My Own Philosophy

There is not a philosophy in Sophie’s World with which I completely agree, but my own beliefs could come from pieces of different philosophers’ ideas. I agree with Socrates that questions are an important part of learning, and it is important to note that even if someone devotes their entire life to learning and studying, it is impossible to know everything. This is a crucial point, because many secrets of the universe cannot be known on earth. Plato’s theory of a separate world of ideas does not seem right to me; as Alberto states, those ideas could have come from even earlier forms, and so on. However, I agree that there are certain “laws” that are always true, truths that can be figured out by logic no matter who is considering them. Even if these truths do not exist everywhere in the universe, even if they are exclusively human, humans are the only ones who have the power of reasoning here on Earth, so these truths are all we know, making them right for us. “Two plus two equals four” is true in every language and to everyone in every part of the world; logic cannot be avoided or disputed. Even though some of the philosophers stated that there is nothing we can just assume about the world, I believe some things can be found to be true by anyone on earth, so they are universal truths, a fact that cannot be ignored. In the matter of mixing faith with reason, I agree that the belief that there is a higher being is logical. Someone must have created us, and most people on earth look to a higher power for answers. However, who this being may be is purely a personal decision. I cannot reach the conclusion the Christian God created the world through logic; faith is the only way to fully believe in a religion. I agree with Kant that both rationalists and empiricists has something missing in their ideas, but I could not completely agree with Kant’s philosophy because he did not think that humans could come up with answers to large questions about the universe. I particularly liked Hume’s philosophy, which is why I will be discussing his beliefs in my essay. While reading this novel, I have been forced to decide how much of life has become habit to me. I honestly believe that I still have some sense of wonder of the world and all of God’s creations. I am still interested in learning and asking questions, so I must not be buried down too deep in the rabbit’s fur. I must strive to keep this thirst for knowledge throughout my life, and I hope to learn more about philosophy to help accomplish this.