philosophical anthropology summary

Understand the basic concept of philosophical anthropology

Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Below is the article summary. For the full article, see philosophical anthropology.

philosophical anthropology, Study of human nature conducted by the methods of philosophy. It is concerned with questions such as the status of human beings in the universe, the purpose or meaning of human life, and whether humanity can be made an object of systematic study. Among the most important works in philosophical anthropology is Being and Time (1927), by Martin Heidegger.

Giambattista Vico Summary

Giambattista Vico Italian philosopher of cultural history and law, who is recognized today as a forerunner of cultural anthropology, or ethnology. He attempted, especially in his major work, the Scienza nuova (1725; “New Science”), to bring about the convergence of history, from the one side, and

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin Summary

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin was a French philosopher and paleontologist known for his theory that man is evolving, mentally and socially, toward a final spiritual unity. Blending science and Christianity, he declared that the human epic resembles “nothing so much as a way of the Cross.” Various

Thomas Hobbes Summary

Thomas Hobbes was an English philosopher, scientist, and historian, best known for his political philosophy, especially as articulated in his masterpiece Leviathan (1651). Hobbes viewed government primarily as a device for ensuring collective security. Political authority is justified by a