Can Anyone Tell Me Some Good Philosphy Books?

[samebutdifferent]

About philosphers philosphies. I'm really interested in Philosphy but i dont know that much about it and dont know a lot of the Theories and Principles. I want to learn more. And a lot of you guys talk about all these theories and i dont know what you're talking about.

EDIT: also about the human mind and conscious

[Thomas Knierim]

The WHOLE field of philosophy is such a huge field. It is difficult if not impossible to recommend a book that covers it all. Of course, there are encyclopedias of philosophy which attempt to cover it all -I own one myself- but these encyclopedias are usually a bit boring to read. I think you could start anywhere, any period, any philosopher, whereever natural interest leads you. Of course, the standard approach is to begin with the ancients. I once read the "History of Western Philosophy" by the English philosopher Bertrand Russell and I thought for some time that this is THE book, but I came to realize that this book has quite a few flaws. While some of the portrays are very well done, others are somewhat sketchy, even prejudiced. But it's still a magnificent book. Another "general approach" book I could recommend is "Die philosophische Hintertreppe", which is in (unfortunately) in German.

Thomas

[samebutdifferent]

Well i dont need a book on Philosphy as a whole. Just like interesting things here and there that are correct.

[a random hack]

what do you mean by correct? what accords with your experiences?
i suggest you go to a library and browse :)

[sidewalk_cipher]

good books

Anything by nietzche

The Seth Material, namely "Seth Speaks" by Jane Roberts is pretty good, but strange (not philosophy, more metaphisics)

ivan turgenev

Levi Strauss

Dostoevsky- not really philoshy either

and if you just like interesting things here and there go to google and start with plato reading all you can. Then everytime another philosopher is mentioned in the text, go check that one out too.

Find some philosophy timelines, and check out the big names, if all you want is a dumbed down version of their philosophies the internet is a great place.

[Aristofanis]

nietzche's Zaratoustra!!!!!

incredible way of thinking!!!!!
it is poem , novel , article .Everything has to do with writing and thinking
has relation with zaratoustra.

Please avoid Imanuel Cad.

[pratish]

You can try starting with The History Of Western Philosophy by Bertrand Russel. It will give you a pretty good introduction to the entire topic. You can then start off on Eastern Philosophy... when you get there, just ask :)

[sonrisa]

Originally posted by sidewalk_cipher@Aug 26 2004, 06:00 PM

Levi Strauss



--huh? & that would be....
The Philosophy of Blue Jeans?
Blue Jeans of Philosophy?
Blue Jean Philosophy?
Philosophy & Blue Jeans?

:D

[goethean]

I would like to disagree with what some have said here. I cannot recommend Bertrand Russell's "The History of Western Philosophy." It is good in some sections and very poor in others. Russell has no understanding of German philosophy like Hegel and Nietzsche.

I also consider "Thus Spoke Zarathustra" to be one of Nietzsche's worst books. I recommend "The Genealogy of Morals."

My introduction to philosophy came from the novels of Kurt Vonnegut (esp. "Cat's Cradle" & "Sirens of Titan") and the existentialist nonfiction of Walter Kaufmann (although those will be quite dated now), like "Faith of a Heretic", "Goethe Kant and Hegel", and "Critique of Religion and Philosophy". But there's no reason to think that what worked for me will work for you.

I am now fascinated by the philosopher Ken Wilber, whose works are inaccurately housed in the New Age section of the bookstore. But on the contrary, he grapples with the likes of Emerson, Darwin, Foucault, Habermas, Freud, and Jung, in addition to the universe of Eastern religion and philosophy. A good one is "A Brief Theory of Everything." His best work is "Sex Ecology Spirituality."

If you have any questions about him, I am always happy to discuss him.

[goethean]

But...to continue...perhaps the best introduction to philosophy is the original work: Plato's dialogues. Especially the Socratic dialogues: the Apology, the Meno, the Crito, the Euthyphro, and the Phaedo. These are probably available for free over the net if you're savvy, or certainly at the public library, or you could buy a new translation at the bookstore.

