Types of worldview: the search for truth

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:43

How did the universe form? Who created the Earth? What is the origin of man? What is the meaning of human life? What happens after death? What is good and evil? Where to look for justice? Each person asks himself questions that can be classified as “eternal”. Not a single generation of people has been able to answer them unequivocally. However, depending on the answers, different types of worldview can be traced.

The system of concepts about the world and man determines our worldview. Its structure and historical types are briefly covered in this article.

The following components are distinguished in the structure of the worldview:

• Informative. This is knowledge and ideas about nature, society, history.
• Value-normative. They make up the ideals, norms and values of a person and society.
• Emotional-volitional. Reflects the psychological attitude to live in accordance with their beliefs.

It is customary to distinguish between ordinary and theoretical levels of worldview.

Ordinary worldview develops spontaneously, based on everyday experience and common sense. It is not devoid of contradictions, since at this level it is impossible to penetrate into the innerthe essence of the diverse and complex relations of the "man - the world" system.

Critical reflection on worldview beliefs becomes possible at the second, theoretical level. The theoretical core of the worldview of our era is philosophy.

Before its appearance, the world order was explained by mythological and religious types of worldview.

Mythology is a form of human culture containing the rudiments of religion, morality, science and art. The mythological worldview is inseparable from the emotional sphere, it is a fantastic reflection of reality. A characteristic feature of this type of thinking is syncretism - the unity of knowledge and faith, real and imaginary. The mythological worldview operates with images and is artistic.

At the heart of the religious worldview is belief in supernatural forces. Mythological and religious types of worldview are united by the priority of sensory perception of reality. The difference is that religion tries to explain the world order by dividing the world into natural and supernatural. A cult and a system of rites appear, with the goal of "establishing relations" with the world of the gods.

With the development of civilizations of Ancient China, India, Greece, attempts to rationally explain the world began to appear. The term "philosophy" was introduced into use in the VI century. BC. and belongs to Pythagoras. From ancient Greek, this word is translated as "love of wisdom."Philosophy and types that preceded it

worldview is united by the subject of comprehension; the goal of philosophical research is to cognize the universal through the particular and the general, that is, to go beyond the finite and touch the infinite. Such thinking is called transcendental because it goes beyond science and practical experience.

So, philosophy is the basis of system-rational thinking, which reveals the meaning and patterns of development of the world and man. However, the "eternal" questions still remain open.

What is your outlook, man of the New Age?