Western Philosophy

This section contains texts by the most important writers who have defined the philosophy of modern Western society. Texts here discuss ethics, metaphysics, epistemology, and political philosophy. NOTE: most of these are large text files, which may take a while to download on a slow connection.

George Berkeley

Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous 1713 ]

A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge 1710 ]

Rene Descartes

Meditations on First Philosophy 1641 ]

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Epictetus

The Discourses 101 CE] CE]

Epicurus

Thomas Hobbes

Leviathan 1651 ]

David Hume

Of Superstition and Enthusiasm 1741 ]

Of the Delicacy of Taste and Passion 1741 ]

Of the Liberty of the Press 1741 ]

Of Essay Writing 1742 ]

Of the Rise and Progress of the Arts and Sciences 1742 ]

An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding 1748 ]

A Letter from a Gentleman 1754 ]

Essays on Suicide and the Immortality of the Soul 1755 ]

The Natural History of Religion 1757 ]

Of Tragedy 1757 ]

Of the Standard of Taste 1757 ]

My Own Life 1777 ]

Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion 1779 ]

Immanuel Kant

The Critique of Judgement 1790 ]

The Critique of Practical Reason 1788 ]

The Critique of Pure Reason 1781 ]

Fundamental Principles of the Metaphysic of Morals 1785 ]

Introduction to the Metaphysic of Morals 1785 ]

The Metaphysical Elements of Ethics 1780 ]

Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics 1783 ]

The Science of Right 1790 ]

Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz

The Monadology 1898 ]

John Stuart Mill

On Liberty 1859 ]

Representative Government 1861 ]

Utilitarianism 1863 ]

Friedrich Nietzsche

Thus Spake Zarathustra 1891 ]

Blaise Pascal

The Provincial Letters 1657 ]

Pensees 1660 ]

Plato

NOTE: These file are in the Plato section under Classics.

Cratylus 360 BCE] BCE]

Critias 360 BCE] BCE]

Crito 360 BCE] BCE]

Euthydemus 380 BCE] BCE]

Euthyphro 380 BCE] BCE]

Gorgias 380 BCE] BCE]

Ion 380 BCE] BCE]

Laws 360 BCE] BCE]

Meno 380 BCE] BCE]

Parmenides 370 BCE] BCE]

Phaedo 360 BCE] BCE]

Phaedrus 360 BCE] BCE]

Philebus 360 BCE] BCE]