Ontology and Epistemology: My Beliefs - Essay Example

 Ontology and Epistemology: My Beliefs What is reality? If whatever we see, hear, feel, taste and smell constitutes reality, then is reality merely a collection of data perceived through our senses? What is real? What is true? Is what is true the same or different from what we believe to be true? If it is, or is not, how do we know? In philosophy, there are many ways to study the different points of knowledge from a human perspective. Reality is full of wonders and questions begging to be answered. In this essay, we will talk about two important ways of studying a phenomenon in reality. We will talk about ontology and its direct, objective approach to studying an entity, and epistemology, with its more intrinsic approach concerning knowledge, truth, belief, and justification. Ontology Ontology is the study of things that exist and their nature of being (“Ontology”). It is said that everything that has a name exists and every noun points to an actual entity. Ontology is the study about that entity. Whether the concept is concrete such as a microorganism, or abstract such as resilience, the study of that entity as something that exists is the ontological approach. It is generally a descriptive and categorical way of thinking that examines the nuts and bolts of an existing entity, categorizing and differentiating it from other entities. I am holding a flower. The flower I am holding is a rose. The thorns are pointy and can pierce my skin. These are all ontological notions. Therefore, Ontology is the recognition and classification of an entity that exists and its constituent parts. Epistemology Epistemology on the other hand, is the study of knowledge. It questions what a person knows, how he knows what he knows, and how much a person can know about something. Some philosophers believe that knowledge is a “True Belief” that has “Justification”. So the three components of knowledge are that it should be true, the person with the knowledge must believe it is true, and there should be proof or justification that it is true (Sahakian and Sahakian). If epistemology is about knowledge, this is how they look at the situation: I KNOW it is a flower because all flowers have a stem, a stalk, leaves and a bunch of petals on the tip. This is true because it is consistent with other flowers that also have the same characteristics. I KNOW it is in my hand because I can feel it and see it in my hand. This is true under the correspondence theory of truth and Naive Realism. I KNOW it is a rose because I was taught by my teacher that this is what a rose looks like. This is true under the criteria of authority. I KNOW that the thorns can pierce my skin because pointy objects can pierce my skin. This is true under Consensus Gentium. All these things are considered knowledge because I believe that they are as they are, and my beliefs are proven to be true because the justification satisfies the criteria of truth. Satisfying the criteria of truth is needed to justify a proposition. There are many criteria for truth, some of which are valid, and others are not. These criteria are all valid or invalid to certain extents. Belief Belief is simpler. It is what can potentially be knowledge if it is found to be true and justified. What a person believes is not necessarily the truth but belief alone is not considered as knowledge. People believe something in the hopes that it would explain phenomena that happen in their everyday life. Beliefs are proposed truths to be subjected to justification that are used to answer questions about reality. Some things I believe in are doing good, being well rounded, putting effort and God. Doing Good My first belief is that when you do well, good will come to you and makes you a happier person. I have realized that I cannot truly be a happy person unless I feel as I have done some good in the world. When I first entered high school in the 9th grade, there was a lot of talk about extra curriculum activities and charity work. We even had an entire meeting for all the different clubs you could join and ways to earn community service hours. I was told that each student by their senior year would have done 100 hours of community service to graduate. I thought to myself, “not only do I want to earn those hours but, I truly want to do something to make a difference”. One night I was sitting at home and I asked my parents where they where going all dressed up. They told me that they were going to The Gabrielle’s Angel Foundation Gala for cancer research. This was a charity started by my close family friend Denise Rich. An idea came into my head at that moment. I decided I wanted to throw an event for kids in high school for that charity. I wanted not only to raise money, but more importantly spread the word out how importantly making a difference was to a younger generation. I created an event that would raise awareness for tons of teens. The charity that was created by Denise Rich was for her daughter Gabrielle that died from cancer. Her daughter’s last wish was for a foundation to be started. When I looked into the video it really moved me especially that Gabrielle died at such a young age. I could not imagine how her family must have felt. I had pulled a lot of strings, written a lot of letters and gotten a lot of my friends on board to throw this event. Natasha Bedingfield ended up coming on board and performing at the event along with Ed Westwick and other celebrities. Since my family has a lot of connections I thought I would use them to benefit my event; I got a space for free, tons of sponsors and big names to draw in a crowd. I got over 500 teens from around the tri state area to come in and support the cause by buying tickets to attend this event. When the event was over, I had raised over 70 thousand dollars. Besides the money collected, everyone in high school could not stop talking about the event and how good it was as well as the cause. Also, when the event was over, I ended up in the New York Times, on Fox 5 News and other places for what I had done. It was exactly what I wanted and better; I really got to raise awareness. I was so happy and proud of myself that I could accomplish this amazing thing at the young age of 15. I was also later awarded at my school and had my photo and what I had done posted on the wall right when you walked in the building. This brought me joy that I really had done well for others and came to understand how important what I did really was. Since I thought I was good at this, I decided to join other charity boards in high school such as Operation Smile and Teen Effort. I helped to throw those events, as well. The Junior charity I had started I still throw every other year even out of high school and have raised over 200 thousand dollars after three events. Doing these events to raise money, for causes I cared about made me feel happier inside and that I was a better person. I really think that if everyone did something to help someone else out that they would feel like a better person and good things would come to them too. Being Well Rounded I think being well rounded is a very important part of life. Sticking to just one thing without trying anything else makes you lose out on what life really is about. At just the age of 19 I really feel as if I have experienced a lot of what life has to offer. I think in order to understand the world