Philosophy as theory and practice: history, substance and prospects

The article considers philosophy as a special mode of perception-awareness of the human psyche and a form of cognitive activity. Its structure and main directions of updating are revealed. The result of philosophical thinking and experience is theoretical knowledge, on the one hand, and practical activity, on the other hand. The definition of the classical philosophical tradition (metaphysics) and the reasons for its crisis are given. The criticism of the classical philosophical tradition in modern philosophy and its results are analyzed. All lines of philosophizing that deploy the basic model of philosophical thinking and the forms and modes of cognitive activity associated with it formed the classical philosophical tradition. Separate schools and areas of philosophy developed different possibilities and structures of this way of thinking and perception-awareness. A feature of the modern stage of philosophy is that the cognitive theoretical resources of this way of thinking and the mode of cognitive activity have already been realized to a great extent. The creative field of philosophy is not so much the creation of new theoretical constructions, but the practical application of existing ones, involving their operationalization and modification for specific problems. Based on the findings, the specifics of philosophical theory and practice in the modern world are determined. The place and status of the philosopher in previous historical epochs and in the modern world is analyzed. The practical role of philosophy in the modern worlds of everyday life and the global world is determined. It is concluded that philosophers today, if they want to remain relevant and not fall out of modernity into a kind of «bookish eternity», not only can, but must not only cognize reality, but also change it. The role of the Department of Philosophy at the modern university and within the educational system is analyzed. A number of basic provisions are formulated that can and should guide the staff of the Department of Philosophy in their current work.