Download or read book How to be a Philosopher written by Hugh Hunter and published by Library and Archives Canada. This book was released on 2020-09-04 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What does it take to become a philosopher? In this short book Dr. Hugh Hunter uses techniques from his teaching career to give an answer. Starting with simple and relatable examples from traditional Western philosophy, he explains what being a philosopher means, how to situate a problem in philosophy, and how to think, read, write and find community as a philosopher. The techniques in this book are easy to learn. Mastering them is the work of a lifetime.Studying philosophy at university won't necessarily teach you how to become a philosopher. This short guide will tell you how to interact with the university system as a philosopher whether you are a part of it or not. Self-teachers, homeschoolers, and those charting their own philosophical course will all find something of value here.

Download or read book Ask a Philosopher written by Ian Olasov and published by Macmillan + ORM. This book was released on 2020-09-15 with total page 175 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A collection of answers to the philosophical questions on people's minds—from the big to the personal to the ones you didn't know you needed answered. Based on real-life questions from his Ask a Philosopher series, Ian Olasov offers his answers to questions such as: - Are people innately good or bad? - Is it okay to have a pet fish? - Is it okay to have kids? - Is color subjective? - If humans colonize Mars, who will own the land? - Is ketchup a smoothie? - Is there life after death? - Should I give money to homeless people? Ask a Philosopher shows that there's a way of making philosophy work for each of us, and that philosophy can be both perfectly continuous with everyday life, and also utterly transporting. From questions that we all wrestle with in private to questions that you never thought to ask, Ask a Philosopher will get you thinking.

Download or read book How To Be A Philosopher written by Gary Cox and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2010-09-09 with total page 165 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Do life's big questions perplex you? This book, now available in paperback, will give you answers to some of them while revealing that others have no answer. A humorous but informed instruction manual to questions philosophers have been asking and attempting to answer for centuries, How to Be A Philosopher will help you: • Think, talk, argue and persuade like a philosopher. • Win every agument by tying people in philosophical knots. • Ask questions and raise doubts about things most people take for granted. • Realise that almost nothing is certain. • Get the absolute final word on that question about a falling tree. A practical guide to philosophising, the book explains philosophical ideas with examples drawn from such great works as Family Guy, Monty Python's Flying Circus, The Matrix and Red Dwarf. The book also argues that learning to philosophise will help you think more clearly and honestly about your own life. The book even gives practical advice on how to make a living from philosophy!

Download or read book Desert Islands written by Gilles Deleuze and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2004-01-09 with total page 342 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An anthology of 40 texts and interviews written over 20 years by French philosopher Gilles Deleuze, of which the early texts belong to literary criticism. Philosophy clearly dominates the rest of the book with a surprise admission by Deleuze that Sartre was his master.

Download or read book What a Philosopher Is written by Laurence Lampert and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2017 with total page 361 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The trajectory of Friedrich Nietzsche’s thought has long presented a difficulty for the study of his philosophy. How did the young Nietzsche—classicist and ardent advocate of Wagner’s cultural renewal—become the philosopher of Will to Power and the Eternal Return? With this book, Laurence Lampert answers that question. He does so through his trademark technique of close readings of key works in Nietzsche’s journey to philosophy: The Birth of Tragedy, Schopenhauer as Educator, Richard Wagner in Bayreuth, Human All Too Human, and “Sanctus Januarius,” the final book of the 1882 Gay Science. Relying partly on how Nietzsche himself characterized his books in his many autobiographical guides to the trajectory of his thought, Lampert sets each in the context of Nietzsche’s writings as a whole, and looks at how they individually treat the question of what a philosopher is. Indispensable to his conclusions are the workbooks in which Nietzsche first recorded his advances, especially the 1881 workbook which shows him gradually gaining insights into the two foundations of his mature thinking. The result is the most complete picture we’ve had yet of the philosopher’s development, one that gives us a Promethean Nietzsche, gaining knowledge even as he was expanding his thought to create new worlds.

Download or read book How to Think Like a Philosopher written by Daniel Smith and published by Michael O'Mara Books. This book was released on 2021-04-22 with total page 171 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From Socrates to Sartre, Avicenna to Angela Davis, this accessible guide will get you up to speed on the world's greatest minds and help you to think like them. You've heard of Plato, but do you understand his Theory of Forms? What does René Descartes' maxim 'I think, therefore I am' actually mean? And how is philosophy relevant to modern life? Drawing on the thoughts and words of iconic philosophers from the ancient world right through to the present day, each chapter deals with a specific philosophical theory. Explore the conflict between free will and determinism, the political concept of Machiavellianism, the difference between metaphysics and epistemology, and what dialectics actually is in this accessibly-written guide to the smartest minds in history.

