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Philosophy
What does it mean for something to exist? What is truth? Are we free to choose how to think or act? What is consciousness? Is human cloning justifiable? These are some of the questions philosophers have attempted to answer. They strike right to the heart of what it means to be human. This book shows that philosophy need not be dry or intimidating.
224 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
December 30, 2017
A comprehensive overview of Western Philosophers and philosophical issues. The author seemed a bit arbitrary on what he expanded on and what he was vague on. A tad hard to understand at times.
August 5, 2019
I read this book in a Dutch translation, called 'Filosofie'. But indeed this book deals with Western philosophy only, from the ancient Greeks to contemporary philosophers. The approach is thematic, which I think is interesting. Themes are: the world, body and mind,knowledge, belief, ethics and society, and there are for each theme many subdivisions. For each theme the relevant philosophical ideas are explained and therefor also the relevant philosophers are introduced. This approach is more interesting than a typical chronological approach. The basic ideas about the several themes that philosophy tries to answer, are dealt with. The most important philosophers of the west are introduced as well. This book is therefor a good introduction into Western philosophy.
November 5, 2023
Erittäin mielenkiintoinen ja kattava toetokirja. Layout oli todella selkeä ja kirja oli ylipäätään jäsennelty fiksusti. Pidin siitä, että kirjassa oli tuotu esille kattavasti teoriatietoa sekä kuvauksia eri filosofien näkökulmista. Tän kirjan avulla pääsi hyvin filosofian makuun!
August 10, 2019
Written in an easy-to-understand style, this is a good introduction to philosophical ideas and famous philosophers in Western cultures.
September 23, 2024
Manual que alcanza para obtener una visión superficial de la filosofía occidental.
March 24, 2020
A good survey of western philosophy history, perfect for beginners as a first/second book for philosophy.
August 17, 2013
Hard to rate. Author is a bit wordy, but knows the subject well and is unbiased in his reporting. The book is informative, but the subject matter is very difficult. The questions brought up are interesting (what is truth, knowledge, justice, etc.). The answers given by various philosophers, at best, are obvious to any thinking person. And at worst, many "great" philosophers thoughts are trivial, silly or pure baloney. I kept expecting some enlightenment, but rarely found anything new that I found interesting. Many philosophers' points are so obtuse, that I had to re-read many paragraphs several times to understand what was being said. If you are looking for a light read that breezes through many great thoughts of the last centuries, then this book is a one star. If you are looking for serious details on a wide variety of topics, philosophers and their thinking (e.g. you are looking for a philosopher to study further), then it is a five star.
December 24, 2013
It's interesting to see how hard we've thought about things through the ages, and how often we've been wrong. Puts our own time in context and makes you wonder which things our current epoch is dead wrong about.
February 14, 2010
Quick survey of subject. Pretty shallow but does have references.
October 20, 2021
Good, basic overview.
October 17, 2016
Intro to philosophy. It is hard to find a good overview of this many disparate ideas that does not abbreviate to the point of inaccuracy. I think this one does a good job.
Currently reading
November 13, 2016Great book
May 11, 2013
Offers good overview on philosophy, sometimes a little fragmentic, all short topics.
October 10, 2015
Excellent style and presentation.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews