1.

Metaphysics – is the branch of philosophy responsible for the study of existence. It is the foundation of a
worldview. It answers the question "What is?" It encompasses everything that exists, as well as the nature of
existence itself. It says whether the world is real, or merely an illusion. It is a fundamental view of the world around
us.

Aristotle – Metaphysics for Aristotle, was the study of nature and ourselves. In this sense he brings metaphysics to
this world of sense experience–where we live, learn, know, think, and speak. Metaphysics is the study of being qua
being, which is, first, the study of the different ways the word “be” can be used.
The 8 Branches of Philosophy
2. EPISTEMOLOGY – IS THE THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE, ESPECIALLY WITH REGARD TO ITS
METHODS, VALIDITY, AND SCOPE. EPISTEMOLOGY IS THE INVESTIGATION OF WHAT
DISTINGUISHES JUSTIFIED BELIEF FROM OPINION.

RENE DESCARTES(1596-1650) – WAS A RATIONALIST PHILOSOPHER WHOSE MAIN FOCUS WAS

EPISTEMOLOGY, WHICH IS THE STUDY OF KNOWLEDGE. THE PHILOSOPHICAL STRUCTURE TO
DESCARTES’ ARGUMENTS IN THE MEDITATION ON FIRST PHILOSOPHY IS BASED ON BOTH HIS
COGITO ARGUMENT AND HIS ARGUMENT FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD.
 3. Ethics – Understood as the philosophical study of moral concepts, ethics is a branch of philosophy,
not of social science. ethics, also called moral philosophy, the discipline concerned with what is morally
good and bad and morally right and wrong. The term is also applied to any system or theory of moral
values or principles.

 Plato – Like most other ancient philosophers, Plato maintains a virtue-based eudaemonistic conception
of ethics. That is to say, happiness or well-being (eudaimonia) is the highest aim of moral thought and
conduct, and the virtues (aretê: ‘excellence’) are the dispositions/skills needed to attain it.
 4. Logic – philosophy of logic, the study, from a philosophical perspective, of the nature and types of logic,
including problems in the field and the relation of logic to mathematics and other disciplines.

 Chrysippus – excelled in logic, the theory of knowledge, ethics, and physics. He created an original system
of propositional logic in order to better understand the workings of the universe and role of humanity within it.
He adhered to a deterministic view of fate, but nevertheless sought a role for personal freedom in thought and
action.
 5. Aesthetics – the philosophical study of beauty and taste. It is closely related to the philosophy of art,
which is concerned with the nature of art and the concepts in terms of which individual works of art are
interpreted and evaluated.

Kant Immanuel – Kant Immanuel’s philosophy is known for its highly technical and specific language. Despite
his seminal work in ethics and his profound influence on modern life, one of Immanuel Kant’s greatest works was
written on aesthetics. The work is called the Critique of Judgement, and it outlines a totally new horizon of
philosophical aesthetics.