Introduction to Philosophy: Classical and Contemporary Readings

by Louis P. Pojman (Editor), James Fieser (Editor)

Overview

Introduction to Philosophy: Classical and Contemporary Readings, Fourth Edition, is a highly acclaimed topically organized anthology featuring eighty-four selections that cover five major areas of philosophy—theory of knowledge, philosophy of religion, philosophy of mind, freedom and determinism, and moral philosophy. Louis P. Pojman and new coeditor James Fieser enhance the text's topical organization by presenting opposing articles on each issue so that students can better understand different perspectives. Offering a unique feature for a collection of this depth, the editors also include accessible introductions to each part, subsection, and individual reading, providing context for the essays and summarizing their key themes.
Beginning with the opening section, "What Is Philosophy?", the book focuses on a compelling sampling of classical material—including selections from Plato, Aristotle, Descartes, Locke, Berkeley, Hume, and Kant. It also incorporates some of philosophy's best contemporary work, offering articles by Harry Frankfurt, Richard Taylor, John Searle, Thomas Nagel, and others. The volume is enriched by helpful pedagogical features including "Questions for Further Reflection" after each selection; "Suggestions for Further Reading" at the end of the book; a glossary; and two appendices—"How to Read and Write a Philosophy Paper" and "A Little Bit of Logic."

The fourth edition includes the complete text of Descartes' Meditations on First Philosophy and nine new selections:

* Sextus Empiricus: "Skepticism and Tranquility"
* Lorraine Code: "A Feminist Epistemology?"
* Samuel Clarke and David Hume: "The Causal Argument for God"
* Voltaire: "The Best of All Possible Worlds?"
* René Descartes: "Interactive Dualism"
* Anne Conway: "Mind and Body as a Continuum"
* Epictetus: "Stoic Resignation to Fate"
* David Hume: "Morality Not Derived from Reason"
* Alfred Jules Ayer: "Emotivism and Prescriptivism"

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780195311617
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	12/11/2007
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	704
Product dimensions:	9.10(w) x 7.50(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

