PhilosophyThe BestieBeginner
Philosophy from the Margins, a free philosophy course on Tomo

Philosophy from the Margins

Explore the powerful insights of thinkers who challenged the mainstream, from the depths of the Russian soul to the pioneers of feminist thought.

Like Duolingo, but for Philosophy from the Margins. Tomo turns the whole topic into a game you play five minutes a day, until it actually sticks.

A short one: 9 levels across 2 sections, about 18 minutes end to end, roughly 4 days at five minutes a day. It moves through Living the Truth and Challenging the System. It starts from scratch.

9 bite-size levelsAbout 5 minutes each

Free forever · No credit card · iPhone & Android

Sophia the Snowy Owl, the guide who teaches the Philosophy from the Margins course
Philosophy from the Margins
with Sophia the Snowy Owl
9
Levels
2
Sections
5
Min/day
What you'll learn

Key ideas in Philosophy from the Margins

  • Human beings do not have a fixed 'blueprint' or purpose before they exist
  • Society defines 'woman' as an 'Other' relative to a male 'norm'
  • A person's identity is the sum of their ongoing actions and decisions
  • Gender roles are constructed through cultural expectations and upbringing
  • Claiming a 'destiny' is often a way to avoid the responsibility of choosing
  • Biological traits do not justify the restriction of individual freedom
  • The priority of choice over inherent nature in defining a person
  • The distinction between biological sex and socially constructed gender roles
  • Evil acts can be committed by ordinary people who stop thinking for themselves
  • Labor is for biological survival and is repetitive
  • Bureaucracy and 'following orders' can mask the moral reality of one's actions
  • Work creates a lasting world of objects
  • Critical thinking is a necessary defense against participating in systemic harm
  • Action involves interacting with others to start something new and unpredictable
  • How thoughtlessness leads to participation in systemic harm
  • The hierarchy of human activity where public action is the peak
Why not just Google it

You've tried the other tabs

Wikipedia

Thirty open tabs. Four facts you actually kept.

YouTube

You watched. You nodded. By Sunday it was gone.

ChatGPT

One answer, then back to scrolling.

Online courses

Eight weeks. You meant to finish. You didn't.

Tomo gives Philosophy from the Margins the Duolingo treatment: levels, streaks, and quick quizzes that test what you just learned. That game loop is what the tabs above never had, so it's the one you actually finish.

Try a question

Here's what playing it feels like

A real question from this course. Take your best guess.

Defining Yourself Through Action

When society treats one group as the 'norm' and another as a deviation, what is that second group called?

Get it right to open this lesson and 8 more in the app.

Course map

Where Philosophy from the Margins takes you

  1. 1

    Living the Truth

    • Existence as Action
    • The Russian Search for Meaning
  2. 2

    Challenging the System

    • Ethics of Care and Community

2 sections · 3 units · 9 levels. Built to play, not to enroll.

New

Tomo is in ChatGPT

Tomo is also a ChatGPT plugin: the same playable courses, built and played inside your chat.

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How it's taught

You pick the voice

This course
The Bestie

Philosophy from the Margins is taught in the The Bestie style: your friend who just gets it. Want a different feel? In the app you can spin up the same topic in any of Tomo's teaching styles. Same facts, totally different vibe.

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Start free

Start Philosophy from the Margins today.

Download Tomo, search Philosophy from the Margins, and play your first lesson in under a minute.