The Philosophical Foundations of Philosophy for Children (P4C) from Lipman's Point of View: Ontology, Anthropology and Epistemology

Abstract

Philosophy for Children (P4C) is a program developed by Matthew Lipman in the context of the philosophy of pragmatism and influenced by new theories of psychology, especially Vygotsky's. This program undoubtedly has philosophical presuppositions and principles about "being", "man" and "knowledge". Belief in a changing and evolving world, belief in the young rational human being, and the acceptance of dynamic knowledge in the P4C program indicate the specific worldview of this project and provide the basis for asking fundamental questions about the philosophical foundations of this program. An appropriate answer to these questions can be obtained by explaining the contexts of the emergence of P4C in the history of philosophy. With this kind of attitude, this article tries to explain the philosophical foundations of P4C in terms of "ontology", "anthropology" and "epistemology" from the point of view of the founder of this program, Matthew Lipman. it is concluded that according to Lipman, P4C 's presupposition of the world is a realistic view in which the world is evolving, and P4C 's young man has, according to John Dewey's pragmatic theory and Vygotsky's psychological theories, the capacity to philosophize, and this capacity must be nurtured from childhood, and P4C 's knowledge is true justified belief that develops as the child interacts with the world through experience and reason in the context of society.

Keywords

• philosophy for children
• matthew lipman
• ontology
• anthropology
• epistemology