdown I suppose.


Organise your time well and reference as many sources as possible in the time you have for your chosen essays. Don't be afraid to express yourself; make sure you finish your course with no regrets, having not held back. If you give it your best, that's all you can do. Be assertive with yourself.

[Hibernia&Alba]

I forgot to mention that, assuming it's Western philosophy you will be studying, a great book to have is Bertrand Russell's History of Western Philosophy, which discusses many of the major thinkers and their ideas from the pre-Socratics to the twentieth century and is written in his famous clear prose. I still reference it. A new copy is about £20, but you could get a good quality second hand copy for a few pounds. And do try to read some of the great philosophical fiction; some philosophers did of course also write fiction as a vehicle to discuss their ideas in 'real life' situations.

[GreenNWhiteArmy]

I've been toying with the idea of going back in to education. I'm in a job that I don't really like and doesn't pay too great

It absolutely petrifies me, and I'm only 31

[H18 SFR]

I've been toying with the idea of going back in to education. I'm in a job that I don't really like and doesn't pay too great

It absolutely petrifies me, and I'm only 31

Do you have the qualifications needed to secure a place?

If not, first thing to engage with his this...

https://www.scottishwideraccess.org/

[GreenNWhiteArmy]

Do you have the qualifications needed to secure a place?

If not, first thing to engage with his this...

https://www.scottishwideraccess.org/

I think so, although it would be a career change so need to properly check the entry requirements.

Its the financial outlay and length of time it could take that scares me most rather than the subject matter

[H18 SFR]

I think so, although it would be a career change so need to properly check the entry requirements.

Its the financial outlay and length of time it could take that scares me most rather than the subject matter

The extra salary being a graduate might be worth it long term.

[Just_Jimmy]

The extra salary being a graduate might be worth it long term.depending what the subject is and where it leads. the economy is ruined and it won't get much better in the next few years. going to uni isn't the easy answer. going back certainly is not.

anyone doing so really should weigh up why and where they want to go.

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