1. Being human
2. Aesthetics
3. Epistemology
4. Ethics
5. Philosophy of religion
6. Philosophy of science
7. Political philosophy
8. Social philosophy
9. HL extension: Philosophy and contemporary issues
10. Prescribed philosophical texts
10.1 Language, Truth and Logic – Alfred Jules Ayer
10.2 The Analects – Confucius
10.3 Meditations on First Philosophy – René Descartes
10.4 Black Skin, White Masks – Frantz Fanon
10.5 On the Genealogy of Morality – Friedrich Nietzsche
10.6 Creating Capabilities: The Human Development Approach – Martha C. Nussbaum
10.7 The Revolt of the Masses – José Ortega y Gasset
10.8 The Republic, Books IV–IX – Plato
10.9 The Ethics of Authenticity – Charles Taylor
10.10 Tao Te Ching – Lao Tzu
10.11 The Second Sex – Simone de Beauvoir
10.12 On Liberty – John Stuart Mill
Browse syllabus-aligned notes for 10.3 Meditations on First Philosophy – René Descartes. Open each subtopic for focused explanations, examples, and summaries.
10.3.1 Radical Doubt and the Quest for Certainty
37 minute read
10.3.2 Cogito Ergo Sum: The Self as a Thinking Thing
35 minute read
10.3.3 Clear and Distinct Perceptions
39 minute read
10.3.4 Proofs for the Existence of God
40 minute read
10.3.5 Mind–Body Dualism
43 minute read
10.3.6 Knowledge of the External World
10.3.7 Connections to the Core Theme and Optional Themes
45 minute read