Introducing Philosophy: A Text with Integrated Readings

by Robert C. Solomon

Book Overview

Based on the idea that philosophy is a truly exciting and accessible subject, this engaging text acquaints students with the core problems of philosophy and the many ways in which they have been answered. It acknowledges that philosophy is very much alive today but is also deeply rooted in the past--in the many traditions that converge and diverge from ancient Greece, ancient China, and ancient India. Accordingly, the book combines substantial original...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0155415611
• ISBN13: 9780155415614
• Release Date: January 1989
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt P
• Length: 784 Pages
• Weight: 2.31 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Got it new and love it!

Got it when I needed it and its in perfectly new condition. I recommend these people to anyone, the order turned out exactly how I wanted.

An excellent textbook even for high school level

I am a high school Philosophy teacher and highly recommend this book. This is a very good textbook to accompany theories that are taught. It contains primary readings but they are mainly short and always preceded by a short editorial explanation of the key points/theory. Also, the selections are relevant and interesting, representing a range of traditional theories, modern/contemporary views, cultural views (though I do wish more cultures were represented). I like the thematic arrangement of chapters rather than a historical chronological structure. I have used this with Gr 11 and 12 students and they agree that it makes a great companion to the basic theories.

Excellent textbook, with one problem...

Just finished the first semester of a philosophy degree and we used this as one of our textbooks. As a beginner, I found it very good. Solomon explains the extracts from philosophers in a very clear way. It is presented by topic, e.g. a chapter on Freedom, a chapter on Knowledge, with each chapter containing extracts from a number of philosophers on the subject. The only problem I found with the book is that the extracts Solomon uses are not cited with page numbers, in the ninth edition at least. This is problematic when writing papers and essays, as once you find what you're looking for, if you want your referencing to be correct you need to get the original book and vainly attempt to find which page in the original text that the extract in Solomon came from. He gives all relevant details in his citations except for page numbers. As a student, I would argue that the page number is much more important to me than the name of the publisher. But besides that... the book is genuinely good. It will certainly always have a place on my shelf.

A text book for the beginner and student.

Integrated is a good term because, similar to most teaching texts, the author attempts to relate the knowledge across all disciplines within the subject. Written as an "Introduction" to Western philosophy, this book is by no means a focused study on the western tradition, but covers a wider area, touching on other traditions as well. However, Solomon manages to creatively distill the western tradition of philosophy into a highly readable form. Where do you begin as a teacher when given the task to teach a group of beginners about the western tradition? Solomon begins at the beginning with Plato and the words of Socrates. "The Apology", and "The Crito" are certainly good places to start, and Solomon certainly "explains" the essence of these works in a readable form. After the Introductory chapter, Solomon inserts his interpretations and "connections" to present day philosophy, and manages to build a construct of "modern thought" throughout the ages. Extremely well done. Excellent work and informative to the extent that a first year student can actualy understand where and what these ancient "thinkers" thought and most importantly how these thoughts relate to our everyday lives. This text is a important beginner's text, but more essential, is that it can be used as a reference when writing on matters not so familiar, such as: Ethics Epistimology Skepticism Self identity, Mind and Body. The Problem of Consciouness. Although over 700 hundred pages, do not be taken aback by its size or weight because the text holds applicable, interesting and worthwhile summaries of the subject of philosophy overall. For the young student or writer, a necessary reference.