Whether you’re into philosophical questions about happiness or are fascinated by interesting thought-provoking questions about ethics, this giant list of philosophical questions will get the wheels in your noggin turning and will challenge you to think about life in a different way. In addition to helping you see a new perspective, these thought-provoking questions make great conversation starters. Asking friends and family some of these deep questions is also a fun way to help you get to know them a little better. No matter what you use these interesting philosophical questions for, you’re in for a lot to think about!
225 Philosophical Questions
- Is happiness just chemicals flowing through your brain or something more?
- Can we really know everything?
- What is the meaning of a good life?
- Is there a God?
- What in life is truly objective and not subjective?
- What is consciousness?
- Is there inherent order in nature or is it all chaos and chance?
- Is there an alternative to capitalism?
- Is it more important to be respected or liked?
- Are we in the Matrix?
- Have we become less happy in this age of technology?
- What is mathematics?
- Are humans obligated to better themselves?
- Is there a meaning of life?
- Is having a big ego a negative or positive trait?
- Is there absolute mortality?
- Is the most important purpose in life to find happiness?
- Do we have free will?
- Does life require a purpose and a goal?
- Would you kill 10 people to save 100?
- What is happiness?
- How can people believe in truths without evidence?
- Is it easier to love or to be loved?
- What is time?
- Do acts of kindness have a motive?
- Is mind or matter more real?
- Is love simply physical desire or something more?
- Where do thoughts come from?
- Does evil come from within, and if so why?
- What is beauty?
- Are people in this current generation less or more sensitive than people from past generations?
- Where were people before they were born?
- What is true friendship?
- How does gravity work?
- Can achieving nothing make a person happy?
- Does the Law of Attraction exist?
- Have gadgets and apps taken away emotions?
- Does observation alter an event?
- If everyone spoke their mind would this world be a better place?
- Where does the universe end?
- Is there a perfect life?
- What is infinity?
- Why do we strive for perfection if it is not attainable?
- Does sound happen if nothing is present to hear it?
- Does utilizing time properly make our lives meaningful and happy?
- Is it more important to be liked or respected?
- Can life be meaningful without friends?
- Where does the soul live?
- How do you know if you love someone enough to marry them?
- Is there a reason for life?
- Do numbers in a bank account make people happy?
- What will happen at the end of the world?
- Is living life to the fullest possible?
- What will happen at the end of the world?
- Can spirituality make you a happy person?
- What is education?
- Are highly intelligent people less happy than individuals with average intelligence?
- Is there a supreme power?
- Is there an absolute way to attain a happy state of mind?
- How did the universe begin?
- Does living your life for others make your life have meaning?
- Can we have happiness without sadness?
- Do knowledge and understanding make you content and happy as a person?
- What are numbers?
- Does fate exist?
- When does consciousness begin?
- Does an ideal government exist?
- Is life all a dream?
- Does life have a reason?
- If everything evolved from amoebas, how does the world still have amoebas?
- Are there limitations on free speech?
- The structure of DNA appears to be intelligently designed, what are the implications?
- Do aliens exist?
- Are we a minuscule part of intelligent life in the universe?
- Is trust more important than love?
Philosophical Questions That Are Thought Provoking
- Why do we do things we do not like to do?
- If lying is wrong, are white lies okay?
- Do atheists make their own gods?
- How should people live their lives?
- Can artificial intelligence be creative?
- If judgment is for God, why do we pass judgment?
- What is intelligence?
- Can religious beliefs affect scientific thinking?
- What is intelligence?
- Will a world without reliance on modern technology make any progress?
- Do we have a soul?
- Is human potential capable of anything?
- What do people strive for after enlightenment?
- Is death a new beginning?
- What defines you?
- Why does God not intervene when evil takes root in people?
- What happens after we die?
- Does belief make God exist?
- Isn’t one person’s terrorist another person’s freedom fighter?
- Will robots take over the world in the future?
- How much control do you have over your life?
- Does the path to salvation lie within us?
- How do you know your perceptions are real?
- Are we the biggest threat to humanity?
- If money cannot buy happiness, can you ever be truly happy with no money?
- Do parallel universes exist?
- What role does honor play in today’s society?
- How does one find purpose in life?
- Is a family still relevant in the modern world?
- If aliens attack, what will we do?
- What is true love?
- Do guns protect people or kill people?
- What is true strength?
- Will racism cease to exist?
- How do you know that your experience of consciousness is the same as other people’s experience of consciousness?
- Why is beauty associated with morality?
- Who decides what morality is?
- Why do we respect the dead more than the living?
- Is a “wrong” act okay if nobody ever knows about it?
- Does God have supreme power?
- What is the difference between living and being alive?
- Will the world be a better place if caste and religion cease to exist?
- Who defines good and evil?
- What’s more important: doing the right thing or doing things right?
- Why do people fear losing things that they do not even have yet?
- Do we love ourselves more in the virtual world and less in the real world?
- What makes a good friend?
- Is humanity doomed to head in a destructive direction?
- Do you make your own decisions, or let others make them for you?
