IGNOU BPYC-104 Assignment 2026
Modern Western Philosophy
Last updated by IGNOU: 31 Aug 2026. Guide written from the official PDF on 19 Oct 2026, 05:15 pm.
About the BPYC-104 assignment
The BPYC-104 assignment covers major ideas in Western philosophy, including knowledge, causation, materialism, faith, Enlightenment thought and empiricism. It includes thinkers such as Kant, Locke, Descartes, Hume, Berkeley, Augustine and Hegel.
There are five compulsory main questions worth 20 marks each, with choices within them. Questions 1 and 2 require about 400 words each. Question 3 requires two answers of about 200 words each, Question 4 requires four answers of about 150 words each, and Question 5 requires five short notes of about 100 words each.
What the assignment asks
| Question | Marks | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 | 20 | Critically discuss Kant’s account of knowledge or present an essay on Locke’s epistemology. |
| Q2 | 20 | Explain Descartes’ argument for the external world or discuss causality and Hume’s criticism of it. |
| Q3 | 2*10= 20 | Choose two topics from medieval philosophy, Descartes’ method of doubt, Berkeley’s rejection of materialism, and Locke’s criticism of innate ideas. |
| Q4 | 4*5= 20 | Choose four topics covering Augustine’s faith, Islamic philosophy, Comte’s aims, synthetic and analytic a priori judgements, Duns Scotus, and the Enlightenment. |
| Q5 | 5*4= 20 | Write five short notes chosen from Ockham’s Razor, alienated labour, Hegel’s absolute truth, the Renaissance, positivism, Aquinas, the problem of evil, scholasticism, pre-established harmony, and empiricism. |
This is a summary of each question. Download the official PDF above for the exact questions and word limits.
How to write and submit it
- Answer all five main questions; each carries 20 marks.
- For Questions 1 and 2, select one alternative in each and write about 400 words per answer.
- For Question 3, answer any two options in about 200 words each.
Assignment details and PDFs come from IGNOU's official website; the guide is a summary of the official PDF. Always check the latest instructions and last dates on ignou.ac.in or with your Regional Centre before submitting.