Introducing Philosophy: The Challenge of Scepticism - Softcover

Phillips, D. Z.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 063120041X ISBN 13: 9780631200413

Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell, 1996

Synopsis

Written specifically with beginning undergraduates with little or no previous knowledge of the subject in mind, this is a distinctive and thoughtful introduction to the main problems of philosophy structured around a philosophical argument which is clearly and carefully developed throughout the book.

About this title

About the Author

D Z Phillips is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Wales, Swansea, and Danworth Professor of the Philosophy of Religion at Claremont Graduate School, California. He has published widely in the philosophy of religion and ethics with some of his more recent books including From Fantasy to Faith (1991), Interventions in Ethics (1992), and Wittgenstein and Religion (1993). He is also editor of the Blackwell journal Philosophical Investigatins.

From the Back Cover

Written specifically with beginning undergraduates with little or no previous knowledge of the subject in mind, this is a distinctive and thoughtful introduction to the main problems of philosophy structured around a philosophical argument which is clearly and carefuly developed throughout the book.

This argument takes the form of a sustained response to the challenge of scepticism, and deals with this challenge in a coherent and unified manner. In this way, the reader does not only begin to understand philosophy itself, but also how a philosophical mind works.

The text explores forms of the sceptical challenge in connection with our knowledge of the external world: the self and other beings, moral obligation, political obligation, aesthetic values, and the existence of God. Throughout, the author engages his readers in thought and discussion through his lively and controversial style, and encourages them to embark on their own philosophical reflections.

This argument takes the form of a sustained response to the challenge of scepticism, and deals with this challenge in a coherent and unified manner. In this way, the reader does not only begin to understand philosophy itself, but also how a philosophical mind works.

The text explores forms of the sceptical challenge in connection with our knowledge of the external world: the self and other beings, moral obligation, political obligation, aesthetic values, and the existence of God. Throughout, the author engages his readers in thought and discussion through his lively and controversial style, and encourages them to embark on their own philosophical reflections.

Edition details

• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell
• Publication date: 1996
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 063120041X
• ISBN 13: 9780631200413
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 224