Philosophy, branch by branch
Philosophy's branches, traditions and schools, with what each asks, who asked it, and the classic texts to read, free. Begin from a question, a thinker, a text or a thought experiment; everything leads to something else.
Continue reading …
7 disciplines · 38 philosophers · 18 texts · 70 terms · 13 thought experiments
Where to start
- New to philosophy
What philosophy is, how its branches divide the questions, and a first path of short readings.
- Teaching
Classic texts with discussion questions, thought experiments to start an argument, reading paths to set.
- Looking for a way to live
Schools that set out to change how one lives, with their own texts.
Branches
The questions philosophy asks, field by field.
Traditions and schools
Philosophy as it grew in India, in China and in the ancient Mediterranean, tradition by tradition and school by school.
A passage for today
He said that true opinion, combined with reason, was knowledge, but that the opinion which had no reason was out of the sphere of knowledge
Philosophers
Thought experiments
The library
18 classic texts in the public domain, reproduced word for word from open editions, each with commentary and questions for discussion.
Guides
Questions people ask
What is philosophy?
Philosophy is the study of the most general and basic questions: what exists, what we can know, how we should live, what makes an argument good, and what minds, meaning, beauty and justice are. It proceeds by argument rather than by experiment or appeal to authority, and it arose independently in several civilisations, among them India, China and Greece.
What are the main branches of philosophy?
The core branches are metaphysics (what exists), epistemology (what we can know), logic (what follows from what), ethics (how to live and act) and aesthetics (beauty and art). Around them sit political philosophy and the philosophies of mind, language, science, religion, law, education and technology. This section has pages on metaphysics, epistemology, logic and ethics, and on 3 traditions and schools, and grows as pages are added.
Where should a beginner start in philosophy?
Start with a question you already care about, then read one short classic on it: Plato's Apology for the examined life, Descartes' Meditations for knowledge, Mill's On Liberty for politics, the Dhammapada or the Analects for a way of life. The "Start here" guide sets out a first path, and every discipline page ends with a reading path of its own.
Are the texts here free to read?
Yes. Every passage reproduced in the library is in the public domain or openly licensed, and is copied word for word from an open edition with its source named. For books still in copyright, pages link to free and legal versions where they exist, and to the open encyclopedias.
Written and edited by Abhinav Saxena, a philosopher in New Delhi. The texts are public domain or openly licensed; every source is named on its page.