Synopses & Reviews
2,500 years of Western philosophy, from the Ancient Greeks to the present day. Philosophy is a subject that influences many aspects of our lives, yet it can seem dauntingly inaccessible. Unrivaled in its clarity and insight, The Story of Philosophy guides us expertly through the history of ideas and thinking. 2,500 Years of Western Philosophy: Embark on an entertaining and enlightening journey through the history of philosophy from the Ancient Greeks to the Existentialists and beyond. Professor Bryan Magee writes with a clarity and insight that makes The Story of Philosophy appealing to the general reader, yet substantial enough for the more experienced student. What is Philosophy? Philosophers have questioned the fundamental principles underlying all knowledge and existence. Covering every major philosopher, from Plato to Popper via St Augustine, Locke, and Nietzche, Bryan Magee addresses such seminal questions as "What is being?" and "Can the existence of God be proved?," opening up the world of philosophical ideas in a way that is easily understood by everyone. Comprehensive, highly visual, and filled with penetrating observations, The Story of Philosophy is the essential guide to this fascinating subject.
Synopsis
Comprehensive, highly visual, and filled with insightful observations, The Story of Philosophy opens up the world of philosophical ideas in a way that is easily understood by everyone. Bryan Magee embarks on an entertaining and enlightening journey and addresses such influential questions as "What is Philosophy?" "What is being?" and "Can the existence of God be proved?"
Synopsis
Now updated and with a fresh new look, the highly successful The Story of Philosophy traces more than 2,500 years of Western philosophy, from Plato and Aristotle in ancient Greece to Saint Augustine and medieval philosophy, the golden century of German philosophy, Bertrand Russell and Albert Camus of the modern era, and much more. World-renowned philosopher and professor Bryan Magee expertly guides your exploration through the major philosophical issues, the important questions, and the key contributions of the great philosophers in this illustrated, accessible guide.
Discover the great thinkers in their historical contexts and learn the influences that shaped their lives and work. In The Story of Philosophy, Revised and Updated, each philosophical movement includes profiles of key philosophers and their important works, historical contexts and influences, important quotes, and other related people and ideas. Full-color photographs, artworks, and illustrations illuminate every page.
The Story of Philosophy, Revised and Updated gives you the information you need to think about life's greatest questions, opening up the world of philosophical ideas in a way that can be easily understood by students and by anyone fascinated by the ways we form our social, political, and ethical ideas.
About the Author
Professor Bryan Magee was educated at Oxford University, England, where he took a degree in History and also in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics, and became President of the Oxford Union. In 1956, having held a fellowship in philosophy at Yale, he left academic life to become an independent writer, critic, and broadcaster. Professor Magee returned to university life in 1970, becoming a tutor in philosophy at Balliol College, Oxford University, while continuing his activities with the media. He was Member of Parliament for Leyton in east London (1974 to 1983), and from 1984 to 1994 he was Honorary Senior Research Fellow in the History of Ideas at King's College, London University, where he is now Visiting Professor. His many books include Modern British Philosophy, Popper, the Philosophy of Schopenhauer, and Confessions of a Philosopher. He has presented two popular BBC television series, Men of Ideas and The Great Philosophers, both of which became successful books. He was awarded the Silver Medal of the Royal Television Society in 1979 for his work in broadcasting.
Table of Contents
Introduction
-An Invitation to Philosophy
The Greeks and their World
-Before Socrates
-Socrates
-Plato
-Aristotle
-The Cynics
-The Sceptics
-The Epicureans
-The Stoics
Christianity and Philosophy
-Saint Augustine
-Medieval Philosophy
The Beginnings of Modern Science
-Copernicus to Newton
-Machiavelli
-Francis Bacon
-Hobbes
The Great Rationalists
-Descates
-Spinoza
-Leibniz
The Great Empiricists
-Locke
-Berkeley
-Hume
-Burke
Revolutionary French Thinkers
-Voltaire
-Diderot
-Rousseau
A Goldern Century of German Philosophy
-Kant
-Schopenhauer
-East and West
-Fichte
-Schelling
-Hegel
-Marx
-Nietzsche
Democracy and Philosophy
-The Utilitarians
-The American Pragmatists
20th-Century Philosophy
-Frege and Modern Logic
-Russell and Analytic Philosophy
-Wittgenstein and Linguistic Philosophy
-Existentialism
-Bergson and Recent Fresh Philosophy
-Popper
-The Future of Philosophy
Glossary
Guide to Further Reading
Index
Acknowledgments