A Short History of Western Thought

by Stephen Trombley

For the reader who has lain awake fretting over his tenuous grasp of the Aristotelian syllogism, or the ontological argument for the existence of God, or the nature of Kant's categorical imperative; or who simply struggles to tell his Frege from his Feuerbach, his Husserl from his Heidegger, his Saussure from his Sartre... - help is finally at hand. That help comes in the comfortingly accessible form of Stephen Trombley's Short History of Western Thought, which outlines the 2,500-year history of European ideas from the philosophers of Classical Antiquity to the thinkers of today, No major representative of any significant strand of Western thought escapes Trombley's attention: the Christian Scholastic theologians of the Middle Ages, the great philosophers of the Enlightenment, the German idealists from Kant to Hegel; the utilitarians Bentham and Mill; the transcendentalists Emerson and Thoreau; Kierkegaard and the existentialists; the analytic philosophers Russell, Moore, Whitehead and Wittgenstein; and - last but not least - the four shapers-in-chief of our modern world: the philosopher, historian and political theorist Karl Marx; the naturalist Charles Darwin, proposer of the theory of evolution; Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis; and the theoretical physicist Albert Einstein, begetter of the special and general theories of relativity and founder of post-Newtonian physics.

Genres: Philosophy, History, Nonfiction, Historical

123 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 15, 2011

Reviews

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book about Western Thought and philosophy ☺️

Maybe not the best book for someone who is new to this topic but definitely perfect for someone who needs a refresher or wants to extend their learning.

[Nazmi Yaakub · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dengan bahasa yang sangat mudah dan memudahkan kefahaman, saya seakan diberikan tempat duduk untuk menyaksikan perjalanan falsafah dan pemikiran Barat di sebuah sinema. Memang period Yunani dan Greek serta Scholastic lebih mudah dihadam tetapi gambarannya semakin sukar apabila masuk ke modenisme dan falsafah analalitik. Namun, Trombley memiliki keupayaan untuk memadatkannya dalam sinopsis yang berupaya mencerahkan pengetahuan kita.

[Mira · Rating 3 out of 5]

After borrowing and reborrowing the book twice I finally finished it! Yay!

It was a whirlwind though. I quite enjoyed it as a kind of survey of major philosophical schools from the Pre-Socrates philosophers to modern 20th cen ones. Yet, while the pace was logical up to early Christian philosophers and the impact of Muslim philosophical thought, the book turned into a jumble of names and dates as soon as we hit what we can call modern philosophy. I felt completely lost at times, and I can't remember half the names Trombley covered even though more than 90% of these ideologies/theories/philosophies/publications are not new to me in any way, shape or form.

This is way I won't really rec the book to someone new to the topic, it'll be extremely confusing. But as a refresher, it might work.

Anyway, what saved 'A Short History' from a 2-star rating was the afterwards. It is thought provoking and inspiring.

[Timothy Urban · Rating 3 out of 5]

It felt like the closer this short history got to present day, the more complex the concepts, the less effort the author was prepared to invest in making this book work for the layman. From at least the 1800's onward it felt like merely a list of dates, names and quotes. Since this book is pitched as an introduction for the uninitiated, I felt it failed. I'm still interested and will seek out another, better introduction.

[Maria Dimitriou · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ένα συνεκτικό και συνοπτικό εγχειρίδιο για την διαδρομή της σκέψης και της φίλοσοφίας μέσα στους αιώνες.

[Meds · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even a brief introduction western philosophy seems to be dense and tough to follow. Its a bit like taking the transiberian from Moscow to Vladivostok non stop. In order to appreciate everything on the way, the thinkers and the ideas. Its vital to stop off at each of the stations, look around, discuss, reflect. But its great to get an idea of what lies ahead. This is a journey that needs to be taken as slowly as possible.

[Eric Elston · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the perfect book for someone like me who wants to nudge their way into understanding the world, and how it came to be. Each section and mention of a concept or person is concise, as the book aims it to be. If you want to drill down into any of the concepts further, there are plenty of resources that this points to.

