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philosophical books
Posted: Wed Apr 01, 2009 12:57 pm
by monka191
what are the most common or most popular books about philosophy ?
Re: philosophical books
Posted: Tue Apr 14, 2009 5:34 pm
by questing vole
I don't know for sure but if you are starting out a good introduction to some of the main themes is to be found in Nigel Warburton's
Philosophy: The Basics and
Philosophy: The Classics, both Routledge.
To know a bit about how a modern philosopher lived his life you can read Bryan Magee's
Confessions of a Philosopher, a journey through Western philosophy (Phoenix).
Nothing beats the real thing and I found useful the anthology
Western Philosophy, edited by Cottingham, Blackwell - divided into themes and chronologically with short intro's.
Others may disagree - but that's philosophy.
Re: philosophical books
Posted: Tue Apr 14, 2009 5:42 pm
by Nisus
Russel's History of Western Philosophy is an essential reading too.
Re: philosophical books
Posted: Tue Apr 14, 2009 5:59 pm
by Rortabend
Nisus wrote:Russel's History of Western Philosophy is an essential reading too.
I think you need to be careful when reading Russell now. No book is free from bias but, with his bias toward English-speaking analytical philosophy, Russell's treatment of continental thinkers like Husserl and the American pragmatists is, at best, naive and, at worst, just plain daft. A beautifully wrritten and important historical document no doubt but a wonky introduction to modern philosophy.
Re: philosophical books
Posted: Tue Apr 14, 2009 6:05 pm
by Nisus
He had his faults, I know, but HWP is an excellent reference book nonetheless...
And we should be careful when reading EVERY author...
Re: philosophical books
Posted: Tue Apr 14, 2009 6:17 pm
by Rortabend
And we should be careful when reading EVERY author...
I think I said this in my post. My point is that there are better introductions to philosophy available. The problem with Russell's book is that it's a polemic masquerading as an introduction.
Re: philosophical books
Posted: Tue Apr 14, 2009 6:41 pm
by Nisus
Rortabend wrote:
I think I said this in my post. My point is that there are better introductions to philosophy available. The problem with Russell's book is that it's a polemic masquerading as an introduction.
Cite other good introductions to Philosophy that you know then...
Re: philosophical books
Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2009 10:17 am
by Rortabend
Think by Simon Blackburn.
Re: philosophical books
Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2009 12:58 pm
by tbieter
The Story of Philosophy by Will Durant
Re: philosophical books
Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2009 1:43 pm
by Rortabend
A good introduction to the other side...
An Introduction to Continental Philosophy by David West