Philosophy
The Big Questions
1st Edition
Published on 11. December 2003
Book
Paperback/Softback
544 pages
978-1-4051-0827-0 (ISBN)
Description
Philosophy: The Big Questions occupies a unique position among introductory texts in philosophy.
Designed for a single-semester introductory course in philosophy, it includes both classic readings in philosophy and newer articles.
Presents, in one volume, canonical and contemporary works in ethics, metaphysics, philosophy of religion, and epistemology.
Topics discussed include knowledge, religion, freedom, morality, and the meaning of life.
Serves as a comprehensive and compelling introduction to philosophy.
Together with traditional readings it also presents non-traditional, feminist eadings from a continental perspectives.
Designed for a single-semester introductory course in philosophy, it includes both classic readings in philosophy and newer articles.
Presents, in one volume, canonical and contemporary works in ethics, metaphysics, philosophy of religion, and epistemology.
Topics discussed include knowledge, religion, freedom, morality, and the meaning of life.
Serves as a comprehensive and compelling introduction to philosophy.
Together with traditional readings it also presents non-traditional, feminist eadings from a continental perspectives.
Reviews / Votes
"This is an extraordinary rich and refreshing collection of essays that brings together some of the most illuminating and provocative essays to be found in philosophy. This volume reveals the majesty of philosophy while, at the same time, showcasing the diversity and creativity that has made philosophy so appealing to the very best minds. I expect this reader to become a classic text." Laurence Thomas, Syracuse University"This marvelous collection of readings from the Western tradition draws judiciously both from classic texts and contemporary authors. Reminding us of the basic importance for all human life of the central questions of philosophy, it orms an excellent introduction to the subject." Roger Trigg, University of Warwick
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Hoboken
United Kingdom
Publishing group
John Wiley and Sons Ltd
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Dimensions
Height: 246 mm
Width: 173 mm
Thickness: 29 mm
Weight
934 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-4051-0827-0 (9781405108270)
Copyright in bibliographic data is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or its licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Book
12/2003
1st Edition
Wiley
€188.50
Shipment within 3-4 weeks
Persons
Ruth J. Sample is Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of New Hampshire. She teaches social and political philosophy, early modern philosophy, and feminist philosophy, and is the author of Exploitation: What It Is and Why It's Wrong (2003).
Charles W. Mills is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He works in the area of oppositional political theory and is the author of three books: The Racial Contract (1997), Blackness Visible: Essays on Philosophy and Race (1998), and From Class to Race: Essays in White Marxism and Black Radicalism (2003).
James P. Sterba is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Notre Dame, Indiana, where he teaches ethics and political philosophy. His publications include How to Make People Just (1988), Feminist Philosophies (2nd edn., 1995), Justice for Here and Now (1998), Earth Ethics (2nd edn., 2000), Three Challenges to Ethics (2001),and Morality in Practice (7th edn., 2003).
Charles W. Mills is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He works in the area of oppositional political theory and is the author of three books: The Racial Contract (1997), Blackness Visible: Essays on Philosophy and Race (1998), and From Class to Race: Essays in White Marxism and Black Radicalism (2003).
James P. Sterba is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Notre Dame, Indiana, where he teaches ethics and political philosophy. His publications include How to Make People Just (1988), Feminist Philosophies (2nd edn., 1995), Justice for Here and Now (1998), Earth Ethics (2nd edn., 2000), Three Challenges to Ethics (2001),and Morality in Practice (7th edn., 2003).
