Author(s): David Papineau (ed)

Cultural Studies

What does it mean for something to exist? What is truth? Are we free to choose how to think or act? What is consciousness? Is human cloning justifiable? These are just some of the questions philosophers have attempted to answer. They strike right to the heart of what it means to be human. This important new book shows that philosophy need not be dry or intimidating. Its highly original treatment simultaneously informs and stimulates the reader. "Philosophy" is structured thematically in terms of major issues - World, Mind and Body, Knowledge, Faith, Ethics and Aesthetics, and Society. Cutting across this organization by theme is a parallel organization that focuses at appropriate interludes on the great thinkers and their influence, as well as the schools or -isms to which they subscribed. A work of popularizing reference founded upon impeccable academic scholarship, "Philosophy" offers life-changing perspectives on what really matters. First published 2004; this revised edition 2009.