Download or read book Confessions of a Philosopher written by Bryan Magee and published by Modern Library. This book was released on 1999-05-18 with total page 490 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this infectiously exciting book, Bryan Magee tells the story of his own discovery of philosophy and not only makes it come alive but shows its relevance to daily life. Magee is the Carl Sagan of philosophy, the great popularizer of the subject, and author of a major new introductory history, The Story of Philosophy. Confessions follows the course of Magee's life, exploring philosophers and ideas as he himself encountered them, introducing all the great figures and their ideas, from the pre-Socratics to Bertrand Russell and Karl Popper, including Wittgenstein, Kant, Nietzsche, and Schopenhauer, rationalism, utilitarianism, empiricism, and existentialism.

Download or read book The Two Fundamental Problems of the Theory of Knowledge written by Karl Popper and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-05-01 with total page 494 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In a letter of 1932, Karl Popper described Die beiden Grundprobleme der Erkenntnistheorie – The Two Fundamental Problems of the Theory of Knowledge – as ‘...a child of crises, above all of ...the crisis of physics.’ Finally available in English, it is a major contribution to the philosophy of science, epistemology and twentieth century philosophy generally. The two fundamental problems of knowledge that lie at the centre of the book are the problem of induction, that although we are able to observe only a limited number of particular events, science nevertheless advances unrestricted universal statements; and the problem of demarcation, which asks for a separating line between empirical science and non-science. Popper seeks to solve these two basic problems with his celebrated theory of falsifiability, arguing that the inferences made in science are not inductive but deductive; science does not start with observations and proceed to generalise them but with problems, which it attacks with bold conjectures. The Two Fundamental Problems of the Theory of Knowledge is essential reading for anyone interested in Karl Popper, in the history and philosophy of science, and in the methods and theories of science itself.

Download or read book Feline Philosophy written by John Gray and published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. This book was released on 2020-11-24 with total page 99 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The author of Straw Dogs, famous for his provocative critiques of scientific hubris and the delusions of progress and humanism, turns his attention to cats—and what they reveal about humans' torturous relationship to the world and to themselves. The history of philosophy has been a predictably tragic or comical succession of palliatives for human disquiet. Thinkers from Spinoza to Berdyaev have pursued the perennial questions of how to be happy, how to be good, how to be loved, and how to live in a world of change and loss. But perhaps we can learn more from cats--the animal that has most captured our imagination--than from the great thinkers of the world. In Feline Philosophy, the philosopher John Gray discovers in cats a way of living that is unburdened by anxiety and self-consciousness, showing how they embody answers to the big questions of love and attachment, mortality, morality, and the Self: Montaigne's house cat, whose un-examined life may have been the one worth living; Meo, the Vietnam War survivor with an unshakable capacity for "fearless joy"; and Colette's Saha, the feline heroine of her subversive short story "The Cat", a parable about the pitfalls of human jealousy. Exploring the nature of cats, and what we can learn from it, Gray offers a profound, thought-provoking meditation on the follies of human exceptionalism and our fundamentally vulnerable and lonely condition. He charts a path toward a life without illusions and delusions, revealing how we can endure both crisis and transformation, and adapt to a changed scene, as cats have always done.

Download or read book Doing Philosophy written by Timothy Williamson and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2018-08-09 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What are philosophers trying to achieve? How can they succeed? Does philosophy make progress? Is it in competition with science, or doing something completely different, or neither? Timothy Williamson tackles some of the key questions surrounding philosophy in new and provocative ways, showing how philosophy begins in common sense curiosity, and develops through our capacity to dispute rationally with each other. Discussing philosophy's ability to clarify our thoughts, he explains why such clarification depends on the development of philosophical theories, and how those theories can be tested by imaginative thought experiments, and compared against each other by standards similar to those used in the natural and social sciences. He also shows how logical rigour can be understood as a way of enhancing the explanatory power of philosophical theories. Drawing on the history of philosophy to provide a track record of philosophical thinking's successes and failures, Williamson overturns widely held dogmas about the distinctive nature of philosophy in comparison to the sciences, demystifies its methods, and considers the future of the discipline. From thought experiments, to deduction, to theories, this little book will cause you to totally rethink what philosophy is.

Download or read book A Philosopher Looks at Work written by Raymond Geuss and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2021-05-20 with total page 195 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A survey on the nature of work, integrating conceptual analysis, historical reflection, autobiography and social commentary.

Download or read book Philosophy and The Hitchhiker s Guide to the Galaxy written by N. Joll and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-04-30 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy provides an excellent way of looking at some intriguing issues in philosophy, from vegetarianism and Artificial Intelligence to God, space and time. This is an entertaining yet thought provoking volume for students, philosophers and fans of The Hitchhiker's series.

