How the World Thinks
A Global History of Philosophy
Published on 3. October 2019
Book
Paperback/Softback
432 pages
978-1-78378-230-7 (ISBN)
Description
'There to fill the Sapiens-size hole in your life' Observer
A groundbreaking global overview of philosophy, travelling the world to provide a wide-ranging map of human thought
One of the great unexplained wonders of history is that philosophy flowered entirely separately in China, India and Ancient Greece at more or less the same time. These writings would have a profound impact on the development of distinctive cultures in different parts of the world.
In How the World Thinks Julian Baggini sets out to expand our horizons, exploring the philosophies of Japan, India, China and the Muslim world, as well as the lesser-known oral traditions of Africa and Australia's first peoples. Interviewing thinkers from around the globe, Baggini asks questions such as: why is the West is more individualistic than the East? What makes secularism a less powerful force in the Islamic world than in Europe? And how has China resisted pressures for greater political freedom?
Baggini shows that by gaining greater knowledge of how others think we take the first step to a greater understanding of ourselves.
'Terrific. The intellectual and spiritual generosity of this book makes it an essential text for our fractious and dangerously divided era' Richard Holloway, author of Stories We Tell Ourselves
'This bold fascinating book seeks to inhabit other philosophical traditions, with humility but without patronisingly exempting them from the critique he applies to ours... Deft [and] rigorous' Jane O'Grady, Financial Times
A groundbreaking global overview of philosophy, travelling the world to provide a wide-ranging map of human thought
One of the great unexplained wonders of history is that philosophy flowered entirely separately in China, India and Ancient Greece at more or less the same time. These writings would have a profound impact on the development of distinctive cultures in different parts of the world.
In How the World Thinks Julian Baggini sets out to expand our horizons, exploring the philosophies of Japan, India, China and the Muslim world, as well as the lesser-known oral traditions of Africa and Australia's first peoples. Interviewing thinkers from around the globe, Baggini asks questions such as: why is the West is more individualistic than the East? What makes secularism a less powerful force in the Islamic world than in Europe? And how has China resisted pressures for greater political freedom?
Baggini shows that by gaining greater knowledge of how others think we take the first step to a greater understanding of ourselves.
'Terrific. The intellectual and spiritual generosity of this book makes it an essential text for our fractious and dangerously divided era' Richard Holloway, author of Stories We Tell Ourselves
'This bold fascinating book seeks to inhabit other philosophical traditions, with humility but without patronisingly exempting them from the critique he applies to ours... Deft [and] rigorous' Jane O'Grady, Financial Times
Reviews / Votes
This bold fascinating book seeks to inhabit other philosophical traditions, with humility but without patronisingly exempting them from the critique he applies to ours... Deft [and] rigorous -- Jane O'Grady * Financial Times * There to fill the Sapiens-size hole in your life * Observer * Terrific. The intellectual and spiritual generosity of this book makes it an essential text for our fractious and dangerously divided era -- Richard Holloway Such scope, and such lucid, lightly worn learning. Enlightening, perspective-shifting, mind-expanding - a superb tour through world philosophies with an erudite and friendly guide -- Sarah Bakewell Timely and important...this is his best [book] to date... Enthralling... This ingenious and open-hearted book is about the art of living well, something the West's philosophy has often neglected -- Stuart Kelly * Scotland on Sunday * Fascinating and unexpected... a dazzling kaleidoscope... [Baggini] has a true gift for making the difficult accessible in lapidary prose... Worth reading and re-reading -- Marina Vaizey * Arts Desk * What I loved about Julian Baggini's How the World Thinks: A Global History of Philosophy was its spiritual and intellectual generosity, and the author's ability to engage sympathetically with philosophical traditions that do not conform to his own preferred rationalist approach -- Book of the Year selected by Richard Holloway * Tablet * If you've ever wondered why the West tends to reward individual success, why some religions prioritise speech and some silence, or what lessons can be drawn by comparing Vincent Van Gogh and Michael Winner, this is a book for you * History Revealed * One of the great philosophical popularisers of his age... Baggini summarises and explicates with the greatest precision, compression and elan -- Christopher Bray * Tablet * One of the great unexplained wonders of human history is that written philosophy flowered entirely separately in China, India and Ancient Greece at more or less the same time. These early philosophies have had a profound impact on the development of distinctive cultures in different parts of the world. Baggini also looks at the differences between east and west and different religions * Four Shires Magazine * Ground-breaking -- Sarah Dennis * Oxford Times * Eye-opening * Prospect * [For] a broader audience with no philosophical training... Baggini [...] is cheerful and wide-eyed, moving from one big idea to another like a food lover at an opulent buffet * TLS * Highly readable * Times Higher Education * A brilliantly accessible coalescence of thought and belief from around the world...A triumph of comparative philosophy with widespread relevance for the way we live today -- Book of the Month * Waterstones * There is also a need for books that explain non-Western philosophical traditions to the interested non-specialist. Julian Baggini's How The World Thinks is an excellent example of this genre * TLS *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Dimensions
Height: 198 mm
Width: 131 mm
Thickness: 30 mm
Weight
302 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-78378-230-7 (9781783782307)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
10/2018
GRANTA BOOKS
€11.99
Available for download
Person
Julian Baggini's books include Welcome to Everytown: A Journey into the English Mind, What's It All About?: Philosophy and the Meaning of Life, the bestselling The Pig that Wants to be Eaten, Do They Think You're Stupid?, The Ego Trick, The Virtues of the Table: How to Eat and Think, and Freedom Regained, all published by Granta Books. He has written for various newspapers, magazines, academic journals and think tanks. His website is microphilosophy.net.