Welcome to 1000-Word Philosophy: An Introductory Anthology, an ever-growing set of over 220 original 1000-word essays on philosophical questions, theories, figures, and arguments.
All of our essays are available in audio format; many of our essays are available as videos.
Newest Essays
Here are our newest essays:
- Causation: What Are Causes? by Dan Peterson
- Equality: What Is It and How Is It Different from Equity? by Daniel Weltman
- Ethics and God: the Divine Command Theory and the Euthyphro Dilemma by Nathan Nobis
- Avicenna’s ‘Proof’ for the Existence of God by Farbod Akhlaghi
- Ecstatic Experiences: The Philosophy of ‘Losing Yourself’ by Matthew Sanderson
- Teleological Explanations: Purposes, Functions, and Goals in Biology by Michael Zerella
- Friedrich Nietzsche on Tragedy: Why Do We Like Tragic Art? by Matthew Sanderson
- Theism and Atheism: Reasons for Belief and Disbelief by Tom Metcalf
- Atheism: Believing God Does Not Exist by Nathan Nobis
- Definitions of Art: What is Art? by Brock Rough (updated)
- Philosophical Counseling: Using Philosophy to Address Life’s Challenges by Nathan Nobis
- Dehumanization: What is it to Dehumanize People? by Dan Peterson
- “That’s Subjective”: Subjectivism about Truth, Beauty, and Goodness by Nathan Nobis
- Moral Error Theory: Are there Moral Facts? by Ian Tully (updated)
- Phenomenology: Describing Experiences From a First-Person Perspective by Matthew Sanderson
- Transformative Experiences: Can Life-Changing Choices Be Both Rational and Authentic? by Felipe Pereira
- Martin Heidegger on Technology by Matthew Sanderson
- Civil Disobedience: Seeking Justice by Breaking the Law by Henry Krahn
- Ethics and Animal Research by Paul Bali
- Stoicism: Finding Happiness in What’s Under Your Control by Matthew Pianalto
- Artificial Intelligence: Ethics, Society, and the Environment and Artificial Intelligence: The Possibility of Artificial Minds by Thomas Metcalf
- Moral Education: Teaching Students to Become Better People by Dominik Balg
We publish new essays frequently, so please check back for updates.
Essay Categories
We have essays in these categories:
- Aesthetics and Philosophy of Art
- Africana Philosophy
- Bioethics
- Buddhist Philosophy
- Chinese Philosophy
- Ethics
- Epistemology, or Theory of Knowledge
- Existentialism, Phenomenology, and Continental Philosophy
- Global Philosophy
- Historical Philosophy
- Islamic Philosophy
- Logic and Reasoning
- Metaphilosophy, or Philosophy of Philosophy
- Metaphysics
- Philosophy of Education
- Philosophy of Law
- Philosophy of Mind and Language
- Philosophy of Race
- Philosophy of Religion
- Philosophy of Science
- Philosophy of Sex and Gender
- Social and Political Philosophy
New categories are added as the project expands.
Units
New! We have units of essays on topics of current and everlasting interest.
New to Philosophy?
You might begin with these essays:
- What is Philosophy? by Thomas Metcalf
- Critical Thinking: What is it to be a Critical Thinker? by Carolina Flores
- Arguments: Why Do You Believe What You Believe? by Thomas Metcalf
- Is it Wrong to Believe Without Sufficient Evidence? W.K. Clifford’s “The Ethics of Belief” by Spencer Case
Popular Essays
Some of our most popular essays include:
- Descartes’ “I think, therefore I am” by Charles Miceli and Descartes’ Meditations by Marc Bobro
- Marx’s Conception of Alienation by Dan Lowe
- John Rawls’ ‘A Theory of Justice’ by Ben Davies
- The Ethics of Abortion by Nathan Nobis
- Aristotle’s Defense of Slavery by Dan Lowe
- “God is Dead”: Nietzsche and the Death of God by Justin Remhof
- Philosophy and Its Contrast with Science: Comparing Philosophical and Scientific Understanding by Thomas Metcalf
- Happiness: What is it to be Happy? by Kiki Berk
- Pascal’s Wager: A Pragmatic Argument for Belief in God by Liz Jackson
- The African Ethic of Ubuntu by Thaddeus Metz
All Essays
A complete list of all our essays is here.
Student Resources
We have resources for students, including essays on How to Read Philosophy and How to Write a Philosophical Essay by the Editors of 1000-Word Philosophy.
Instructor Resources
We have resources to help instructors develop courses and course modules using our essays.
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