I couldn't agree more with its closing statement; "Today university education is becoming more and more specialized, and directed at specific vocational skills, rather than a general understanding of the world... perhaps more than ever, we need philosophy."

Highly recommended.

[GD · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book wasn't bad by any means, it's just too short to cover this much stuff. I guess that explains the title. I also didn't like how he feels he has to defend philosophy from the "death of philosophy" proclaimed by Stephen Hawking. Who gives a fuck? And the modern-day applications. I think people who try to make philosophy relevant are grabbing at straws. It's always been on the fringes of real-world matters. People respected it to a larger degree in the past, but I don't think, except for church guys like Augustine and Aquinas, that it really ever had a lot to do with the direction of world history.

[Gary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Second read. Well, I'm actually listening to it this time, mainly in order to ensure my pronunciation of names and idea is correct. It also works well alongside the @Building a Christian Worldview' book that I'm in just now.

Despite an atheistic bias that was often ignorant and patronising this was informative and thought-provoking.

Liked it.

[Nefeli · Rating 2 out of 5]

Θα ξεκινήσω δηλώνοντας ότι δεν έχω διαβάσει όλο το βιβλίο Το βιβλίο είναι τόσο κακογραμμένο που .πραγματικά μου στάθηκε αδύνατον. Έτσι το έφτασα κάπου στη μέση και το παράτησα. Δεν είναι η πρώτη φορά που διαβάζω βιβλίο τύπου « Η σύντομη ιστορία της…» και θέλω να δηλώσω ότι είναι το μοναδικό ως τώρα που μου δημιούργησε τόσο αρνητικά συναισθήματα. Γενικά τα βιβλία τέτοιου τύπου ακολουθούν έναν τύπο γραφής το οποίο βοηθάει τον αναγνώστη να τα βάλει σε τάξη στο κεφάλι του πράγμα που δεν συμβαίνει στο συγκεκριμένο βιβλίο. Αρχικά, ο συγγραφέας , ενώ ακολουθεί μια ιστορική πορεία, μπλέκει σε αναχρονισμούς. Έτσι στο κεφάλαιο που μιλάει για τον Πλάτωνα, αφιερώνει ένα δοκίμιο στο πως «η Πολιτεία» επηρέασε την απολυταρχική σκέψη στη Σοβιετική Ένωση! Ενδιαφέρον ,αλλά εκτός θέματος… Δεύτερον, δεν υπάρχει διασύνδεση. Έτσι δεν μπορεί κάποιος να αντιληφθεί πως πχ. επηρέασε το έργο του Πλάτωνα τον Αριστοτέλη και πως εξελίχθηκε η φιλοσοφία. Πράγμα που μας πηγαίνει στην τρίτη συνειδητοποίηση: Το βιβλίο φαίνεται να είναι μια απλή παράθεση γνώσεων. Γενικά ο συγγραφέας , πληρώθηκε για να γράψει το βιβλίο και φαίνεται να πέρασε γύρω στο ένα σαββατοκύριακο αντιγράφοντας εγκυκλοπαίδειες. Το κείμενο είναι ξερό και δύσκολο στη κατανόηση. Τελικό και χειρότερο από όλα είναι το γεγονός ότι το βιβλίο είναι αναληθές. Ο καημένος ο μεταφραστής εχει γεμίσει το βιβλίο με υποσημειώσεις για λάθη που έχει εντοπίσει στο βιβλίο! Σε ένα σημείο π.χ. ο συγγραφέας παραθέτει ένα χωρίο του Ζήνωνα του Ελεάτη που όμως δεν του ανήκει! Γενικά το βιβλίο είναι κακό, θα πρότεινα να ξοδεύεστε περισσότερο χρόνο στο να εντοπίσετε ένα καλό βιβλίο για να μην την πατήσετε σαν εμένα.

