Western philosophy
European intellectual tradition
Western philosophy is the intellectual tradition originating in ancient Greece and developing through European and later American thought.
It encompasses systematic inquiry into existence, knowledge, ethics, logic, and mind—from Plato and Aristotle through medieval scholasticism to Enlightenment rationalism and modern analytic and continental schools.
The label distinguishes it from Eastern philosophical traditions like Confucianism, Buddhism, and Hindu philosophy, though the boundaries are increasingly questioned.
Greek philosopher, academy founder
- AristotleGreek founder of formal logic
- SocratesAncient Athenian questioning philosopher
- PythagorasAncient Greek mathematician
- HeraclitusPre-Socratic philosopher of flux
Democritus · Zeno · Academy · Lyceum · Stoicism · Epicureanism · Cynicism · Neoplatonism
German Enlightenment thinker
- LockeEnglish empiricist philosopher's surname
- HumeScottish Enlightenment philosopher
- RousseauFrench surname, philosopher or painter
- VoltaireFrench Enlightenment satirist
Descartes · Spinoza · Leibniz · rationalism · empiricism · social contract · natural rights · deism
Understood facts and skills
- truthAccordance with reality
- beliefTrust held as true
- justificationReason proving rightness
- a prioriIndependent of experience
empiricism · rationalism · skepticism · foundationalism · perception · certainty · doubt · epistemic
Philosophy stressing self-created meaning
- KierkegaardDanish existentialist theologian
- NietzscheGerman philosopher of will
- HeideggerExistential ontology's founder
- SartreFrench existentialist philosopher
Camus · absurdism · authenticity · angst · freedom · nothingness · bad faith · meaninglessness
Examining by decomposition
- continentalOf a continent
- phenomenologyStudy of subjective experience
- pragmatismPractical problem-solving philosophy
- structuralismAnalysis through underlying systems
post-structuralism · deconstruction · hermeneutics · Vienna Circle · Wittgenstein · Russell · Derrida · Foucault
Study of existence's nature
- beingExisting as something
- existenceState of being real
- substancePhysical material with mass
- essenceFundamental nature of something
dualism · monism · materialism · idealism · realism · nominalism · universals · particulars
Medieval academic theology method
- AquinasScholastic philosopher-theologian surname
- AugustineFourth-century church father
- Duns ScotusMedieval Scottish theologian-philosopher
- universalsProperties holding across all
nominalism · realism · faith and reason · Summa Theologica · divine command · free will · problem of evil · theodicy
Right and wrong principles
- virtueMoral goodness or merit
- justiceFair treatment under law
- utilitarianismGreatest-happiness moral theory
- deontologyMorality based on obligations
consequentialism · rights · duty · autonomy · goodness · normative · altruism · egoism
Formal deductive argument structure
- deductionConclusion from premises
- inductionFormal admission process
- inferenceConclusion reached through reasoning
- validityQuality of being sound
soundness · premise · conclusion · fallacy · dialectic · propositional · reductio ad absurdum · Frege
Plato
Greek philosopher, academy founder
- AristotleGreek founder of formal logic
- SocratesAncient Athenian questioning philosopher
- PythagorasAncient Greek mathematician
Heraclitus · Democritus · Zeno · Academy · Lyceum · Stoicism · Epicureanism · Cynicism · Neoplatonism · pre-Socratics
Kant
German Enlightenment thinker
- LockeEnglish empiricist philosopher's surname
- HumeScottish Enlightenment philosopher
- RousseauFrench surname, philosopher or painter
Voltaire · Descartes · Spinoza · Leibniz · rationalism · empiricism · social contract · natural rights · deism · cogito
knowledge
Understood facts and skills
- truthAccordance with reality
- beliefTrust held as true
- justificationReason proving rightness
a priori · empiricism · rationalism · skepticism · foundationalism · perception · certainty · doubt · epistemic
existentialism
Philosophy stressing self-created meaning
- KierkegaardDanish existentialist theologian
- NietzscheGerman philosopher of will
- HeideggerExistential ontology's founder
Sartre · Camus · absurdism · authenticity · angst · freedom · nothingness · bad faith · meaninglessness · despair
analytic
Examining by decomposition
- continentalOf a continent
- phenomenologyStudy of subjective experience
- pragmatismPractical problem-solving philosophy
structuralism · post-structuralism · deconstruction · hermeneutics · Vienna Circle · Wittgenstein · Russell · Derrida · Foucault · postmodernism
ontology
Study of existence's nature
essence · dualism · monism · materialism · idealism · realism · nominalism · universals · particulars · causation
Scholasticism
Medieval academic theology method
- AquinasScholastic philosopher-theologian surname
- AugustineFourth-century church father
- Duns ScotusMedieval Scottish theologian-philosopher
universals · nominalism · realism · faith and reason · Summa Theologica · divine command · free will · problem of evil · theodicy
morality
Right and wrong principles
- virtueMoral goodness or merit
- justiceFair treatment under law
- utilitarianismGreatest-happiness moral theory
deontology · consequentialism · rights · duty · autonomy · goodness · normative · altruism · egoism · hedonism
syllogism
Formal deductive argument structure
- deductionConclusion from premises
- inductionFormal admission process
- inferenceConclusion reached through reasoning
validity · soundness · premise · conclusion · fallacy · dialectic · propositional · reductio ad absurdum · Frege · formal logic
- Greek philosophyAristotle, Socrates, Plato, Pythagoras, Academy
- philosophiesempiricism, stoicism, nihilism, idealism, materialism
- philosophyethics, logic, metaphysics, ontology, epistemology
- WestOccident, Europe, North America, United States, Canada
- AugustineConfessions, original sin, divine grace, predestination, Doctor of the Church
- Deconstructionteardown, deconstruction, dismantling, disassembly, take apart
Western philosophyEastern philosophy
Asian intellectual traditions
Chinese philosophy · Indian philosophy · Confucianism · Buddhist philosophy · Taoism
Western philosophymysticism
Pursuit of divine union
intuitive knowledge · meditative practice · spiritual experience · gnosis · shamanism
Western philosophyreligion
System of spiritual belief
theology · faith · spirituality · religious tradition · sacred knowledge
western, philosophy, philosopher, Westernization, philosophical, philosophic, philosophers, philosophize, philosophically