I’ve lived in Ohio all my life. Most people I’ve gotten to know, and I believe most people in the United States, are either apathetic or contemptuous towards philosophy. A lot of people seem to find it pointless or boring. So, what is the point? Obviously, I can’t answer this question for every topic in philosophy; however, I’ll give it a try with respect to the discipline as a whole.

Before we proceed, we must know what philosophy is. American philosopher Alvin Plantinga has defined it most simply and accurately to my knowledge: philosophy is “thinking hard” about something. We might throw in “about the so-called ‘big questions'” at the end for good measure, but Plantinga’s answer is sufficient. One might object that this definition is too broad, as it encompasses every other field of study. In my view, this is a feature and not a bug of the definition, since philosophy technically does include all other fields. Science, for example, is more or less “thinking hard” about the natural world, with the help of certain rules and restrictions. In its earlier stages, science used to be called “natural philosophy”.

Still, it’s useful to identify that part of philosophy which is distinct and separate from other fields, what one might call philosophy proper. Here are its three most important characteristics:

1. Philosophy (properly so-called) attempts to answer the “big questions”. Traditionally, philosophy is divided into four subdisciplines: logic (the study of reasoning), epistemology (the study of knowledge), metaphysics (the study of fundamental reality), and value theory (the study of value, moral and aesthetic).
2. Philosophy is the only discipline with an unrestricted universe of discourse. It can even include other disciplines.
3. Philosophy is the only discipline that can question its own assumptions.

Philosophy proper, hereafter “philosophy”, is what so many people find pointless or boring and what the rest of this article is about.

Now that I’ve explained what philosophy is, what’s the point of it? Why should we engage in it? First of all, it makes you think better. Thinking better helps you discover truth. Philosophy gives you conceptual and linguistic clarity and improves your reasoning skills. This carries over into every other intellectual endeavor in life from science to engineering to literature to conversations with your friends.

Second, unless you’re an exceedingly incurious, shallow person, philosophy is something you engage in already, whether you realize it or not. The only question is, will you be a good philosopher or a poor one? If you’ve ever thought about what you are, why you’re here, whether there’s a God, or what he’s like, if he exists, then you’re a philosopher–congratulations Plato.

Third, philosophy will change your life. Philosophy is the perfect tool with which to craft a well-grounded worldview, and your worldview influences how you live.

Fourth, philosophy is interesting. All truth is God’s truth, and it’s fun to discover the truths he’s brought about. Because philosophy is so interesting, studying it will make you a more interesting person.

I’ve heard three common criticisms of philosophy. The first boils down to there being a lack of agreement among philosophers. In science and mathematics, for example, one finds consensus on a wide variety of topics. In philosophy, by contrast, there is widespread agreement on almost nothing, and nearly every view imaginable–including those that seem bizarre or absurd to the regular person–is vigorously and expertly defended. This poses a big problem of not knowing who and what to read for those trying to get into the discipline on their own. That problem aside, while it would be nice for more people to agree, it’s not required for you to come to believe or know things.

The second criticism is that philsophy isn’t practical. I think people base this criticism on their being unable see specifically how to apply this or that philosophical insight in their life. For example, say you’ve become convinced through philosophical inquiry that properties don’t exist. What does this information do for you? Wanting to know specifically how each philosophical discovery impacts one’s life is understandable but mistaken. First, the improved thinking ability and better worldview you get from studying philosophy benefit you so broadly and fundamentally that it’s hard to identify specific benefits. However, that doesn’t make the benefits any less real. Think of a bustling economy. A minimal, moral, stable, and consistently enforced system of laws along with a conservative tax rate and unified culture would greatly improve its output over what it would otherwise be, but it would be futile to try to identify specific improvements. Second, as someone who’s been interested in philosophy for a decade, I can tell you that many discoveries which initially seem pointless later end up having amazing applications in the most unexpected areas. For example, the view that properties don’t exist turns out to have major implications for God’s greatness!

The third criticism is that philosophy is boring. To some extent, this is a matter of personal preference; and who am I to tell people what to like? However, I also submit that some questions are so fundamental that there comes a point where lack of interest turns into personal defect.

In conclusion, I think it’s valid to criticize philosophy for being hard to enter on one’s own both from a practical standpoint, given the volume and diversity of reading material, and from a motivational standpoint, given the hard-to-enumerate benefits. Philosophy is hard. However, if you study it with discipline, it will be worth your while.