I have a more 'continental' approach insofar as I believe that philosophy is the history of philosophy. So learning about philosophy to me is understanding the great intellectual history of Western Philosophy. The Renaissance, the Enlightenment, the Romantic Movement, Modernism, when these movements occured, and what they meant.

[Ronagon]

samebutdifferent,

Try two books:

1) a book by Brian or Bryan Magee, called "The Story of Philosophy", or something like that. Great intro book, very easy to understand.

2) another book by Ayn Rand, called "Philosophy: Who Needs It?"

I'm very partial to Rand.

[sonrisa]

ah yes, The Fountainhead :thumbsup: good book

[stoicbeast]

Hi....

For starters you can read "The Road Less Travelled" by Scott. M. Peck.
More than satisfying your intellectual curiosity, you can learn a lot about human nature and what our existence is all about, love, relationships and past life ....

Also strongly recommend
"The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho for light reading, its simplified philosophy and a touching tale about what really matters in life.
"Illusions" by Richard Bach

Do read abstract stuff... for example
"Intimacy" by Jean Paul Sartre
"Atlas Shrugged" by Ayn Rand

[slayer]

To the original poster, do yourself a huge favor and do not read Rand, Vonegutt, Strauss, Peck, Sartre, Camus, Hegel, Derrida, Foucoult, Coelho, Darwin, Emerson, Seth, Turgenev, etc. Jesus, what a pile of horseshit suggestions there were. Half of these aren't even philosophers, which explains why you fools think you can do philosophy.

Read any of the following: John Searle, Barry Stroud, Bertrand Russell, G. E. Moore, Jaegwon Kim, Ernest Sosa, Rescher, Michael Dummet, Frege, Kripke, even Wittgenstein (though he's probably too complex to take on early). Get intro books. Intro to metaphysics, epistemology, and then move to intro to philosophy of mind, philosophy of language. Hell, even read Plato, Socrates, and Aristotle.

Nietzsche shouldn't be taken on by the novice. Stay away from Eastern philosophy, Continentalists, or more complex writers from the Medieval period like Boethius, Scotus, and Aquinas, not to mention Maimonides and Avicenna. At least until you're philosophically savvy. I probably misspelled their names. Anyway, first learn to do philosophy. It requires practice, and it's not something just anyone can do, though most here seem to think so. Take a philosophy class; take several. Take a logic class. Write papers and have them graded. Then you'll be in a better position to judge arguments and philosophers. Until then, you're just going to believe whatever you're already inclined to believe. This works for the fools here, but it isn't how one becomes analytical.

And most importantly, don't become a 'stupid relativist.' Oh, Random Hack, he meant correct in relation to how the world is, you complete moron.

--- slayer

[Ronagon]

Sonrisa is right...

Another excellent philosophy book is Ayn Rand's philosophical fiction book, The Fountainhead. It's an excellent revelation into the underlying philosophy that motivates each of us. ..

I personally consider it to be her one work which is the most relevant to each of us in our daily lives... But many people regard another book as her magnum opus... a book that a 1991 Library of Congress Reader's poll ranked as the one book that most influenced people's lives, second only to The Bible:

Atlas Shrugged .

[Ronagon]

No, disregard slayer...

From the sound of it, he seems like a stodgey company man, a lover of institutional conformity... A number of those writers he recommended write in a murky way, with the exception of people like Bertrand Russell. Only read them if you feel like wading waist-deep through molasses.

But don't take my word for it... Skim through books by those writers slayer recommends, and see what you think.

In the end, I think you'll really prefer someone like Rand... at least she's readable and you can clearly agree or disagree with her philosophy.

[Ronagon]

And I honestly doubt if anyone in here has honestly read Bertrand Russell's book on the History of Western Philosophy...

The goddamn book is thick enough to choke an elephant, and hard to trudge through for a beginner... It's typically the sort of book that people say that they've read, because it's what they feel they're supposed to say that they've read.

Unless they're serious philosophy majors... and even then, I'd be surprised if even many of them aren't bull-shitting about having read it.

Because in case you haven't noticed, it's quite easy to bull-shit your way through most philosophy programs, as long as you wear black, look miserable, and talk in confusing language, using lots of politically-correct jargon.