Top Ten Philosophy Books
10 Best Philosophy Books Of All Time: To gain a good understanding of western philosophy, read the basic teachings of the most influential philosophers.
Thus Spoke Zarathustra: A Book for All and None (German: Also sprach Zarathustra: Ein Buch für Alle und Keinen, also translated as Thus Spake Zarathustra) is a comedic philosophical novel by German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, composed in four parts between 1883 and 1885 and published between 1883 and 1891.
Meditations is perhaps the only document of its kind ever made. It is the private thoughts of the world’s most powerful man giving advice to himself on how to make good on the responsibilities and obligations of his positions.
The Critique of Pure Reason (German: Kritik der reinen Vernunft, KrV) (1781, Riga; second edition 1787) is a book by Immanuel Kant that has exerted an enduring influence on Western philosophy. Also referred to as Kant's First Critique, it was followed by the Critique of Practical Reason (1788) and the Critique of Judgment (1790).
Book VI of the Nicomachean Ethics is identical to Book V of the Eudemian Ethics. Earlier in both works, both the Nicomachean Ethics Book IV, and the equivalent book in the Eudemian Ethics (Book III), though different, ended by stating that the next step was to discuss justice.
Meditations on First Philosophy (subtitled In which the existence of God and the immortality of the soul ... The book is made up of six meditations, ...
Considered to be one of the most important philosophical works of all time, the History of Western Philosophy is a dazzlingly unique exploration of the ideologies of significant philosophers throughout the ages—from Plato and Aristotle through to Spinoza, Kant and the twentieth century.
Being and Nothingness: An Essay on Phenomenological Ontology (French: L'Être et le néant : Essai d'ontologie phénoménologique), sometimes published with the subtitle A Phenomenological Essay on Ontology, is a 1943 book by the philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre, in which the author asserts the individual's existence as prior to the individual's essence ("existence precedes essence") and seeks to demonstrate that free will exists.
Pre-Socratic philosophy is ancient Greek philosophy before Socrates and schools contemporary to Socrates that were not influenced by him. In Classical antiquity, the Presocratic philosophers were called physiologoi (Greek: φυσιολόγοι; in English, physical or natural philosophers).
Incorporating significant editorial changes from earlier editions, the fourth edition of Ludwig Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations is the definitive en face German-English version of the most important work of 20th-century philosophy The extensively revised English translation incorporates many hundreds of changes to Anscombe’s ...
Metaphysics is a branch of philosophy, and part of the answer to the question "What is Metaphysics" requires us to define the difference between science and philosophy. 'Science' is taken here as empirical sciences or non-empirical sciences.
The Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus first appeared in 1921 and was the only philosophical work that Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951) published during his lifetime. Written in short, carefully numbered paragraphs of extreme compression and brilliance, it immediately convinced many of its readers and captured the imagination of all.
The Prince is sometimes claimed to be one of the first works of modern philosophy, especially modern political philosophy, in which the effective truth is taken to be more important than any abstract ideal.
A smaller work, titled Philosophy of Spirit (also translated as "Philosophy of Mind"), appears in Hegel's Encyclopedia of the Philosophical Sciences, and recounts in briefer and somewhat altered form the major themes of the original Phenomenology.
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry into Values (ZAMM), by Robert M. Pirsig, is a book that was first published in 1974. It is a work of fictionalized autobiography, and is the first of Pirsig's texts in which he explores his Metaphysics of Quality.
L’Étranger (The Outsider [UK], or The Stranger [US]) is a 1942 novel by French author Albert Camus. Its theme and outlook are often cited as examples of Camus' philosophy of the absurd and existentialism, though Camus personally rejected the latter label.
The Discourse on the Method is one of the most influential works in the history of modern philosophy, and important to the development of natural sciences. In this work, Descartes tackles the problem of skepticism, which had previously been studied by Sextus Empiricus, Al-Ghazali and Michel de Montaigne.
9 Mind-Expanding Books Of Philosophy That ... That is the ethos of practical philosophy–it doesn ... Absent are many other great works of practical philosophy, ...
Apology. An apology is the act of declaring one’s regret, remorse, or sorrow for having insulted, failed, injured, harmed or wronged another. Some apologies are interpersonal (between individuals, that is, between friends, family members, colleagues, lovers, neighbours, or strangers).
The Tao Te Ching is one old book. Like older-than-Jesus old. Written around the 6th century BC by the poet-philosopher Lao Tzu, the relatively short work is the fundamental text of Taoist philosophy.
The Second Sex chronicles de Beauvoir’s effort to locate the source of these profoundly imbalanced gender roles. In Book I, entitled “Facts and Myths,” she asks how “female humans” come to occupy a subordinate position in society.
Analytical introduction to a wide range of conceptions of liberty, usefully distinguishing between particular conceptions and a single concept (that of MacCallum). As yet, there is no sign of a much-needed second edition. Kukathas, Chandran. “Liberty.” In A Companion to Contemporary Political Philosophy.
Sophie Amundsen is about to turn 15 when she receives a letter from one Alberto Knox, a philosopher who undertakes to educate her in his craft. Sections in which we read the text of Knox's lessons to Sophie about the pre-Socratics, Plato and St. Augustine alternate with those in which we find out about Sophie's life with her well-meaning mother.
Candide, ou l'Optimisme, (/ k æ n ˈ d iː d /; French: ) is a French satire first published in 1759 by Voltaire, a philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment. The novella has been widely translated, with English versions titled Candide: or, All for the Best (1759); Candide: or, The Optimist (1762); and Candide: Optimism (1947).