Download or read book An Intelligent Person s Guide to Philosophy written by Roger Scruton and published by Penguin. This book was released on 1999-02-01 with total page 123 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Philosophy's the 'love of wisdom', can be approached in two ways: by doing it, or by studying how it has been done," so writes the eminent philosopher Roger Scruton. In this user-friendly book, he chooses to introduce philosophy by doing it. Taking the discipline beyond theory and "intellectualism," he presents it in an empirical, accessible, and practical light. The result is not a history of the field but a vivid, energetic, and personal account to guide the reader making his or her own venture into philosophy. Addressing a range of subjects from freedom, God, reality, and morality, to sex, music, and history, Scruton argues philosophy's relevance not just to intellectual questions, but to contemporary life.

Download or read book Problems from Philosophy written by James Rachels and published by McGraw-Hill Humanities/Social Sciences/Languages. This book was released on 2008-03-21 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This [text] is an introduction to some of the main problems of philosophy—the existence of God, the nature of the mind, human freedom, the limits of knowledge, and the truth about ethics. The chapters may be read independently of one another, but when read in order, they tell a more or less continuous story. We begin with some reflections on the life of Socrates and then go on to the existence of God, which is the most basic philosophical question, because our answer to it affects everything else. This leads naturally to a discussion of death and the soul, and then to more modern ideas about the nature of persons. The later chapters are about whether we can have objective knowledge in either science or ethics." -from the Preface Problems from Philosophy represents the final work of author and philosopher James Rachels. In it, he brings the same liveliness and clarity to the introduction of philosophy that he brings to his best-selling ethics text, The Elements of Moral Philosophy. This second edition has been revised by Rachels' son Stuart, who carefully has carefully refined his father's work to further strengthen its clarity and accessibility.

Download or read book When You Kant Figure It Out Ask a Philosopher written by Marie Robert and published by Little, Brown Spark. This book was released on 2019-11-12 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Advice for modern dilemmas from the greatest Western philosophers. How can Kant comfort you when you get ditched via text message? How can Aristotle cure your hangover? How can Heidegger make you feel better when your dog dies? When You Kant Figure It Out, Ask a Philosopher explains how pearls of wisdom from the greatest Western philosophers can help us face and make light of some of the daily challenges of modern life. In twelve clever, accessible chapters, you'll get advice from Epicurus about how to disconnect from constant news alerts and social media updates, Nietzsche's take on getting in shape, John Stuart Mill's tips for handling bad birthday presents, and many other classic insights to help you navigate life today. Hilarious, practical, and edifying, When You Kant Figure It Out, Ask a Philosopher brings the best thinkers of the past into the 21st Century to help us all make sense of a chaotic new world.

Download or read book The Basic Teachings of the Great Philosophers written by S.E. Frost and published by K.K. Publications. This book was released on 2022-01-22 with total page 326 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book brings together the answers that the great philosophers of all times have offered to the problems which we think about today. They have toiled to form an answer that seems to them satisfactory. The book has bnrughtit to you. Our method is to bring together what each philosopher has written on each of these problems as briefly and concisely as possible. This is done so that you, busy as you are, do not have to read long discourses on philosophy to discover that which will help you in your ttiolthig By reading any one of the chapters in this book, you can get a clear picture of what the philosophers down through the ages have said about one of your real problems. Although each chapter is a unit to itself and can be read without reference to the other chapters, it is advisable for the reader to begin with the first chapter and go through the book. This will give you a wide view of the great philosophers and will help you to see each problem or group of problems in relation to the other problems and groups of problems in the book. At the end of the book, you will find Biographical Notes concerning the philosophers whom you meet in the pages of the book. This should be used as a quick reference when you want to know the exact dates during which the philosopher lived or other pertinent facts about him. Contents 1. The Nature of the Universe 2. Man's Place in the Universe 3. What Is Good and What Is Evil? 4. The Nature of God 5. Fate versus FreeWM 6. The ScrulamiImmortality 7. Man and the State 8. ManandEducation 9. Mind aluiMatter 10. Ideas and thinking

Download or read book Midlife written by Kieran Setiya and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2017-09-22 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Philosophical wisdom and practical advice for overcoming the problems of middle age How can you reconcile yourself with the lives you will never lead, with possibilities foreclosed, and with nostalgia for lost youth? How can you accept the failings of the past, the sense of futility in the tasks that consume the present, and the prospect of death that blights the future? In this self-help book with a difference, Kieran Setiya confronts the inevitable challenges of adulthood and middle age, showing how philosophy can help you thrive. You will learn why missing out might be a good thing, how options are overrated, and when you should be glad you made a mistake. You will be introduced to philosophical consolations for mortality. And you will learn what it would mean to live in the present, how it could solve your midlife crisis, and why meditation helps. Ranging from Aristotle, Schopenhauer, and John Stuart Mill to Virginia Woolf and Simone de Beauvoir, as well as drawing on Setiya’s own experience, Midlife combines imaginative ideas, surprising insights, and practical advice. Writing with wisdom and wit, Setiya makes a wry but passionate case for philosophy as a guide to life.