The Penguin Dictionary of Philosophy

by Thomas Mautner

Book Overview

'A definitive work...explains clearly and succinctly concepts and theories at the heart of European and American philosophy.' - Brenda Almond What do philosophers mean by 'absolute' and 'akrasia'?... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0140512500
• ISBN13: 9780140512502
• Release Date: May 1998
• Publisher: Penguin Group
• Length: 641 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.0" x 7.7"

Customer Reviews

Easy to understand

I bought this as a supplement to teach English Lit and have been extremely happy. It allows me to answer into-level philosophy questions without bringing out this big books!

Best? No. Useful? Absolutely

Is this the best thing to happen to philosophical studies? Probably not. Nevertheless, it is of immense value and relatively inexpensive. While edited by Mautner I found most of the articles to be quite clear and informative; only a few were laborious. Mautner even allows a few more "radical" ethicists (wrong word, I know), like Peter Singer to write. This will throw a few people off (myself included) as Singer sees nothing inherently wrong with killing infants, for example (Singer, p. 522). Quite frankly, I would not have allowed him to write in the book. But, you get first-hand what a non-speciest will say on ethics and euthanasia. This shouldn't tar the book. It is very clear and useful.

The number one dictionary of philosophy?

This may well be the best dictionary of philosophy available: better value for money than many of its larger competitors. Its secret is that it's well written: one clear paragraph from this book conveys more than pages from more run-of-the-mill dictionaries. A special feature of this book is the self-portraits by major contemporary philosophers: there's enormous value in hearing where they've come from and where they believe they are headed. Briefer, clearer and more memorably written than most histories of philosophy, if you can afford only one reference work in philosophy, put this one on your shelf. You won't regret it. (And for those who already have a shelf-full of philosophy reference works, this is an invaluable addition. The self-portraits alone are worth it.)

Clear and concise guide for anyone interested in Philosophy

The Penguin Dictionary of Philosophy is a clear, concise, and comprehensive guide to philosophic terms and thinkers. For this reader, the Penguin edition far surpasses the Oxford dictionary -- a book of roughly the same length and price -- as its entries are both clearer and more thorough. I would advise serioius students of philosphy and "street level" thinkers alike to buy this well-written, useful guide.