Political Philosophy - A Complete Introduction: Teach Yourself

by Phil Parvin, Clare Chambers

Written by Phil Parvin and Clare Chambers, who are current political philosophy lecturers and leading researchers, Political Philosophy - The Essentials is designed to give you everything you need to succeed, all in one place. It covers the key areas that students are expected to be confident in, outlining the basics in clear jargon-free English, and then providing added-value features like summaries of key thinkers, and even lists of questions you might be asked in your seminar or exam. The book's structure follows that of most university courses on political philosophy, by looking at the essential concepts within political philosophy (freedom, equality, power, democracy, rights, the state, political obligation), and then looking at the ways in which piolitical philosophers have used these fundamental concepts in order to tackle a range of normative political questions such as whether the state has a responsibility to alleviate inequalities, and what interest liberal and demovratic states should take in the cultural or religious beliefs of citizens. Teach Yourself titles employ the 'Breakthrough method', which is designed specifically to overcome problems that students face. - 'I find it difficult to remember what I've read.'; this book includes end-of-chapter questions and summaries, - 'Most books mention important other sources, but I can never find them in time.'; this book includes key texts and case studies are summarised, complete with fully referenced quotes ready to use in your essay or exam. - 'Lots of introductory books turn out to cover totally different topics than my course.'; this book is written by a current university lecturer who understands what students are expected to know.

Genres: Philosophy, Politics

336 pages, CD-ROM

First published January 1, 2012

Reviews

[Lama Hussein · Rating 4 out of 5]

تجاهلوا عدد التقييمات القليل. هذا الكتاب ممتاز كمقدمة. لغته سهلة و واضحة، وفي نهاية كل فصل عشر أسئلة مع إجاباتها لترسيخ الفهم.
أنصح به بشدة.

[James O'Neill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very comprehensive despite a pro feminist and anti liberal bias

Easy to read and conceptually simple, thanks to clear, practical examples of the various theories in practice. Great introduction to the topic of political philosophy and covers the main areas very well, providing arguments and counter arguments for each of the ideologies presented. Except for feminism, no counter arguments provided here for some reason and this chapter is the only criticism I have for the entire book.

There are plenty of interesting and valid counter arguments against modern takes on radical feminism and one can't help but feel a bias on the part of the authors is in play here when they don't include them. Especially since stats on the gender pay gap are provided without any counter claims or alternative explanations for it, which have been debated a lot in the past and present by public intellectuals. The unfalsifiable feminist claims of the pernicious patriarchy play a big part in this chapter and sadly there are no counter arguments provided to balance it out.

Despite this, the book truly is excellent and worth a read for anyone interested in the topic in need of an introduction before tackling the tougher stuff which is also referenced in the book. Despite the obvious bias on the part of the authors, they still deserve 5 stars for a brilliantly comprehensive book.

[Jussi Halonen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A convincing introduction! Almost everything was new to me, so found this interesting all the way through. Useful tools and concepts for evaluating the western societies and political phenomena.

[Sina piccolo · Rating 4 out of 5]

کم‌نظیر. بین کتاب‌های موجود در بازار این کتاب رو بهتر دیدم. یکی دو فصل آخر هم اگر نداشت اتفاقی نمی‌افتاد. جا داشت از نوزیک بیشتر حرف بزنه.

[Anthony Shull · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish there would have been more of a historical treatment, but the book mostly revolved around Rawls and liberalism. Still worth the read to get up to speed on concepts discussed in the domain.

[Snoops]

one thing about me is i will log EVERYTHING - including required reading (book was amazing though at introducing political philosophy theory and ideas)

[Ideas Sleep Furiously · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this for the second time many years after university. This time, I read it as the teacher. My student, only 15 and with English as a second language, found it incredibly accessible. A wonderful resource.

The book was co-authored by my own university lecturer who taught my political philosophy class. Thanks, Phil!

[Ryan Andrada-Foster · Rating 4 out of 5]

A useful survey of prominent political frameworks.