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Existentialism – a loose title for various philosophies that emphasize certain
common themes: the individual, the experience of choice, and the absence of rational
understanding of the universe with a consequent dread or sense of absurdity in human
life.

Ego – the thinking, active self; In Freudian psychology the ego is the conscious
self, occupying a beleaguered middle ground between the disreputable demands of
the id, and the repressive discipline of the superego.

Psychoanalysis – the method of therapy for psychological disorders pioneered
by Freud. The method relies on an interpretation of what a patient says while «freely
associating» or reporting what comes to mind in connection with topics suggested by

the therapist.
Overman (Übermensch) – the «superman » or `overman' of Nietzsche's ethical
vision. The Übermensch transcends the boundaries of classes, creeds, and

nationalities; he overcomes human nature itself, and maintains a lordly superiority to
the normal shackles and conventions of social life. Although Nietszche connects the
character with Aristotelian virtue, the vision is essentially *Romantic when Aristotle's
is not.

Positivism – the philosophy of Comte, holding that the highest or only form of
knowledge is the description of sensory phenomena.

Verification – (or verifiability) principle The principle central to *logical
positivism, according to which the meaning of a statement is its method of
verification. Sentences apparently expressing propositions that admit of no
verification (such as those of metaphysics and theology) are in consequence

meaningless, or at least fail to put forward theses with cognitive meaning, capable of
truth or falsity.
Falsifiability – the property of a statement or theory that it is capable of being

refuted by experience. In the philosophy of science of Popper falsifiability is the great
merit of genuine scientific theory, as opposed to unfalsifiable pseudo-science, notably
psychoanalysis and historical materialism.

Neo-Thomism – the movement that took its starting-point from the encyclical
Aeterni Patris issued by Pope Leo XIII in 1879, confirming the place of Aquinas as
the guardian of orthodox Catholic theology. Philosophers working in the tradition

include the French scholar Etienne Gilson (1884-1978), and Maritain
Pragmatism – the philosophy of meaning and truth especially associated with
*Peirce and *James. Pragmatism is given various formulations by both writers, but
the core is the belief that the meaning of a doctrine is the same as the practical effects

of adopting it

Visual schemes

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