Philosophy

by David Papineau

What is reality? Is there free will? Is war ever justified? These are questions that philosophers have spent centuries contemplating. In Philosophy , an international team of scholars offer intriguing answers to these and many other key issues that have long puzzled humanity.
Vividly written and beautifully designed, this stimulating volume takes readers on an informative, thoughtful tour of philosophy. The book examines six major topics--The World, Mind and Body, Knowledge, Faith, Ethics and Aesthetics, and Society--and under these headings, it considers such
subjects as Time and Space, Feelings and Emotions, Induction and Deduction, the Afterlife, Love and Friendship, and Crime and Punishment. Indeed, the contributors discuss all of the most important issues in the history of philosophy, shedding light on what the great thinkers have written about them.
There are special sections on some of the most important philosophers who ever lived--Aristotle and Descartes, Locke and Hume, Spinoza and Pascal, Schopenhauer and Sartre, Foucault and Rawls--along with portraits or photographs of each. In addition, the book includes special features on major
philosophical works, such as Descartes' Meditations or Plato's Symposium , and on interesting philosophical concepts, such as "the Gambler's Fallacy" or Sartre's example of the waiter and the loss of individuality.
A perfect starting point for the exploration of philosophical thought, Philosophy offers life-changing perspectives on some of the great questions, from the nature of the mind to the morality of cloning and stem-cell research.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, History

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

David Papineau ( born 1947) is a British academic philosopher, born in Como, Italy.[1] He works as Professor of Philosophy of Science at King's College London and the City University of New York Graduate Center having previously taught for several years at Cambridge University where he was a fellow of Robinson College.

Papineau was born in Italy and grew up in Trinidad, England and South Africa.[citation needed] He received a BSc in mathematics from the University of Natal and a BA and PhD in philosophy from the University of Cambridge under the supervision of Ian Hacking.

He has worked in metaphysics, epistemology, and the philosophies of science, mind, and mathematics. His overall stance is naturalist and realist. He is one of the originators of the teleosemantic theory of mental representation, a solution to the problem of intentionality which derives the intentional content of our beliefs from their biological purpose. He is also a defender of the a posteriori physicalist solution to the mind-body problem

Papineau was elected President of the British Society for the Philosophy of Science for 1993–5, of the Mind Association for 2009–10 and of the Aristotelian Society for 2013-4

His latest book Knowing the Score (2017) is written for a general readership, and looks at a number of ways in which sporting issues cast light on long-standing philosophical problems.

Papineau lives in London with his wife, Rose Wild

Reviews

[Jason Robinson]

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.

[Fons Mariën]

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.

[minttulaamanenn]

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!

[Jen]

Written in an easy-to-understand style, this is a good introduction to philosophical ideas and famous philosophers in Western cultures.

[Marcelo Aguila Maldonado]

Manual que alcanza para obtener una visión superficial de la filosofía occidental.

[Clement]

A good survey of western philosophy history, perfect for beginners as a first/second book for philosophy.

[David Stag]

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.

[Andrew]

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.

[E Goldberg]

Quick survey of subject. Pretty shallow but does have references.

[Eve Lumerto]

Good, basic overview.

[Logophile (Heather)]

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.

[Were]

Great book

[Peter A. van Tilburg]

Offers good overview on philosophy, sometimes a little fragmentic, all short topics.

[George Law]

Excellent style and presentation.