There are 7 branches of Philosophy, namely, Metaphysics, Axiology, Logic, Aesthetics, Epistemology, Ethics and

Political Philosophy. Philosophy is the study of the search for the truth and equally an effort to know the hidden
realities truths about ourselves. As an academic discipline, Philosophy is hardly any different. Students who are in
Philosophy programs are engaged in a pursuit of asking, answering, and resolving problems. In a sense, Philosophy
is a type of Science, a reservoir of knowledge that can only be understood through rigorous investigation and study.
Read this blog to know all about these branches of Philosophy, the nature of philosophy and more!

The main branches of Philosophy are:

1. Axiology: Study of the nature of value and valuation

2. Metaphysics: Study of the fundamental nature of reality
3. Epistemology: Study of the nature, origin, and limits of human knowledge
4. Ethics Philosophy: Study of what is right and wrong in human behaviour
5. Aesthetics: Study of beauty and taste
6. Logic Philosophy: Study of the nature and types of logic
7. Political Philosophy: Study of government, addressing questions about the nature,
scope, and legitimacy of public agents and institutions

Axiology

Also referred to as the theory of value, Axiology explores the nature of value and its metaphysical aspects. Value
Theory is often interchangeably used as Axiology and this branch of Philosophy peruses upon the value of
goodness. To put it simply, Axiology looks at the concept of value in terms of its philosophical terms and argues
questions about nature and what actually is valued.
Epistemology

Another major component of Philosophy is Epistemology. Going back into history, this term originated from the
Greek word episteme which literally means knowledge, and the other half of the word ‘logy means ‘the study of’.
Basically it is about the study of knowledge. What can we know? A fundamental question concerning Epistemology
is, what is knowledge? It also asks questions like, can knowledge ever be absolute? Is there a limit for humans to
know certain things? If we are living in a world of simulation, how can we know it? These are some of the essential
questions Epistemology seeks answers for.

Ethics

Everyone in their day to day life tries to conduct themselves according to some established ethical norms. This
philosophical concept has different applications in a person’s real life. For instance, there are certain organizations
that have ethical committees which lay down rules of behaviour for its employees. Ethics is concerned with the
definition of right and wrong. It elucidates schools of thought that instruct us how to act in a given situation, which
has always been a matter of contention between philosophers. Every philosopher has defined it according to their
own subjective understanding.

Political Philosophy

Combining the two fields of Politics and Philosophy, Political Philosophy studies political government, laws, liberty,
justice, rights, authority, political states and systems, ethics, and more. It explores the concepts of why we need
governments, the role of played by governments, what are its constituents, amongst others.

Logic

We use this word in our commonplace conversations, so we are all aptly familiar with it. People constantly ask each
other, “where is the logic behind this or that?”. People even acknowledge a good thought or act by calling it
logically correct. Hence, the question arises, what does Science of logic has to do with Philosophy? In logic, we
usually construct two sentences which are called premises, and they are used to make a conclusion. This sort of
logic is called a syllogism, pioneered by Aristotle.
 GIVE/SITE EXAMPLE OF EACH BRANCHES OF PHILOSOPHY

1. Metaphysics- What is an example of a metaphysical question?

The Big Metaphysical Questions

What is our place in the universe? What is consciousness? Does the world really exist? Why is
there something, rather than nothing?
An example of metaphysics is a study of God versus the Big Bang theory.
Examples of metaphysical concepts are Being, Existence, Purpose, Universals,
Property, Relation, Causality, Space, Time, Event, and many others. They are
fundamental, because all other concepts and beliefs rest on them.

Epistemology Examples

 Belief: Someone cannot reasonably be said to know something if they do not believe it to be true.
 Truth: If someone believes something that is false, they do not know it as a fact; they are
mistaken.

Philosophy is a field of study that seeks to answer challenging questions about life, existence, the universe,
ethics, and art. 

Examples of Epistemology 
1. Legal Affairs
Epistemology plays a prominent role in the production of knowledge in legal affairs. It
is responsible for creating awareness of certain aspects of reality by analysing logical
facts and pieces of evidence available. It involves a detailed investigation of the crime
scene and a brief overview of similar cases to impart new information and produce a
justification for the knowledge.
10 Epistemology Examples in Real Life

Epistemology

In philosophy, epistemology is the study of the origin, nature, and scope of knowledge. Epistemology, the word has
been derived from two Greek words, ‘episteme’ meaning knowledge, and ‘logia’ meaning discourse. The main
purpose of epistemology is to know about the origin and understand the nature and limits of the knowledge that a
human possesses. It is one of the four main branches of philosophy. Basically, epistemology is the explanation of
how a person thinks. It helps a person differentiate between truth and lie. Epistemology makes use of four different
sources to gather knowledge, namely, intuitive, authoritative, logical, and empirical.

