Philosophy: The Basics

by Nigel Warburton

Book Overview

'Philosophy: The Basics deservedly remains the most recommended introduction to philosophy on the market. Warburton is patient, accurate and, above all, clear. There is no better short introduction to... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0415146941
• ISBN13: 9780415146944
• Release Date: June 1999
• Publisher: Routledge
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.1" x 7.8"

Customer Reviews

Good overview of main philosophy areas and questions

I bought this book in Eason book shop in Dublin city center a month ago when I had a large break while waiting for my ticket number in the Visa office. I finished Homework for Grown-ups book in that queue and needed to buy something to read next. Now I finished this book and I can say that I like all chapters, especially about politics, ethics, mind and art because these areas of philosophy were missing in my education. Today I was again in Eason book shop in Dublin city center when I had a large break while waiting for my ticket number in the Visa office. And guess what? I bought Religion: The Basics book... Thanks, Dmitry Vostokov Founder of Literate Scientist Blog

Great Summary of a Lot of those Argumets You'd Come Across in Philosophy

I can't believe there are people who rated this book two stars. I think this book is very handy, concise and easy to understand, providing summary of some of the major arguments you would encounter going down the path of Philosophy (at least for the classes.) But of course, the book cannot include all the arguments when there are so many. It may be nice if he includes some more points from the defense from the theistic side, but it doesn't mean that his criticism of the theistic arguments are bias. Yet you can always argue back logically by clearifying more details or modifying assumptions (...or apparently logically :)). To understand more of how logics and argument works, you can read "A Concise Introduction to Logic" by Hurley or other logic books or take a class. What's more those criticisms aren't even originated from the author. I think he did a good job in the summary, presented two sides (an argument and then a criticism) as well as giving laymen a glimpse of how one argument is presented and then being criticized and of course the criticism can also be criticized again and so on. That's what they do in analytical philosophy classes, but to keep going, you're going beyond an introduction. After all, this book is only to give you some background so that you can further pursuit Philosophy. No one is telling you to just read one book, one introductory book! and make an absolute conclusion. If you are particularly interested in Philosophy of Religion and wanted more different point of views and sides and deeper thoughts, check out "Philosophy of Religion: An Anthology" by Pojman. Now, there are also other reviewers that thinks a Philosophy book should not give any stand and should not teach anything more than making you think. Why is the thinking training so important then when nothing of its content and conclusion matters? What was the purpose of Philosophy in the first place? The diffculty lies not that there is no answer, but whether we can reach the answer. We think and study not because we just think for thinking's sake or love to argue to show the others are stupid, but it gives us more perspective, better informed and clearer mind that we see what the possible pictures of the world can be and what we thought we know but not really or which spot (of our knowledge) we probably can never ever know. It is not an isolated subject limited only in the classroom or textbook, it affects how we absorb ideas and how we see the world and way we should live. It makes us more humble instead of over confident. It is always when we are too over confident over what we think we know that we step into the "hole" we thought we know is ground and that we fall down.

Excellent introduction

As a newbie to philosphy, this book serves as a great introduction. Not too many jargons, easy read.

Excellent!

This book is an excellent introduction to philosophy. I had already studied a considerable amount of philosophy in different areas. This book explained the basic concepts in the best terms and with the best examples I have seen. He is brutally unbiased however and rarely proclaims one thing as wrong or right. This book was well worth the money .

A Guide to Philosophical Thinking

What is philosophy? Can we prove that God exists? What is right and what is wrong? Is the world really like we think it is? What makes up science? How do body and mind differ from each other? Can we define art? Haven't you ever contemplated some or all of these questions? Yes, you certainly have. And so have I. These are basic questions we are all eager to find answers to, after all. And these are the basic problems of philosophy, too. Philosophy--a subject that I have always been interested in, but never found the time to study thouroughly. There are so many great philosophers and they all wrote so big and important books. Where should I begin? Whom should I read first? Should I begin with the Greek philosophers of the antiquity, or just jump into Heidegger right away? Won't they confuse me? Will I be able to decide who is right? Ok, philosophers wrote a lot of highly interesting things during the centuries. But what's the outcome? Are we cleverer now than the old Greeks were? How do today's philosophers think about all those big questions I mentioned? I asked myself these questions and it seemed to me that I needed a guide to philosophy badly. And then I incidentally stumbled on Nigel Warburton's book, Philosophy: The Basics. I just glimpsed the table of contents and I immediately knew that this was the book I had been looking for. It's short and concise. It's clear and often entertaining, avoiding highly technical language. It deals with most of the important questions of philosophy. Its chapters are organized around specific subjects, such as God, right and wrong, the outside world, the scientific method, mind, and art. Each chapter presents all the important philosophical positions and viewpoints (the various '-ism's) concerning its subject, briefly summarizing the main arguments of every school of thought, including the counter-arguments, critiques and refutations given in reply to arguments of other schools. All opinions and arguments presented in the book are valid today, and they are presented without bias. No idea is set forth without telling the reader about its weak points and main critiques. It is up to you, the reader, to decide which view is the right one for you--or invent your own special opinion! That is actually the major advantage of this book: it makes you think! I guarantee you won't get away with reading this book without learning to think on your own, and enjoying it! Having been supplied with all the major ideas and viewpoints about the most basic questions of philosophy, you will feel the urge to formulate your own personal opinion. I have succeeded with this, and I have also learned how to support my opinions with good arguments! After having read this book, you will feel informed about all the major schools in philosophy, concerning the subjects covered in the book. However, you won't be able to associate the schools with the names of well-known, great philosophers. That i