What Is Truth?
& Why Is It Important?
1. Knowledge
- The clear awareness and
understanding of something. It is the
product of questions that allow for
clear answers provided by facts.
- Our knowledge is comprised of deas
and beliefs that we know to be true
" One important asppect
I know that... of knowledge. It is
I know why... based on reality. This
simply means that we
I know how... know is what is
observable or evident in
the real world.
2. Facts
- Propositions or statements which are
observed to be real or truthful.
Example
"I know that fish live in water."
How do we know?
Because fish really do live in water.
3. Claim
• Statements that are not evidently or immediately
known to be true
• They require further examination to establish
whether it is true or false
Example
"I know that my school is the best school in the city"
You may know that reading is a better activity than
playing basketball but the truth of your statement will
be contested by other people.
How do we know if something is TRUE?
• Ancient Greek Philosophers approached the
problem of truth by looking at the nature of
knowledge and how we know what we know.
• We assume that everything we know about this
world is true. But philosophers who pondered
upon the origins knowledge doubted everything
there is to know about themselves and the world.
Doubt has very important purpose in
philosophy
• As it drives our desire to discover truth. In
philosophy, systematic doubt is employed to
determine truth. This means that every statement,
claim, evidence, is srutunized and analysed.
• Nothing is taken as true unless there is sufficient
reason and evidence to prove that is indeed true.
Example
• Am I alive?
• Do I have a body?
• Can I breathe?
Now, Examine yourself
• Do you have a pulse? Can you feel your heartbeat?
• Do you have arms, legs and feet?
• Try to take a deep breath, then exhale. Were you
able to do it?
• If your answer is "yes" then you can conclude with
certainty that.....
• You can now say...
• I am alive!
• I have a body!
• I can breathe!
1. A BELIEF is true if...
Itcan be justified or prove through the use of one's
senses
EXAMPLE:
• I am a Filipino
Can we use our senses to prove this statements as facts?
We can look at a dictionary
• FIlipino (noun):
-A native of the Philippine Island
-A citizen of the Republic of the Philippines
2. A BELIEF IS TRUE IF...
It is based on facts
2. A BELIEF is true if...
It is based on facts.
Are you now convinced that you are a filipino?
If not...
We can try the following...
Ask your parents or other relatives.
OR
Look for official documents that prove you are a
Filipino.
When all of your family members answered "Yes!"…
THEN YOU ARE A FILIPINO.
3. A BELIEF is true if...
You get a consensus and people agree on a common
belief.
BUT
This approach has certain limitations.
Getting everyone agree on something
May not make that belief true
4. A BELIEF is true if...
There are official documents/ supporting
facts.
Looking at Official Documents
Birth Certificate Since it is issued
shows factual by an institution BUT, this also
information that the
regarding your documents are has a limitation
birth truthful
Evidence
Especially documents can be forged or falsified.
A person may be issued with documents
But it may contain wrong information or
typographical error
If your name is mispelled in your birth certificate
DOES YOUR IDENTITY CHANGE
Example:
• I can ride a bike/ Can I ride a bike?
• I can fry an egg? Can I fry an egg?
5. A BELIEF is true if...
A person can prove a statement through an
action.
6. Philosophers argue that a BELIEF is true if..
It is subjected to tests to determine the truth
How can philosophy guide us in
distinguishing truth from opinion
Opinion
• Comprised of statements which not only give facts
but also provide conclusion or perspectives
regarding certain situations.
• They may advance a belief about certain things or
provide explanations.
• The bases for making arguma=ents and convincing
people that a ceratin claim is a fact. They are often
influenced by bias.
Conclusion
• Judgement based on certain facts.
BELIEFS
• Statements that express convictions that are not
easily and clearly explained by facts.
• To judge the truthfulness of a belief, we must also
consider things such as the person's experiences
Beliefs
Example: "I believe that God put me on
this earth to spread gis message of love."
Explanation
• Statements that assume the claim to be
true and provide reasons why the
statement is true.
• Example: Statement 4: My sister is
selfish because...
Arguments
• Series of statements that provide reason to convince
the reader or listener that a claim or option is truthful.
• They often take the form of statements that are either
claims of facts and are phrased in such a way that they
seem reasonable.
Example: Encountered in formal debates.
Logic
• Is the branch of philosophy that focuses
on the analysis of arguments.
Fallacy (Kamalian)
• An idea that a lot of people think is true
but is in fact false
• A misleading argument.
FALLACY
FALLACY
Bias (Pagkiling)
• The personal views of the person presenting it.
• They are not necessarily errors in reasoning, but
refer to tendencies or influences which affect the
views of people.
BIAS
BIAS
Thank you!!!