The Communist Manifesto (originally Manifesto of the Communist Party) is an 1848 political pamphlet by German philosophers Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. Commissioned by the Communist League and originally published in London (in German as Manifest der Kommunistischen Partei) just as the revolutions of 1848 began to erupt, the Manifesto was later recognised as one of the world's most influential political documents.
The World as Will and Representation (WWR; German: Die Welt als Wille und Vorstellung, WWV) is the central work of the German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer. The first edition was published in 1818/19, the second expanded edition in 1844, and the third expanded edition in 1859.
Considered one of the most profound, influential, and important works of philosophy, Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals introduces the famous Categorical Imperative and lays down a foundation for all of Immanuel Kant's writings.
The theories Hume develops in the Treatise have their foundations in the writings of John Locke and George Berkeley, and Hume is associated with these two men as the third in the series of great British empiricists.
Being and Time by Martin Heidegger is an ocean of infinite gems. It is one of those books, which require re-reading only to discern new motifs surfacing up every time. No single review can fully justify the thoughts running throughout the book.
The Livyatan Feast is mentioned many times in the Talmudic and Midrashic literature: "The Holy One, Blessed be He, will make a banquet for the righteous from the flesh of the livyatan". Livyatan is a giant fish which was created during the Six days of Creation.
The Art of War is an ancient Chinese military treatise dating from the Spring and Autumn period. The work, which is attributed to the ancient Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu ("Master Sun", also spelled Sunzi), is composed of 13 chapters.
The Summa Theologiae (written 1265–1274 and also known as the Summa Theologica or simply the Summa) is the best-known work of Thomas Aquinas (c. 1225–1274). Although unfinished, the Summa is "one of the classics of the history of philosophy and one of the most influential works of Western literature".
An Essay Concerning Human Understanding Book I: Innate Notions John Locke Copyright © Jonathan Bennett 2017. All rights reserved [Brackets] enclose editorial explanations. Small ·dots· enclose material that has been added, but can be read as though it were part of the original text.
Bertrand Arthur William Russell (1872-1970) was a British philosopher, logician, essayist and social critic. He was best known for his work in mathematical logic and analytic philosophy. Together with G.E. Moore, Russell is generally recognized as one of the main founders of modern analytic philosophy.
Watch Macat's short video for a great introduction to David Hume's An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, one of the most important philosophy books ever written. …
Social contract. In both moral and political philosophy, the social contract or political contract is a theory or model, originating during the Age of Enlightenment, that typically addresses the questions of the origin of society and the legitimacy of the authority of the state over the individual.
The perfect books for the true book lover, Penguin's Great Ideas series features twelve more groundbreaking works by some of history's most prodigious thinkers. Each volume is beautifully packaged with a unique type-driven design that highlights the bookmaker's art.
Phædo or Phaedo (/ˈfiːdoʊ/; Greek: φαίδων, Phaidōn, Greek pronunciation: ), also known to ancient readers as On The Soul, is one of the best-known dialogues of Plato's middle period, along with the Republic and the Symposium.
A summary of Themes in Fyodor Dostoevsky's The Brothers Karamazov. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of The Brothers Karamazov and what it means. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans.
moral and political theory, it offers a critique of moral values and traces the historical evolution of concepts such as guilt, conscience, responsibility, law and justice.
The central concern of The Myth of Sisyphus is what Camus calls "the absurd." Camus claims that there is a fundamental conflict between what we want from the universe (whether it be meaning, order, or reasons) and what we find in the universe (formless chaos).
A short summary of Plato's Meno. This free synopsis covers all the crucial plot points of Meno.
A philosophy that saw self-possession as the key to an existence lived 'in accordance with nature', Stoicism called for the restraint of animal instincts and the severing of emotional ties. These beliefs were formulated by the Athenian followers of Zeno in the fourth century BC, but it was in Seneca (c. 4 BC- AD 65) that the Stoics found their most eloquent advocate.
Crito: Summary The dialogue takes place in Socrates’ prison cell, where he awaits execution. He is visited before dawn by his old friend Crito, who has made arrangements to smuggle Socrates out of prison to the safety of exile.
Amazon.com: Philosophy in the Islamic World: A history of philosophy without any gaps, Volume 3 (9780199577491): Peter Adamson: Books
The Analects (Chinese: 論 語; Old Chinese: *run ŋ(r)aʔ; pinyin: lúnyǔ; literally: "Edited Conversations"), also known as the Analects of Confucius, is a collection of sayings and ideas attributed to the Chinese philosopher Confucius and his contemporaries, traditionally believed to have been compiled and written by Confucius's followers.
About The Gay Science. Nietzsche called The Gay Science “the most personal of all my books.” It was here that he first proclaimed the death of God—to which a large part of the book is devoted—and his doctrine of the eternal recurrence.
"Teaching Plato in Palestine is a slim, straightforward yet surprisingly rich work of philosophy that will intrigue the amateur as well as the expert." --Sarah Gustafson, Key Reporter "Carlos Fraenkel . . . persuasively shows the value of philosophical work that engages the broader public and other cultures. . . .
The Story of Philosophy: The Lives and Opinions of the Greater Philosophers is a 1926 book by Will Durant, in which he profiles several prominent Western philosophers and their ideas, beginning with Socrates and Plato and on through Friedrich Nietzsche.