[j j · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I have read some philosophical works, I was ignorant of the general timeline of the different philosophical ideas. Recently I did borrow a few books on the topic from the library. While most of them followed a similar approach by devoting an exclusive chapter to each seminal philosopher, I felt that they lacked the comparison among the different philosophers. Trombley's book focuses more on the juxtaposition of the different philosophical ideas rather than a detailed exposition of individual philosophers. This was exactly what I was looking for. Of course, being a primer, it doesn't go deep into any of the individual philosophical schools but it does illuminates the landscape and the bridges that exist between the different regions.

[IvanOpinion · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably far too short to give more than a vague sense of what the many philosophers believed. Many extremely complicated or abstruse ideas are covered in 2 or 3 sentences, which is not enough to explain to the layman. Someone with some knowledge of philosophy might understand, but such a person would be unlikely to want to read such a high level review.

Within the constraints of the chosen scope and size of the book, I think the author did a good job. But perhaps the concept is a bad one

I read the audiobook, although this is not listed on GR. I think it was well narrated.

[Muath Aziz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Trying too hard to be comprehensive. I wouldn't recommend this book as an introduction to Philosophy, if that's what you're reading the book for. A Little History of Philosophy (Nigel Warburton) introduces you to Philosophy in a much smoother way.

However, it's a good refreshment to the absurdity of Philosophy.

[Gregg · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'd like to teach a class called "Thinking." This book would do as well as any other I can think of (although yes, I am aware of the hegemony of "western thinking" in such cases). Students read it, we come to class and they have to use it to make points about the world at large.

[Jeroen van Deelen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very informative read. Something which it ought to be, since it is a book concerned with providing an overview of the history of western philosophy. And though I give Trombley all the credit and respect for endeavouring to write a book with a scope of this magnitude, I really felt that there was too much to be discussed for the limited pages available. Cramming all - if not most - of western thought, from the Presocratics to Chomsky, into a 250 page books seems like an almost impossible task. This book thus only touches briefly and lightly on each topic discussed and rarely zooms in and stays on a particular subject matter for more than a few pages. I guess Trombley already warns the reader of this issue by calling it a ‘short history’ rather than an ‘elaborate meditation’.

Apart from this, it was well written, pleasantly unpretentious and lively. I would especially recommended this book if one is new to philosophy literature.

[Lucifer Morningstar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Πρόκειται για την εισαγωγή της εισαγωγής της φιλοσοφίας στη Δύση!

Η φιλοσοφία πρέπει να διαβάζεται πρωτογενως και συστηματικά! Είναι καλό βιβλίο για ηλικίες 16-18, λυκειακης εκπαίδευσης! Ή για όσους επιθυμούν μια γρήγορη και πρόχειρη ανασκόπηση!

[Nightary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved it.

[Jake · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy read

[Ayan Dutta · Rating 4 out of 5]

1 star deducted for cramping toomuch towards the end . otherwise a good outline of western thought

[Any Length · Rating 2 out of 5]

"What is a way to deal with the irrational view that climate change is not occurring?" Maybe a kind of philosophical thought, but what place if any has this statement in this book. None at all.
To claim that it is "an irrational view" not to believe in climate change is a statement out of the scope of this book and out of the authors field of knowledge. The author might well be good at philosophy, but should stick to what he knows about. And not claim that those who do not believe in climate change have irrational thoughts. This is not the place to push his own beliefs in climate change one way or the other!!!!
The climate change "industry" has been proven over and over to be telling us lies, to falsifying documents, to misread statistics to further their cause and to try to get themselves a job for life, by scaring people with dooms day style predictions into establishing climate change offices.
The statement above, mentioned in the afterword of this book ruined the whole enjoyment of the book
for me.
I have thus withdrawn one star from my review.

On the topic of whether we need philosophy in future I have an answer to that question, too.
I don't think we need more than about three worldwide.
The others are mediocre at best, wasting their money getting a "wordy education" which will net them no job and no money whatsoever and will condemn them to be one of the most boring taxi drivers one can have the misfortune of catching. Let alone one of the most miserable ones because all the philosophising did pay their study debt back and most of them still believe that their sense of entitlement to a nice house and a good income should be met by society. I am yet to meet a philosophy student emerging from University with a good work ethic getting himself a job, any job, so he won't be a burden on society.
Let them talk wordy in their spare time and let them earn their keep first.
And if anyone disagrees with my review, I do not care to hear about it. So don't bother writing to me.

