The Great Problems (Classic Reprint)

Tackle the timeless questions at the heart of philosophy—what is truth, and how do we know it? This book frames the major debates in clear, accessible terms.

In The Great Problems, Bernardino Varisco introduces the enduring questions that shape philosophical thought. It presents the search for truth as a practical and cultural project, not a distant abstract puzzle. The work surveys how sense-perception, memory, cognition, and value interact, and it considers how science and daily life fit into a larger vision of reality and reason.

The text contrasts two broad paths for human life—the Christian view that the good rests beyond this world and the Humanistic view that all ends are terrestrial. By tracing these ideas, the book illuminates how culture, knowledge, and practical life influence each other. The discussion moves from fundamental questions about reality and causation to the structure of knowledge, logic, and the laws that govern experience.

• Clear exploration of sense-perception, memory, and cognition and how they shape understanding.


• Focused discussion on reality, reason, and their relation to time, space, and scientific law.


• A look at the two major conceptions of the good and how they influence culture and politics.


• Connections between theory and practice, and how philosophy informs everyday life.

Ideal for readers of philosophy, theory of knowledge, and anyone curious about how our beliefs about truth shape culture and conduct.