page_title: Western philosophy
section_title: Modern
hierarchical_section_title: Western philosophy / Modern
caption_attribution_description: Portrait of John Locke, by Sir Godfrey Kneller. Source of Entry: Collection of Sir Robert Walpole, Houghton Hall, 1779.
context_page_description: Western philosophy refers to the philosophical thought and work of the Western world. Historically, the term refers to the philosophical thinking of Western culture, beginning with Greek philosophy of the pre-Socratics such as Thales and Pythagoras, and eventually covering a large area of the globe. The word philosophy itself originated from the Ancient Greek philosophía, literally, "the love of wisdom".
  The scope of philosophy in the ancient understanding, and the writings of the ancient philosophers, were all intellectual endeavors. This included the problems of philosophy as they are understood today; but it also included many other disciplines, such as pure mathematics and natural sciences such as physics, astronomy, and biology.
context_section_description: The term "modern philosophy" has multiple usages. For example, Thomas Hobbes is sometimes considered the first modern philosopher because he applied a systematic method to political philosophy. By contrast, René Descartes is often considered the first modern philosopher because he grounded his philosophy in problems of knowledge, rather than problems of metaphysics.
  Modern philosophy and especially Enlightenment philosophy is distinguished by its increasing independence from traditional authorities such as the Church, academia, and Aristotelianism; a new focus on the foundations of knowledge and metaphysical system-building; and the emergence of modern physics out of natural philosophy.
caption: Portrait of John Locke, by Sir Godfrey Kneller, 1697
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