The Philosophy of Truth
Dissecting the truth is a laborious task that may result in man’s changed perception of the truth. Hence, conflict may arise until a person or a group comes up with a logical argument about the truth. And how do we do that? Through the methods of Science, of course. However, the philosophy of truth is too complicated a matter that even the Scientific method won’t suffice. The ways of Science goes like this: propose a question; come up with possible answers (hypotheses); test the hypotheses; repeat the experiment many times; and, take note of the results. From this, the answer emerges and the hypotheses are declared as either true or false (right or wrong). However, a philosopher’s view of truth differs greatly. To philosophers, there are instances in which the Scientific method falters. In philosophy, the truth comes in various versions. Some people’s truths are confined to their beliefs, others to their pride. Religion and culture affect our perception of certain matters. Also, selfishness, pride, and insecurities often drive a man to create his versions of the truth. Both, however, do not affect the real truth. These influence only affect man’s perception of the truth. Moreover, man’s thirst for knowledge often leads him to discoveries that contradicts what has been declared as truth. A good example of this is the Geocentricism which indicated that the Earth was the center of the universe. It wasn’t until later knowledge, paired with technological developments, did Copernicus discovered that the Sun was the center of the Solar System and that there are planets revolving around it, including Earth. This is one of the most difficult things about truth: the truth we carry now may not be tomorrow’s truth. Such a thought leads us to contemplate if we have ever really grasp on the real truth. Science has helped us debunk many truths of the past. Even theories of truth such as correspondence theory and coherence theory of truth have their loopholes. Given that there are many theories which govern the truth, it only goes to show how determining the real truth is an existential challenge. The truth may not be as deep nor as shallow as we assume it to be, but perhaps we have stumbled over it and allowed the human mind to make something out of it. It could also be that our growing doubt for precision and exactness’ sake has caused us to miss the truth. “Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing ever happened.” Winston Churchill Have you read my article about Is there Comfort in Lies? Read the full article