Content
Preface ix Acknowledgments xi
PART ONE WHAT CAN WE KNOW? 1
Introduction 3
1 From Meditations on First Philosophy 6
RENE DESCARTES
2 From An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding 34
DAVID HUME
3 Cartesian Skepticism and Inference to the Best Explanation 64
JONATHAN VOGEL
4 From Science as Social Knowledge 71
HELEN LONGINO
5 The 'Maleness' of Reason 78
GENEVIEVE LLOYD
6 The Ethics of Belief 83
WILLIAM CLIFFORD
7 It is Wrong, Everywhere, Always, and for Anyone, to Believe Anything upon Insufficient Evidence 87
PETER VAN INWAGEN
Epistemology: Suggestions for Further Reading 99
PART TWO WHAT CAN WE KNOW ABOUT THE NATURE AND EXISTENCE OF GOD? 101
Introduction 103
8 From Proslogium 106
ST. ANSELM
9 In Behalf of the Fool: An Answer to the Argument of Anselm in the Proslogium 107
GAUNILO
10 The Ontological Argument 111
WILLIAM L. ROWE
11 The Cosmological Argument 123
WILLIAM L. ROWE
12 From Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion 133
DAVID HUME
13 The Argument from Design 141
R. G. SWINBURNE
14 The Wager 151
BLAISE PASCAL
15 The Recombinant DNA Debate: A Difficulty for Pascalian-Style Wagering 154
STEPHEN P. STICH
16 A Central Theistic Argument 155
GEORGE SCHLESINGER
17 Evil and Omnipotence 167
J. L. MACKIE
18 The Problem of Evil 176
ELEONORE STUMP
19 Male-Chauvinist Religion 190
DEBORAH MATHIEU
20 Divine Racism: A Philosophical and Theological Analysis 201
WILLIAM R. JONES
Religion: Suggestions for Further Reading 212
PART THREE ARE WE EVER FREE? 213
Introduction 215
21 From The System of Nature 218
PAUL HOLBACH
22 Freedom and Necessity 225
A. J. AYER
23 Human Freedom and the Self 231
RODERICK M. CHISHOLM
24 Alternate Possibilities and Moral Responsibility 239
HARRY G. FRANKFURT
25 How to Complete the Compatibilist Account of Free Action 246
JAMES P. STERBA AND JANET A. KOURANY
26 Living without Free Will: The Case for Hard Incompatibilism 257
DERK PEREBOOM
27 Metaethics, Metaphilosophy, and Free Will Subjectivism 267
RICHARD DOUBLE
Freedom and Determinism: Suggestions for Further Reading 276
PART FOUR DOES OUR EXISTENCE HAVE A MEANING OR PURPOSE? 277
Introduction 279
28 From My Confession 281
LEO TOLSTOY
29 The Absurdity of Life without God 288
WILLIAM LANE CRAIG
30 On the Vanity of Existence 302
ARTHUR SCHOPENHAUER
31 An Absurd Reasoning 305
ALBERT CAMUS
32 Existentialism Is a Humanism 313
JEAN-PAUL SARTRE
33 The Absurd 322
THOMAS NAGEL
34 What Makes Life Worth Living? 330
OWEN FLANAGAN
35 The Meaning of Life 337
JOHN KEKES
36 Tolstoi and the Meaning of Life 353
ANTHONY FLEW
The Meaning of Life: Suggestions for Further Reading 361
PART FIVE HOW SHOULD WE LIVE? 363
Introduction 365
37 Morality as Good in Itself 367
PLATO
38 The Problem of Rationality: Is Morality Rationally Required? 374
JAMES P. STERBA
39 From Utilitarianism 383
JOHN STUART MILL
40 Fundamental Principles of the Metaphysic of Morals 399
IMMANUEL KANT
41 From Two Treatises of Government 414
JOHN LOCKE
42 From A Theory of Justice 421
JOHN RAWLS
43 Distributive Justice 445
ROBERT NOZICK
44 Gender Inequality and Cultural Difference 455
SUSAN MOLLER OKIN
45 Race/Gender and the Ethics of Difference 470
JANE FLAX
46 A Response to Jane Flax 478
SUSAN MOLLER OKIN
47 Equality, Discrimination and Preferential Treatment 482
BERNARD R. BOXILL
48 All Animals Are Equal . . . 490
PETER SINGER
49 The Ethics of Respect for Nature 505
PAUL W. TAYLOR
Ethics: Suggestions for Further Reading 519