and you have to try new things all the time. This will make you a happier person and make you able to adapt to people who are different from you, which is very important. Besides doing charity work and helping others, there are so many different things I have done in my life. Even though I have not stuck to everything it is nice to say I have at least tried many things once. Sports are just one thing. Even though I would not say I really enjoy sports I decided to try several of them. Since I was young I have tried many sports such as tennis, golf, basket ball, soccer, karate, and hockey skating. They were not really for me, but I like to say I have tried everything. When I was young I went to a day camp In the Hamptons. My camp was called the Art Farm. Here at a young age I learned to do many different things that today I still love. One thing I got to do was play with all different types of animals on the camp. I love animals today and think they are all living beings that need to be cared about. I also learned how to surf. Since I was a child, I loved the water and all water sports. Surfing is a really fun activity. I also started to do art work at a young age, and today I still really enjoy art. I got to act in plays also and take acting lessons. I did enjoy that for a while but realized it was not for me. Though, it is nice to say I have tried acting. Then as I grew older I went to a sleep away camp where I got to join three teams, which I really enjoyed. One was the swim team. I loved to swim and got to compete with other camps. I ended up winning a lot of medals which made me feel good about myself that I got to do something I enjoy and be good at it. The other two teams I joined were the tennis team and rock climbing team. I continued those for the six summers I was at camp but stopped after that. I still enjoy doing both sometimes but do not really have the time anymore to do them continuously. Two of my favorite hobbies are photography and skiing. I love photography because I like to capture different ways of life. My photography is mostly when I travel. I also love to travel. Traveling I think is another way of becoming well rounded. I feel very fortunate that I have been able to go to places like Israel, Ireland, China, Italy and many other places and learn about there culture. I really enjoy learning about different ways of life and also photographing the scenes. Skiing is another activity I enjoy that I get to do with my family and friends, meet great people and ski in different places around the world. I feel now that I can relate to so many people. I feel like since I am a well rounded person it is easier for me to adapt to situations and be a happier person. In everyone’s life, it is so important to try different things. One example I can use is my cousin. My cousin all throughout high school was a straight A student. She really focused on her work and always studied. She even got an amazing score on her SATS. Her dream her entire life was to attend Brown University. When she applied she did not have anything to say for the extra curricular section. She assumed that since she was such a hard worker that she would be automatically considered for admission but, unfortunately, she was not accepted. Colleges today really are not just looking for the straight A student nobody is. People want someone is well rounded in life and in college. It is important to have experienced life and not just stick to what you know. Effort I believe that when you put effort into something only good can come from it. It really is not easy to accomplish something without really trying. One example is weight loss. When I came towards the middle of my freshman year at Syracuse, I became unhappy with myself. I was unhappy because I had gained a lot of weight. I was too lazy to diet or eat right. Then one of my friends told me that she would help me. I started working out with her every day and eating right. Many people told me that by working out you get endorphins and endorphins make you happy. I didn’t believe it until it happened to me. I quickly had lost a ton of weight by the end of the year at Syracuse. I became a lot more confident and happier with myself than previously. When I got home to Manhattan after the year was over, one of my friends recommended her trainer. I started seeing a trainer three times a week and became even happier with myself. Now that, I eat healthier and work out every week, I am just a happier person in general. Before I wanted to be happy with how I looked, but it wasn’t until I put effort into it that I achieved my goal, nothing really can be achieved without effort. Another example is my dyslexia. In third grade, I was at a large private school in Manhattan. I was not able to keep up with my work and soon was diagnosed with dyslexia. I was then sent to the Stephan Gaynor School for learning disabilities. At a young age, I was upset that I thought I was “different”. I knew that I could never be mainstreamed back into a regular school again. All throughout middle school, I put forward an effort to get past my dyslexia. I am happy I went to the special school because it really helped me get over my dyslexia. From really working hard I was able to graduate in the 7th grade and in 8th grade, I moved to York Preparatory school. I was able to be mainstreamed. If I did not put forth and effort and attend the special school I would have never been able to pass my dyslexia. God My entire life I have believed in God. I always thought that there was someone watching over me. My parents both believe in God and also in the Jewish religion he is there. I really do believe god does everything for a reason, and in time that reason will be figured out. One example of this is college. My whole life I was set on going to NYU. I had no doubt that I was getting in but, when I got my letter, I was shocked that I didn’t get admitted. I did not understand why this would happen. Now even though I am home in Manhattan often. I love Syracuse University. I have made such great friends and really enjoy my major and my classes. I think that it happened for a reason that I ended up at Syracuse and not NYU. Another good example is an event that occurred this summer. My dad is the best father I could ever ask for. He is completely healthy, but over the summer while he was golfing one day he had an awful heart attack and was rushed to the hospital. I have never been so upset or scared in my life. They were not sure if he was going to make it or not. That day I really looked to God and prayed that my father would be okay. Hours went by, and my dad was ok and today he is very healthy. I really think that god was watching over me that day. I am so thankful my father is okay and it is experiences like that that really makes me extremely appreciative. Conclusion These four things are just some of my many beliefs. People believe in all different things. I truly believe that, from my experiences, these beliefs are correct and have helped me in my life. Living is belief, and everyone needs to be able to believe. This is because, without beliefs, an individual’s life cannot be complete since beliefs define what is real according to an individual. Works Cited “Ontology.” Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2012. . Sahakian, William, and Mabel Sahakian. Ideas of the Great Philosophers. New York, NY: Barnes & Noble, 1993. Print. Read More