- Should full access to the internet be a fundamental right?
- What is reality?
- Is peace the only way to stop a war?
- What is the truth?
- Can memories be erased?
- What makes you, you?
- Is religion conceptualized by one’s own belief system?
- What things hold you back from doing the things that you really want to?
- Will the world come to an end by human hands?
- What is true happiness?
- Intelligence or wisdom, what’s more important for a better world?
- Where is the line between insanity and creativity?
- Is true beauty subjective or objective?
- What one piece of advice would you offer to a newborn infant?
- What is the extent of freedom human beings should have?
- Does nature shape our personalities more than nurture?
- What is the meaning of rich and poor in the modern world?
- To what extent do you shape your own destiny, and how much is down to fate?
- Do we control technology or is technology controlling us?
- If you could choose just one thing to change about the world, what would it be?
- Is it worse to fail at something or never attempt it in the first place?
- What exactly is self-esteem and where does it come from?
- Will a curb on buying guns and arms reduce the number of shooting sprees in the world?
- Is the way we compensate people for their jobs ideal or should we have some way of making sure people are paid appropriately?
- Do we change when we have power?
- Can a person be “educated” without a formal education?
Philosophical Questions That Are Intellectual
- Will technological advances wipe out humanity?
- What are dreams and why do we have them?
- Does understanding philosophy lead to progress?
- Will it ever be possible to travel through time? Space?
- Is there a species more advanced than humans in the universe?
- Is defining people according to race a social construct or a biological category?
- If all the currencies in the world did not have monetary value, would our world be a much better place?
- Is there a difference between fair trade and free trade? What is it and which is of greater importance?
- Is it possible time is being altered right now?
- Is preservation of a country’s culture a good reason for limiting immigration?
- Why do we throw away food when we know people are dying of hunger?
- Does the English language make us feel superior to other countries?
- Which is more important, justice or mercy?
- Will artificial intelligence help increase human lifespan in the future?
- Is it always good to have choices?
- Does awareness of consciousness have benefits?
- Is torture ever justified?
- Do thoughts have a pattern?
- When you are driving and see one shoe on the side of the road, what do you think happened to the other shoe?
- Will stricter laws make a better world?
- Should we limit the amount of money people can earn and save to avoid an unequal distribution of wealth?
- Are we losing our right to privacy?
- Since the birth rate is down in the United States, should people be required to have at least one child?
- Is limiting immigration to developed countries right?
- Does democracy work for every country?
- Does faith make belief stronger?
- Should people have the right to live and travel anywhere they wish with no state or country boundaries?
- Why can’t every person be a genius?
- Should people be allowed to sell their organs and should organ donors be financially compensated?
- Is there freedom in creativity and art in the modern age?
- Should the government make organ donation compulsory?
- Do the simple things become complexities when we try to attain perfection?
- Should governments have penalties for those who live unhealthy lifestyles?
- Will concepts and theories in regard to religion becoming obsolete come true?
- Is love different from sexual desire? Passion? How?
- Is blind belief prevalent more among holy, spiritual, and pious people?
- Is there a cause for every event?
- Can dreams be associated with the unforeseen future?
- Do wars ever solve the problems of countries and governments?
- If we live in a civilized world why do we see so many distinctions between rich and poor?
- Can some things exist that aren’t in time?
- Do computers have the ability to be creative?
- Does luck exist?
- What rights, if any, do animals have?
- Are clowns funny or scary?
- Are there universal human rights? What are they?
- If time travel is possible, would we have met time travelers already?
- Are emotions rational or irrational?
- Does an afterlife exist?
- Do you think anyone has actually met their true soulmate?
- Can we know about happiness without knowing about sadness?
- Does time have a beginning or an end?
- Are people born evil? Or do they end up doing evil things as a result of early childhood experiences or other external factors?
- Is beauty truly in the eye of the beholder?
- Are we morally obligated to help others?
- Is world peace achievable?
- Are people natural-born leaders, or do they develop the traits over time?
- What harsh truths do you prefer to ignore?
- Is suffering a necessary part of the human condition?
- What would you genetically change about humans to make them a better species?
- How much does language affect our thinking?
- If you could press a button and receive a million dollars, but one stranger would die, would you press the button?
- Has social media been a net positive or a net negative for our society? Why?
- Is existence necessary?
- Do the cosmos have a purpose?
- If humanity was put on trial by an advanced race of aliens, how would you defend humanity and argue for its continued existence?
- What’s the difference between justice and revenge?
- If babies are considered innocent, when do people cease to be innocent?
- Where does your self-worth come from?
- Why are drugs banned but not harmful food additives and alcohol?
- Is it ever okay to share a secret?
- How long will you be remembered after you die?
- How likely do you think it will be that humans will last another 1,000 years without killing ourselves off?
- Would you want to know you are going to die beforehand or die suddenly without warning?
- Does the study of philosophy ever lead to answers or simply more questions? Check out: 250 Deep Questions250 Questions To Ask A Guy250 Truth or Dare Questions250 Would You Rather Questions250 Never Have I Ever Questions
