Philosophy

23 works

23 works of Philosophy in the Western literary canon — ranked by Gröblé, with difficulty, length, and influence at a glance.

Philosophy, Ranked

According to Groblé

  1. 16Phaedo~385 BCPlatoHard·Quick·94 pagesInfluence89Popularity40Ancient GreecePhilosophyAncient Greek
  2. 18The Bhagavad Gita~200 BCVyasaHard·Medium·294 pagesInfluence80Popularity66Ancient EastPhilosophySanskrit
  3. 33Poetics~335 BCAristotleHard·Quick·38 pagesInfluence92Popularity38Ancient GreecePhilosophyAncient Greek
  4. 36The Symposium~385 BCPlatoHard·Quick·109 pagesInfluence88Popularity40Ancient GreecePhilosophyAncient Greek
  5. 37The Nicomachean Ethics~330 BCAristotleHard·Quick·213 pagesInfluence92Popularity40Ancient GreecePhilosophyAncient Greek
  6. 45Thus Spoke Zarathustra1883Friedrich NietzscheGrueling·Medium·342 pagesInfluence85Popularity73The Age of the NovelPhilosophyGerman
  7. 55Letters from a Stoic~64SenecaBreezy·Short·254 pagesInfluence38Popularity42Ancient RomePhilosophyLatin
  8. 56The Prince1513Niccolò MachiavelliModerate·Quick·130 pagesInfluence86Popularity78RenaissancePhilosophyItalian
  9. 58The Republic~375 BCPlatoHard·Medium·300 pagesInfluence96Popularity72Ancient GreecePhilosophyAncient Greek
  10. 62On the Nature of Things~55 BCLucretiusHard·Medium·304 pagesInfluence72Popularity10Ancient RomePhilosophyLatin
  11. 68Leviathan1651Thomas HobbesGrueling·Epic·688 pagesInfluence83Popularity36EnlightenmentPhilosophyEnglish
  12. 70The Analects~450 BCConfuciusModerate·Short·279 pagesInfluence78Popularity57Ancient EastPhilosophyClassical Chinese
  13. 71Phaedrus~370 BCPlatoHard·Quick·176 pagesInfluence32Popularity39Ancient GreecePhilosophyAncient Greek
  14. 79The Works of Cicero~50 BCMarcus Tullius CiceroGrueling·Short·272 pagesInfluence80Popularity11Ancient RomePhilosophyLatin
  15. 105Pensées1670Blaise PascalGrueling·Medium·333 pagesInfluence70Popularity34EnlightenmentPhilosophyFrench
  16. 106Meditations on First Philosophy1641René DescartesGrueling·Quick·59 pagesInfluence82Popularity36EnlightenmentPhilosophyLatin
  17. 108An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding1748David HumeGrueling·Quick·142 pagesInfluence71Popularity36EnlightenmentPhilosophyEnglish
  18. 117Apology~399 BCPlatoHard·Quick·39 pagesInfluence90Popularity41Ancient GreecePhilosophyAncient Greek
  19. 125The Consolation of Philosophy~524BoethiusHard·Quick·154 pagesInfluence32Popularity28Ancient RomePhilosophyLatin
  20. 133Meditations~175Marcus AureliusModerate·Short·256 pagesInfluence37Popularity80Ancient RomePhilosophyAncient Greek
  21. 140Tao Te Ching~350 BCLao TzuEasy·Quick·113 pagesInfluence78Popularity79Ancient EastPhilosophyClassical Chinese
  22. 182The Communist Manifesto1848Karl MarxBreezy·Quick·43 pagesInfluence84Popularity82RomanticismPhilosophyGerman
  23. 184Ethics1677Baruch SpinozaGrueling·Quick·208 pagesInfluence70Popularity35EnlightenmentPhilosophyLatin