Index of Article (Click to Jump)

Branches of Epistemology

1. Empiricism

2. Rationalism

Types of Epistemology

1. Formal Epistemology

2. Genetic Epistemology

3. Social Epistemology

4. Political Epistemology

Examples of Epistemology

1. Legal Affairs

2. Changing the Password

3. Security Issues

4. Scientific Discoveries

5. Decision Making

6. Critical Thinking

7. Confirming the Existence of Extraterrestrial Life

8. Validating News

9. Understanding the World

10. Realising Paradoxes and Anomalies

Branches of Epistemology

1. Empiricism

Empiricism is the true knowledge that a person primarily gains through his/her senses. Experiences and
observations are taken into account to justify the beliefs and claims regarding knowledge. In empiricism, ideas and
traditions are not considered to be the primary and most important source for knowledge.
Empiricism

2. Rationalism

Rationalism tends to emphasize rational, legitimate, or logical reasons to justify the beliefs and claims related to
knowledge. It does not depend much on experience and observation. This means that the main source of
knowledge is not the material world around us, but instead, it is the human mind.

Rationalism

Types of Epistemology

1. Formal Epistemology

Formal epistemology is the study of general questions such as What is knowledge? How do we know if something is
true? How can someone justify a belief? The theories and concepts used to derive the answers to these following
questions are non-philosophical.

2. Genetic Epistemology

Genetic epistemology is the study of the cognitive development of children. The prime focus is to understand the
manner in which a child learns, understands, acquires new knowledge, or gets himself/herself adapted to a new
environment. Here, both experience and rational thinking are employed to understand the child’s behaviour.

3. Social Epistemology

Social epistemology deals with the social aspects of knowledge production. Various historical and cultural factors
are taken into account and are studied before creating new knowledge. The concept of social epistemology is
primarily employed in academic fields such as sociology, psychology, etc.

4. Political Epistemology

Political epistemology is the theory of knowledge that studies the political aspects of our lives. Its main aim is to
bring peace and equality to the world by analysing and studying the events occurring in societies step by step in
detail.

Examples of Epistemology

1. Legal Affairs

Epistemology plays a prominent role in the production of knowledge in legal affairs. It is responsible for creating
awareness of certain aspects of reality by analysing logical facts and pieces of evidence available. It involves a
detailed investigation of the crime scene and a brief overview of similar cases to impart new information and
produce a justification for the knowledge.
 2. Changing the Password
Whenever you forget the password of your online social media handle and try to reset it, a verification
code is sent to confirm the identity of the user. This process of verifying the validity of the user is an
epistemic issue. Similarly, manual assigning of profile credentials at an office makes use of the concept of
epistemology.
3. Security Issues
A number of technical security issues are resolved with the help of epistemology. To verify the authenticity
of the websites and online blogs, an SSL certificate is issued that establishes a security protocol and creates
an encrypted link between the web server and the browser. It saves the website’s identity and user’s
privacy. The concept of epistemology arises when it is required to confirm the genuineness of the SSL
certificate. For instance, an online shopping platform such as Amazon tends to buy the authentication
certificate from a domain name service providing organisation say, Verisign. Now, if a person is trying to
verify the originality of the authenticity certificate itself, he/she is knowingly or unknowingly employing the
concept of epistemology during the process.
4. Scientific Discoveries
Epistemology plays a significant role in scientific inventions and discoveries. This is because scientific
developments necessarily require rational thinking of ideas and strong observation of the experiments. In
such a case, the main purpose of epistemology is to produce new knowledge with minimum or no error.
5. Decision Making
Decision making is a tedious task that involves gathering information, evaluating all the possible pros and
cons, estimating alternative solutions to the problem, calculating risks, and making the appropriate choice
as per the situation. The decision may include distinguishing between true and false, choosing the most
appropriate option amongst various attributes, etc. The concept of epistemology in decision making serves
to be a beneficial tool that simplifies and refines the process.
6. Validating News
Epistemology finds its prime application to validate a piece of news or a report. For instance, a news
headline read “I have not been a part of any unethical practice held at the bank.” Here, epistemology can
be used to identify whether or not the news headline is genuine. The process begins with the identification
of the person whose exact words have been published as the news headline. The next step is to confirm the
bank where he/she was employed and the unethical practice that took place. Deep investigation and
proper research are used to validate if the person is lying or not.