[Glen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an enjoyable journey through the canons of Western thought. Trombley combines a readable literary style with a very disciplined handling of such a large subject matter. The pace is quick and mostly well sequenced.

There are four main sections with the final one on post-Enlightenment thought being the largest. Often this work avoids linguistic trappings by explaining key phrases/terms for the reader, however, there are passages (e.g., European Continental Idealism) that I found difficult to navigate. Despite the labors, the book does an excellent job of linking key thinkers with their intellectual lineage. There are also some interesting biographical commentaries that add to the narrative.

The author is not an editorialist (a good point!) and this work is to be commended for not being a polemical or apologetical. I would have preferred more attention to ethical, political (aside from the large attention given to Marxism) and social thought but the book's primary focus necessitates a discipline that seemingly precluded much commentary on these topics. I do recommend this for anyone seeking a larger perspective on how Western thought has developed through the centuries.

[Caleb Liu · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a very short and efficient summary of the main currents of philosophical thought running from the Pre-Socratic philosophers to modern analytic and continental philosophy and that is no mean feat. Where it does succeed rather well is in showing the broad connections between the philosophers and how philosophical thought has developed as a dialogue with or rejection of previous ideas. However, as admirable as this brevity is, and as well as Trombley attempts to capture the gist of major philosophers, this raises some inevitable issues of oversimplification and who to prioritize. In many instances Trombley is basically reduced to name dropping, including putting a significant philosopher and a far less pivotal figure in the same sentence.

So overall, very useful in enabling one to see the broad currents of philosophical thought but at the risk of over-summarizing.

[Twilight O. ☭ · Rating 1 out of 5]

A great collection of brief summaries of the conclusions of the thoughts of the great philosophers, virtually devoid of their context, argumentation, and ultimate importance. You'll learn that Marx's great advancement over the socialists that came before him was to give a coherent philosophical expression to socialism. You will emphatically not learn what this coherent philosophy was. The same goes for virtually all other thinkers. Thales was a Greek man who believed water to be the irreducible stuff of existence. Why did he think this? Why did he think that this mattered? How did others react to Thales? This book either fails to address these questions or gives them such cursory answers as to be devoid of pragmatic meaning.

[Hamid Harasani · Rating 3 out of 5]

Trombley's endeavour was always a challenging one: to confine the history of western thought in 250 pages.
This book leaves its reader with an overview of the ideas of history's most influential philosophers. For a non-specialist like myself this is a welcome shortcut. It presents a birds-eye view of Western philosophy and provides one with the opportunity to determine which thinkers and thoughts he or she wishes to explore in more detail.

[Mathew · Rating 3 out of 5]

The only criticism of Trombley is that there is not enough detail given to defining some of the more complex ideas listed. Otherwise a throughly exacting history of the links between the various schools and schisms, we'll researched and very readable.

[Rasmus Puggaard]

Short, clear, accessible introduction to the history of philosophy and science in the Western hemisphere. Recommended to anyone with a passing interest in the subject - otherwise you may be looking for something a bit less shallow

[Annie Primera · Rating 4 out of 5]

Este libro es perfecto para quienes no tienen la primera idea sobre la historia de la filosofía, pero debido a su ambiciosa amplitud pasa todos los temas muy por encima y en muchos casos se limita a mencionar el nombre de la contribución al pensamiento sin detenerse a explicar en qué consiste.

[Eva · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great summary of the history of Western philosophy. It's straight forward, easy to read and suitable for anyone who is looking for a comprehensive overview of Western philosophy without being bogged down by elaborate details.

[Helena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy reading. Very informative.

[Vikas Datta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal... breathtaking in its scope, but still managing to to offer a succinct but incisive account of the main strands of western thought - and all that influenced it.