The Greatest Philosophy

This selection of philosophy is based on the continuing research carried out for The Greatest Literature of All Time and additional research into philosophical literature acclaimed by the world's readers, writers, critics and scholars.

The Greatest Philosophy focuses on major works of philosophy, namely book-length publications. It includes both popular works aimed at educating the public on philosophical topics and original research intended to be read by those training or already trained in the field.

You may also be interested in The Greatest Nonfiction, The Greatest Philosophical Fiction or The Greatest Science.

This list is updated as new works are discovered and appreciation of older works evolves. Please note the revision date when citing the list.

Latest update: July 17, 2025

The 55 greatest works of philosophy

c.399 BCE

Apology

by Plato, Greece

Philosophy, originally Apología Sokrátousalso knowm as Apology of Socrates

c.399 BCE

Crito

by Plato, Greece

Philosophy

c.385–370 BCE

The Symposium

by Plato, Greece

Philosophy

c.380 BCE

The Republic

by Plato, Greece

Philosophy

c.370 BCE

Phaedrus

by Plato, Greece

Philosophy

c.370 BCE

Memorabilia

by Xenophon, Greece

Philosophy

c.360 BCE

Phaedo

by Plato, Greece

Philosophy

c.350 BCE

Nichomachean Ethics

by Aristotle, Greece

Philosophy, originally Ēthika Nikomacheia

c.350 BCE

Metaphysics

by Aristotle, Greece

Philosophy

c.335 BCE

Poetics

by Aristotle, Greece

Philosophy, originally Peri poietikês

c.330 BCE

Physics

by Aristotle, Greece

Philosophy, originally Physica

c.300 BCE

The Mencius

by Mencius, China

Philosophy, originally Mèngzǐ

c.200 BCE

The Analects

by Confucius, China

Nonfiction, also known as Selected Sayings

c.50 BCE

On the Nature of Things

by Lucretius, Rome

Philosophy, originally De rerum natura

Letters from a Stoic

by Seneca, Rome

Philosophy, also knonw as Moral Epistles, originally Epistulae Morales ad Lucilium

108

Discourses

by Epictetus, Greece

Philosophy

175

Meditations

by Marcus Aurelius, Rome

Philosophy

397–0400

Confessions

by Augustine of Hippo, Algeria

Philosophy

1265–1273

Summa Theologica

by Thomas Aquinas, Italy

Philosophy

1636

Discourse on the Method

by René Descartes, France

Philosophy, originally Discours de la Méthode pour bien conduire sa raison, et chercher la vérité dans les sciences

1641

Meditations on First Philosophy

by René Descartes, France

Philosophy, originally Meditationes de Prima Philosophia, in qua Dei existentia et animæ immortalitas demonstratur

1651

Leviathan

by Thomas Hobbes, England

Philosophy

1677

Ethics, Demonstrated in Geometrical Order

by Baruch Spinoza, Dutch Republic

Philosophy, originally Ethica, ordine geometrico demonstrata

1686

Discourse on Metaphysics

by Gottfried W. Leibniz, Germany

Philosophy

1689

An Essay Concerning Human Understanding

by John Locke, England

Philosophy

1748

An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding

by David Hume, Scotland

Philosophy

1757-1779

Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion

by David Hume, Scotland

Philosophy

1762

The Social Contract

by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Switzerland

Philosophy, originally Du contrat social; ou, Principes du droit politique

1781

Critique of Pure Reason

by Immanuel Kant, Germany

Philosophy, originally Kritik der reinen Vernunft

1785

Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals

by Immanuel Kant, Germany

Philosophy, originally Grundlegung zur Metaphysik der Sitten

1805

Rameau's Nephew, or the Second Satire

by Denis Diderot, France

Philosophy, originally Le Neveu de Rameau ou La Satire seconde

1807

The Phenomenology of Spirit

by G.W.F. Hegel, Germany

Philosophy, also known as The Phenomenology of Mind, originally Phänomenologie des Geistes

1841

The Essence of Christianity

by Ludwig Feuerbach, Germany

Philosophy, originally Das Wesen des Christentums

1843

Fear and Trembling

by Søren Kierkegaard, Denmark

Philosophy

1854

Walden

by Henry David Thoreau, United States

Philosophy

1859

On Liberty

by John Stuart Mill, England

Philosophy

1861

Utilitarianism

by John Stuart Mill, England

Philosophy

1867–1893

Capital

by Karl Marx, Germany

Political economy, originally Das Kapital

1869

The Subjection of Women

by John Stuart Mill, England

Philosophy

1883–1885

Thus Spoke Zarathustra

by Friedrich Nietzsche, Germany

Novel, subtitled A Book for All and None, originally Also sprach Zarathustra: Ein Buch für Alle und Keinen

1886

Beyond Good and Evil

by Friedrich Nietzsche, Germany

Philosophy, subtitled Prelude to a Philosophy of the Future originally Jenseits von Gut und Böse: Vorspiel einer Philosophie der Zukunft

1895

The Antichrist

by Friedrich Nietzsche, Germany

Philosophy, originally Der Antichrist

1921

Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus

by Ludwig Wittgenstein, Austria

Philosophy

1927

Being and Time

by Martin Heidegger, Germany

Philosophy

1936

The Crisis of European Sciences and Transcendental Phenomenology

by Edmund Husserl, Germany

Philosophy, subtitled An Introduction to Phenomenological Philosophy, originally Die Krisis der europäischen Wissenschaften und die transzendentale Phänomenologie: Eine Einleitung in die phänomenologische Philosophie

1943

Being and Nothingness

by Jean-Paul Sartre, France

Philosophy

1945

A History of Western Philosophy

by Bertrand Russell, England

Philosophy, fully titled A History of Western Philosophy and Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day

1949

Second Sex, The

by Simone de Beauvoir, France

Philosophy, originally Le Deuxième Sexe

1949

The Concept of Mind

by Gilbert Ryle, England

Philosophy

1953

Philosophical Investigations

by Ludwig Wittgenstein, Austria

Philosophy