Epistemology -‐ example • Epistemology asks on how we can achieve knowledge. Let's take the examples of
UFO's. How do we know why UFO's exist, how can we be sure of that knowledge? • For some people, it
is enough that some people are said to be abducted by aliens. For other people, the will have to see
aliens for themselves. But even then: if we actually see the aliens, how can we be certain of that
knowledge? Could it be that our brain plays tricks on us?? (people who have schizophrenia might see
aliens, but it's because they're brain is not representing reality correctly). Could it be that our brain
constantly plays tricks on us?? • How can we acquire knowledge? What is the correct way to acquire
knowledge. One might say that the scientific method is a way to acquire knowledge: you observe and you
write down what you observe. Other's disagree. Adapted from Physics Mentor Website
There are five main branches in philosophy, metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, politics, and aesthetics. Each
branch contains a specific focus and area of study. When one remembers that philosophy is a form of science,
this method of organization suddenly becomes crystal clear.
Metaphysics, as the name suggests, is the study of reality. Literally, the term metaphysics means ‘beyond the
physical.’ Typically, this is the branch that most people think of when they picture philosophy. In metaphysics,
the goal is to answer the what and how questions in life. In other words, metaphysics forms a foundation for
which we can understand everything else.
Epistemology is the study and understanding of knowledge. Here, philosophers address questions such as the
limitations of logic, how comprehension works, and the ability (or perception) to be certain. In short, the
question of epistemology is ‘how do we know?’
As one might imagine, ethics is the study of morality, right and wrong, good and evil. Ethics tackles difficult
conversations, adding weight to actions and decisions. This is the branch that birthed the famous Trolley
Dilemma.
Politics takes ethics to a larger scale, applying it to a group (or groups) of people. Political philosophers study
political governments, laws, justice, authority, rights, liberty, ethics, and much more.
Aesthetics is the study of art – and beauty. Here, philosophers try to understand, qualify, and quantify what
makes art what it is. Aesthetics also takes a deeper look at the artwork itself, trying to understand the meaning
behind it, both art as a whole and art on an individual level. A question an aesthetics philosopher would seek to
understand is whether or not beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder.
Along with the five branches discussed above, there are two other categories worth considering, axiology and
logic philosophy. Not all philosophers believe these subjects to be their own branch.
Axiology is the study of value and valuation. In contrast, logic is the study of reasoning. Much like metaphysics,
understanding logic helps philosophers (and everyone else) understand and appreciate how we perceive the
rest of our world. More than that, it provides a foundation for which to build and interpret arguments and
analysis. 

Metaphysical - Longer definition: Metaphysics is a type of philosophy or study that uses broad
concepts to help define reality and our understanding of it. Metaphysical studies generally seek to
explain inherent or universal elements of reality which are not easily discovered or experienced in our
everyday life.

For example:

Think about pizza. Metaphysics would try to answer questions like: 

1. Does the pizza have free will?

2. What kind of object or thing is a pizza?
3. Is the pizza a being?
4. Why does pizza exist?
5. How does it relate to its parts?
6. Is it necessary or contingent?
7. Science deals in metaphysics, such as creating models for why things exist. Creating models
based solely on observations are more metaphysical than scientific. For example, the Big Bang,
or, Theory of Evolution are metaphysical arguments. Current theoretical maths in both
quantum physics and cosmology can be highly metaphysical and cannot be proven through
the scientific method (laboratory testing). A constellation could be considered as metaphysical
as well as myths. Explanations for that we cannot measure (maybe in the subconscience).
8. The spiritual and the basics of religions, could fall under metaphysics. Buddhism is
metaphysical according to Aristotle’s categorization, as is Taoism, Gnosticism, Kabbalism,
Sufism, and the whole plethora of thoughts about reality outside of the measurable.
Metaphysics operates in symbology. Math is a form of symbology. If the metaphysics has good
predictive power, we call it science. That is, if an experiment is repeatable.
 ETHICS

To put it in simple terms, Ethics = Morals + Reasoning. For example, you might feel that it is morally
wrong to steal, but if you have an ethical viewpoint on it, it should be based on some sets of
arguments and analysis about why it would be wrong to steal.

Let’s take the case of a car driver and an automobile engineer. The car driver knows
how to drive a car, but he may not know the engine mechanism or design principles.
However an automobile engineer is concerned with how the car works, and the
principles involved.