United States Military Academy, West Point

Table of Contents

*=New to this edition, PrefaceI. WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY?Plato, Socratic WisdomJohn Locke, Philosophy as the Love of Truth versus EnthusiasmBertrand Russell, The Value of PhilosophyII. THEORY OF KNOWLEDGEA. Classical Theories on Certainty and the Sources of KnowledgePlato, The Theory of the Forms and Doctrine of Recollection* Sextus Empiricus, Skepticism and TranquilityRené Descartes, Meditations on First Philosophy (complete)John Locke, Knowledge Through ExperienceGeorge Berkeley, An Idealist Theory of KnowledgeDavid Hume, Experience and the Limits of Human ReasonImmanuel Kant, The Copernican Revolution in KnowledgeB. Contemporary Theories on the Limits of KnowledgeJohn Maynard Smith, Science and MythNorman Malcolm, Two Types of KnowledgeKarl Popper, Epistemology Without a Knowing SubjectRichard Rorty, Dismantling Truth: Solidarity versus ObjectivityDaniel Dennett, Postmodernism and Truth* Lorraine Code, A Feminist Epistemology?III. PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGIONA. Traditional Arguments for the Existence of GodSt. Thomas Aquinas, The Five Ways* Samuel Clarke and David Hume, The Causal Argument for GodF.C. Copleston and Bertrand Russell, A Debate on the Argument from ContingencyWilliam Paley, The Watch and the WatchmakerDavid Hume, A Critique of the Teleological ArgumentAnselm versus Gaunilo, The Ontological ArgumentF.C. Copleston and Bertrand Russell, A Debate on the Argument from Religious ExperienceC.D. Broad, The Argument from Religious ExperienceB. The Problem of Evil* Voltaire, The Best of All Possible Worlds?Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Why Is There Evil?Bruce Russell, The Problem of Evil: Why Is There So Much Suffering?Richard Swinburne, A Theistic Response to the Problem of EvilC. Faith and ReasonAntony Flew, R.M. Hare, and Basil Mitchell, A Debate on the Rationality of Religious BeliefBlaise Pascal, Faith Is a Rational WagerW.K. Clifford, The Ethics of BeliefWilliam James, The Will to BelieveAlvin Plantinga, Religious Belief without EvidenceIV. PHILOSOPHY OF MINDA. The Mind-Body Problem* René Descartes, Interactive Dualism* Anne Conway, Mind and Body as a ContinuumJerome Shaffer, Consciousness and the Mind-Body ProblemPaul Churchland, A Critique of DualismPaul Churchland, On Functionalism and MaterialismThomas Nagel, What Is It Like to Be a Bat?David Chalmers, Against Materialism: Can Consciousness Be Reductively Explained?John Searle, Minds, Brains, and ComputersB. The Problem of Personal IdentityJohn Locke, The Self as Psychological PropertiesDavid Hume, The Self as a Bundle of PerceptionsDerek Parfit and Godfrey Vesey, Brain Transplants and Personal Identity: A DialogueC. Personal Identity and Survival: Will I Survive My Death?Plato, Arguments for the Immortality of the SoulBetrand Russell, The Illusion of ImmortalityJohn Hick, In Defense of Life After DeathV. FREEDOM OF THE WILL, RESPONSIBILITY, AND PUNISHMENTA. Free Will and DeterminismBaron Paul Henri d'Holbach, A Defense of DeterminismRichard Taylor, Libertarianism: Defense of Free WillW.T. Stace, Compatibilism: Free Will Is Consistent with DeterminismJohn Hospers, Determinism: Free Will and PsychoanalysisHarry Frankfurt, Freedom of the Will and the Concept of a PersonB. Moral ResponsibilityAristotle, Voluntary Action and Responsibility* Epictetus, Stoic Resignation to FateGalen Strawson, The Impossibility of Moral ResponsibilityMichael Levin, A Compatibilist Defense of Moral ResponsibilityLois Hope Walker, A Libertarian Defense of Moral ResponsibilityC. PunishmentImmanuel Kant, The Right to Punish: RetributivismJonathan Glover, Utilitarianism and PunishmentKarl Menninger, The Crime of Punishment: The Humanitarian TheoryC.S. Lewis, Against the Humanitarian Theory of RehabilitationJohn Rawls, Two Concepts of PunishmentVI. MORAL PHILOSOPHYPlato, Socratic MoralityA. Moral RelativismHerodotus, Custom Is KingRuth Benedict, In Defense of Moral RelativismLouis P. Pojman, Ethical Relativism versus Ethical ObjectivismJ.L. Mackie, The Subjectivity of ValuesLouis P. Pojman, A Critique of Mackie's Theory of Moral SubjectivismB. Morality and Self-InterestPlato, Gyges' Ring, or Is the Good Good for You?James Rachels, Ethical EgoismJ.L. Mackie, The Law of the Jungle: Moral Alternatives and Principles of EvolutionC. Religion and EthicsPlato, The Divine Command Theory of EthicsBertrand Russell, A Free Man's WorshipGeorge Mavrodes, Religion and the Queerness of MoralityKai Nielsen, Ethics Without ReligionD. Standards of Moral EvaluationAristotle, VirtuesThomas Hobbes, The Social ContractJohn Stuart Mill, Utilitarianism and PleasureImmanuel Kant, Duty and the Categorical ImperativeE. Challenges to Traditional Moral Theories* David Hume, Morality Not Derived from Reason* Alfred Jules Ayer, Emotivism and PrescriptivismFriedrich Nietzsche, Beyond Good and EvilWilliam Gass, The Case of the Obliging StrangerThomas Nagel, Moral LuckAppendix I. How to Read and Write a Philosophy PaperAppendix II. A Little Bit of LogicGlossarySuggestions for Further Reading

Editorial Reviews

"Excellent selection, well organized. Something here for everyone."—Hugh Curtler, Southwest Minnesota State University

From the Publisher