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"Think is by far the best introduction to philosophy that I know. Compact but hugely readable, this delightful book would be an excellent basis for an introductory course, as a text or as preliminary reading. You could also give it to family and friends, and all those annoying people who ask you what philosophers do. If Think doesn't explain it to them, nothing will!"--Huw Price, author of Time's Arrow and Archimedes Point, Professor of Natural Metaphysics at the University of Sydney
"Written with exemplary concision and with conviction that philosophy needn't be an ethereal subject, alienated from practical concerns."--Booklist
"This is a wonderfully stimulating, incisive, and--the word is not too strong--thrilling introduction to the pleasures and problems of philosophy"--The Irish Times
"Elegant...beautifully clear.... A valuable little book."--Descartes's Demon
"Blackburn has produced the one book every smart person should read to understand, and even en
Product Description
What am I? What is consciousness? What is the difference between past and future? Does the world presuppose a creator? Do we always act out of self-interest? This is a book about the big questions in life: knowledge, consciousness, fate, God, truth, goodness, justice. It is for anyone who believes there are big questions out there, but does not know how to approach them. Written by the author of the bestselling Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy, Think sets out to explain what they are and why they are important. Simon Blackburn begins by putting forward a convincing case for the study of philosophy and goes on to give the reader a sense of how the great historical figures such as Plato, Hume, Kant, and Descartes have approached its central themes. Each chapter explains a major issue, and gives the reader a self-contained guide through the problems that philosophers have studied. The large range of topics covered range from scepticism, the self, mind and body, and freedom to ethics and the arguments surrounding the existence of God. Written in a lively and approachable manner, this book is ideal for all those who want to learn how the basic techniques of thinking shape our existence.
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First Sentence
PERHAPS THE MOST unsettling thought many of us have, often quite early on in childhood, is that the whole world might be a dream; that the ordinary scenes and objects of everyday life might be fantasies. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
PERHAPS THE MOST unsettling thought many of us have, often quite early on in childhood, is that the whole world might be a dream; that the ordinary scenes and objects of everyday life might be fantasies. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A really good start to some key topics,
By
This review is from: Think: A Compelling Introduction to Philosophy (Hardcover)
If you read all the reviews here I think you get a really good sense of who this book is most useful for. I've given it five stars because I think for the right audience this is an excellent choice.
I have struggled previously to find introductory level texts on philosophy for the general reader (ie me). Blackburn's organisation reflects where the thinking can be used rather than its technical philosophical topic. I found each of the first five chapters - Knowledge; Mind; Free Will; The Self; and God - stimulating and enjoyable. The chapter and book titles underline something significant here: the book is about the application of ideas, about what we do, rather than just the ideas themselves. For some reason, I found the latter chapters - Reasoning; The World; What to do - tailed off. Maybe this just reflects a personal preference, I don't know. This is a fascinating and readable text which really demonstrates what it is to think clearly. It introduces key philosophical debates in a way that leaves you feeling better able to deal with the world. Others have commented that it is not comprehensive. Good. What it does cover is properly referenced and there is a bibliography. Philosophical writing can be obscure and difficult and this is not. In this respect, Blackburn does us all a great service.
18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Hmm,
By A Customer
This review is from: Think: A Compelling Introduction to Philosophy (Hardcover)
'Think' makes for an enlightening read. However, I couldn't help wondering whether the newcomer to philosophy would not be better served by reading the actual texts (or at least excerpts of them) of the philosophers mentioned throughout, and making up their own mind. While Simon Blackburn infuses his enthusiastic 'introduction' with much humor and some laudable attempts at making the mazy, stifling world of philosophy clear and alluring (and succeeds in the main), the fact that his personal opinions and conclusions are so often introduced in a book intended for 'beginners' is not helpful. And the section on logic gave me a pain behind my eyes. But that's just me...
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A great introduction to mainstream philosophical thinking,
By A Customer
This review is from: Think: A Compelling Introduction to Philosophy (Hardcover)
"Think" introduces mainstream, modern, western philosophical thinking on some key issues in a simple but not simplistic way. In fact ease of use belies its complexity; it definitely rewards re-reading. I found Simon Blackburn's style easier than, for example, Roger Scruton's in his introduction to modern philosophy; although both are great books, Blackburn's is definitely the more accessible.
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