Free Self-Paced Course
Practical Philosophy: How to Live — Philosophy as a Tool for the Questions That Matter
8 Weeks · 288 Sections · Humanities — Philosophy
This free, self-paced course provides a structured 8-week syllabus for learning Practical Philosophy. Each module builds on the previous one, guiding you from foundational concepts through advanced topics with 288 pages of in-depth reading material. All content is drawn from our comprehensive Practical Philosophy textbook, organized into a clear weekly schedule that you can follow at your own pace.
Weekly Syllabus
- Part II: Ethics — How Should I Act?
- Chapter 4: How Do I Know What's Right? The Three Great Ethical Frameworks
- Chapter 5: The Good Life — Happiness, Flourishing, and What Aristotle and the Psychologists Agree On
- Chapter 6: Suffering — What the Stoics, Buddhists, and Existentialists Teach About Pain
- Chapter 7: Justice — What Do I Owe Others and What Do They Owe Me?
- Chapter 8: Rights, Duties, and When to Break the Rules
- Chapter 9: Moral Psychology — Why Good People Do Bad Things (and What To Do About It)
- Chapter 10: Feminist Ethics: Care, Gender, and Whose Voice Counts?
- Chapter 11: Political Philosophy: Authority, Democracy, and the Social Contract
- Chapter 12: Applied Ethics: Technology, Medicine, Business, and the Environment
- Part IV: Knowledge and Reality
- Chapter 21: How Do I Know What's True? Epistemology for Everyday Life
- Chapter 22: Science, Religion, and the Boundaries of Knowledge
- Chapter 23: Philosophy of Mind: Consciousness, Personhood, and the Hard Problem
- Chapter 24: Reality, Perception, and the Mind: Is the World What It Seems?
- Chapter 25: Language, Narrative, and the Stories We Live By
- Chapter 26: Philosophy in the Digital Age: Technology, AI, and What It Means to Be Human
- Part V: Traditions in Depth
- Chapter 27: The Stoic Life: Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus, and the Art of Unshakeable Calm
- Chapter 28: The Buddhist Path: Suffering, Impermanence, and the Liberation of Letting Go
- Chapter 29: The Existentialist Challenge: Sartre, Camus, Beauvoir, and the Courage to Create Yourself
- Chapter 30: Ubuntu and African Philosophy: I Am Because We Are
- Confucian Harmony: Relationships, Ritual, and the Cultivation of Character
- Chapter 32: Hindu Philosophy: Dharma, Karma, and the Paths to Liberation
- Chapter 33: Daoist Philosophy: The Tao, Wu Wei, and the Art of Naturalness
- Chapter 34: Indigenous Philosophy: Land, Relationship, and Relational Ontology
How to Use This Syllabus
- Read at your own pace. Each module is designed for roughly one week of study, but there are no deadlines. Spend as much time as you need on each topic.
- Follow in order or jump around. The modules are arranged sequentially for a structured learning path, but feel free to skip to any topic that interests you most.
- No sign-up needed. Every page in this syllabus links directly to free, open-access content. Just click a topic and start reading immediately.
Ready to Start Learning?
Access the full Practical Philosophy textbook with all chapters, examples, and exercises.
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