Connecting the above example with ethics and morals, you can see that following
morals is just like driving the car without understanding the working principles of the
engine. But if you follow ethical principles – you would be using reasoning and
analysis (just like the automobile engineer in the above example) to understand the
situation/case better. If the engine starts to create trouble, the engineer may be able to
use the problem-solving approach as well.

Ethics and Human Interface – Topics Covered:

 Essence, determinants and consequences of Ethics in human actions
 Dimensions of ethics
 Ethics in private and public relationships

Determinants of Ethics
Determinants are the sources from which the ethical standard arises. There are
multiple determinants of ethics like

 Religion
 Law
 Society
 Individual
 Knowledge
 Time

Ethics in Private Relationships

Private relationships largely involve relations with family and friends and hence are
informal in nature. Private relationships are often driven by emotions and not by
reasoning. This can result in unethical practices.

For example, helping your friend to cheat in an exam (unethical). Also, remember the
Ramayana story where Kaikeyi tried to put her son Bharata on the throne, ahead of
Rama – the elder son of Dasharatha (unethical).
Ethics in Public Relationships
Public relationships involve relations which are formal in nature. This can include co-
workers, government officials, or strangers. There can be legal or social obligations as
well.

Ethics in public relations can come into play at:

 Social Ethics – tolerance towards other sections, peace and harmony etc.
 Political Ethics  – constitutional ethics, national interest etc.
 Organisational Ethics – impartiality, honesty, hard work, efficiency, corporate
governance etc.
 International Ethics – ethics in diplomacy, respecting international treaties etc.

LOGICAL

Deductive reasoning provides complete evidence of the truth of its conclusion. It uses a specific and accurate
premise that leads to a specific and accurate conclusion. With correct premises, the conclusion to this type of
argument is verifiable and correct.

Premises: All squares are rectangles. All rectangles have four sides. Conclusion: All squares have four sides.

Premises: All people are mortal. You are a person. Conclusion: You are mortal.

Premises: All trees have trunks. An oak tree is a tree. Conclusion: The oak tree has a trunk.

Inductive Logic Examples

Inductive reasoning is "bottom up," meaning that it takes specific information and makes a broad generalization
that is considered probable, allowing for the fact that the conclusion may not be accurate. This type of reasoning
usually involves a rule being established based on a series of repeated experiences.

Premises: An umbrella prevents you from getting wet in the rain. Ashley took her umbrella, and she did not get
wet. Conclusion: In this case, you could use inductive reasoning to offer an opinion that it was probably raining.
Explanation: Your conclusion, however, would not necessarily be accurate because Ashley would have remained
dry whether it rained and she had an umbrella, or it didn't rain at all.

Premises: Every three-year-old you see at the park each afternoon spends most of their time crying and screaming.
Conclusion: All three-year-olds must spend their afternoon screaming. Explanation: This would not necessarily be
correct, because you haven’t seen every three-year-old in the world during the afternoon to verify it.

Premises: Twelve out of the 20 houses on the block burned down. Each fire was caused by faulty wiring.
Conclusion: If more than half the homes have faulty wiring, all homes on the block have faulty wiring. Explanation:
You do not know this conclusion to be verifiably true, but it is probable.
Premises: Red lights prevent accidents. Mike did not have an accident while driving today.Conclusion: Mike must
have stopped at a red light. Explanation: Mike might not have encountered any traffic signals at all. Therefore, he
might have been able to avoid accidents even without stopping at a red light.

POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY
Three central concerns of political philosophy have been the political economy by which property rights are defined and
access to capital is regulated, the demands of justice in distribution and punishment, and the rules of truth and evidence
that determine judgments in the law.

Knowledge, gained through the studying of new information, consists of a rich storage of information.
Wisdom, on the other hand, has to do more with insight, understanding and accepting of the fundamental
'nature' of things in life.
Knowledge and wisdom might seem like synonyms, but they’re not. You can have knowledge without wisdom, but you
can’t have wisdom without knowledge.

Knowledge is a noun defined as “what is learned.” It is a familiarity with facts or certain subjects. Knowledge
typically deals with factual information you have learned from school, books, or other experts.

Wisdom is a noun defined as “the ability to know what is true or right; common sense or the collection of one's
knowledge.” It goes beyond facts and requires pulling together knowledge and personal experiences.

Knowledge is the information you have learned, while wisdom is the ability to use that knowledge in a profound
way. So, knowledge is a part and wisdom is the whole. Wisdom goes beyond learning facts and includes making
sense of those facts.