Index 520
PART ONE WHAT CAN WE KNOW? 1
Introduction 3
1 From Meditations on First Philosophy 6
RENE DESCARTES
2 From An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding 34
DAVID HUME
3 Cartesian Skepticism and Inference to the Best Explanation 64
JONATHAN VOGEL
4 From Science as Social Knowledge 71
HELEN LONGINO
5 The 'Maleness' of Reason 78
GENEVIEVE LLOYD
6 The Ethics of Belief 83
WILLIAM CLIFFORD
7 It is Wrong, Everywhere, Always, and for Anyone, to Believe Anything upon Insufficient Evidence 87
PETER VAN INWAGEN
Epistemology: Suggestions for Further Reading 99
PART TWO WHAT CAN WE KNOW ABOUT THE NATURE AND EXISTENCE OF GOD? 101
Introduction 103
8 From Proslogium 106
ST. ANSELM
9 In Behalf of the Fool: An Answer to the Argument of Anselm in the Proslogium 107
GAUNILO
10 The Ontological Argument 111
WILLIAM L. ROWE
11 The Cosmological Argument 123
WILLIAM L. ROWE
12 From Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion 133
DAVID HUME
13 The Argument from Design 141
R. G. SWINBURNE
14 The Wager 151
BLAISE PASCAL
15 The Recombinant DNA Debate: A Difficulty for Pascalian-Style Wagering 154
STEPHEN P. STICH
16 A Central Theistic Argument 155
GEORGE SCHLESINGER
17 Evil and Omnipotence 167
J. L. MACKIE
18 The Problem of Evil 176
ELEONORE STUMP
19 Male-Chauvinist Religion 190
DEBORAH MATHIEU
20 Divine Racism: A Philosophical and Theological Analysis 201
WILLIAM R. JONES
Religion: Suggestions for Further Reading 212
PART THREE ARE WE EVER FREE? 213
Introduction 215
21 From The System of Nature 218
PAUL HOLBACH
22 Freedom and Necessity 225
A. J. AYER
23 Human Freedom and the Self 231
RODERICK M. CHISHOLM
24 Alternate Possibilities and Moral Responsibility 239
HARRY G. FRANKFURT
25 How to Complete the Compatibilist Account of Free Action 246
JAMES P. STERBA AND JANET A. KOURANY
26 Living without Free Will: The Case for Hard Incompatibilism 257
DERK PEREBOOM
27 Metaethics, Metaphilosophy, and Free Will Subjectivism 267
RICHARD DOUBLE
Freedom and Determinism: Suggestions for Further Reading 276
PART FOUR DOES OUR EXISTENCE HAVE A MEANING OR PURPOSE? 277
Introduction 279
28 From My Confession 281
LEO TOLSTOY
29 The Absurdity of Life without God 288
WILLIAM LANE CRAIG
30 On the Vanity of Existence 302
ARTHUR SCHOPENHAUER
31 An Absurd Reasoning 305
ALBERT CAMUS
32 Existentialism Is a Humanism 313
JEAN-PAUL SARTRE
33 The Absurd 322
THOMAS NAGEL
34 What Makes Life Worth Living? 330
OWEN FLANAGAN
35 The Meaning of Life 337
JOHN KEKES
36 Tolstoi and the Meaning of Life 353
ANTHONY FLEW
The Meaning of Life: Suggestions for Further Reading 361
PART FIVE HOW SHOULD WE LIVE? 363
Introduction 365
37 Morality as Good in Itself 367
PLATO
38 The Problem of Rationality: Is Morality Rationally Required? 374
JAMES P. STERBA
39 From Utilitarianism 383
JOHN STUART MILL
40 Fundamental Principles of the Metaphysic of Morals 399
IMMANUEL KANT
41 From Two Treatises of Government 414
JOHN LOCKE
42 From A Theory of Justice 421
JOHN RAWLS
43 Distributive Justice 445
ROBERT NOZICK
44 Gender Inequality and Cultural Difference 455
SUSAN MOLLER OKIN
45 Race/Gender and the Ethics of Difference 470
JANE FLAX
46 A Response to Jane Flax 478
SUSAN MOLLER OKIN
47 Equality, Discrimination and Preferential Treatment 482
BERNARD R. BOXILL
48 All Animals Are Equal . . . 490
PETER SINGER
49 The Ethics of Respect for Nature 505
PAUL W. TAYLOR
Ethics: Suggestions for Further Reading 519
Index 520