Philosophy textbook pdf

Including more pictures It is an excellent foundational source that when combined with other OER material is sufficient for an introductory philosophy course. Reviewed by Ivan Guajardo, Ph. There are different ways of introducing philosophy to newcomers, one is to present it as a living discipline defined by problems made more intelligible and relevant by tracing their historical roots.

Comprehensiveness rating: 3 see less. Although exclusively from an Analytic perspective, the textbook does provide a fairly comprehensive and sound overview of what it does covers. It does not have a glossary or an index. The first chapter lists some undefined key terms, but this convention is abandoned thereafter.

The book does provide review and discussion questions at the end of each chapter, which can be used in a variety of different ways. The textbook is fairly accurate in its presentation and definition of key issues, concepts, and themes, but again, it strictly follows an analytic approach to the discipline, which means that Continental thinkers, feminist perspectives, and non-European traditions are excluded.

Unless it is complemented with material from these non-Analytic traditions, this textbook by itself will be of little use to someone planning to teach philosophy in a more global or pluralistic manner. The textbook presents classic theories, arguments, and examples that should stand the test of time.

Its content shouldn't require much updating. Explanations are clear and concise. The author uses technical jargon sparingly and defines technical terms well. Adding a glossary would help, however. The textbook's narrative flows consistently. It moves from historical roots to the present in ways that helps readers see the historical and contemporary relevance of the issues being covered.

The textbook is divided into chapters and sections that stand on their own, and thus lend themselves to easy revision, reorganization, remixing, and so on. It can be used as a whole or only in part. Chapters can be read in different orders and still be understood. The textbook is well organized.

Key concepts are explained and material is appropriately divided into easily digestible units. The examples given in each chapter illustrate well their concepts. Transitions are easy to follow and allow the reader to make important connections within and between chapters. Students have access to PDF copies.

Printed copies of the whole or parts can be made easily. The textbook is published under a CC By license, which permits the greatest freedom to retain, reuse, revise, remix, and redistribute its contents.

Most chapters contain links to readings, but they must be checked to avoid broken hyperlinks. No recognizable grammatical errors, but typographical errors were found throughout the text. The author does not use offensive or culturally insensitive language.

However, the exclusion of continental, feminist, and non-European approaches can arguably be construed as insensitive to these traditions. Overall this is a good textbook and may be combined with other sources to deal with its limitations.

The text does not contain an index or glossary. In Chapter 1, four vocabulary words are listed at the end of the chapter which is helpful , but that convention is not repeated in other chapters, which introduce additional vocabulary. The content that is covered is represented accurately. However, it should be noted that the text does not contain the entire breadth or history of the discipline.

For instance, one will not find coverage of global or world traditions in philosophy, feminist philosophy apart from very brief mention of care ethics in Chapter 10 , or contributions of the continental tradition in philosophy.

The treatment of the text and themes is predominately representative of the analytic tradition in philosophy. Of course, this does not mean that an introductory text must cover everything, but merely that the reader should be aware of its approach. It is thus possible to both build on knowledge base acquired within a specific chapter by covering supplementary chapters from this text or another , as well as covering one or more standalone chapters without assigning the entire text.

To some readers, it might seem confusing that the text features four chapters devoted to ethical issues Chapters , while one chapter might more clearly and succinctly address the leading range of problems and questions in moral philosophy. There is also the concern that since they come at the end of the book, a beginning student might get the impression that the content in those chapters is less significant or less central to the study of philosophy, which would certainly not be the case.

No recognizable grammatical errors; however, typographical errors may be found in the text. The text is not culturally insensitive. The text does make use of examples that are inclusive to gender this may be observed by reviewing examples and exercises used in Chapter 2. Terrific text! Its versatility allows for coverage of standalone chapters as well as building on knowledge acquired in previous chapters.

The embedded links to online primary source texts provide the reader with a valuable opportunity to explore the original texts that frame the discussion and background material to the topics and themes of the book.

The goal of this text is to present philosophy to newcomers as a living discipline with historical roots. While a few early chapters are historically organized, the goal in the historical chapters is to trace a developmental progression of thought that introduces basic philosophical methods and frames issues that remain relevant today. Later chapters are topically organized. These include philosophy of science and philosophy of mind, areas where philosophy has shown dramatic recent progress.

This text concludes with four chapters on ethics, broadly construed. Traditional theories of right action is covered in a third of these. Students are first invited first to think about what is good for themselves and their relationships in a chapter of love and happiness. Next a few meta-ethical issues are considered; namely, whether they are moral truths and if so what makes them so. The end of the ethics sequence addresses social justice, what it is for one's community to be good.

Our sphere of concern expands progressively through these chapters. Our inquiry recapitulates the course of development into moral maturity. Over the course of the text, the author has tried to outline the continuity of thought that leads from the historical roots of philosophy to a few of the diverse areas of inquiry that continue to make significant contributions to our understanding of ourselves and the world we live in.

An Introduction to Philosophy 5 reviews Russ W. Consistency rating: 4 The text is consistent with its organization. Modularity rating: 4 At times, the author refers to his own life as examples.

Interface rating: 2 One major problem with this book, however, is its lack of images, charts, etc. Grammatical Errors rating: 4 While there are some minor grammatical errors, they do not interfere with the overall readability of the text. Being more reflective, having greater capacity for discernment, coherence or understanding are some of them, which is why we offer you a very well selected list of philosophy books in PDF format.

We know the importance of always being in constant discovery of new and better philosophy texts, but unfortunately not in all cases it is possible to access them, either because of their cost or because they often run out too quickly in bookstores, but do not worry, here you can get philosophy books at no cost and without running out of stock. Fortunately, digital books are always a good option, nowadays almost everyone can have access to an Internet connection, which makes obtaining and downloading any kind of information on the web, possible to almost anyone.

Nowadays many people prefer to download digital books rather than get the physical ones, either because they often cost cheaper, because they are easier to obtain or because it is practical to have our favorite book on our smartphone, tablet or computer. Getting a digital book is not only affordable and practical, it also means that once you have it stored on your device, you can read it as many times as you want with or without internet access.

Another reason why opting for PDF books is a good option is that it is very difficult to lose it. A physical book is more likely to get lost, either in a coffee shop, in a square, on public transport or even when we lend it out. However, a PDF book can be saved in different ways on our devices, so that we can always have a digital backup of it. That is why, thinking of you, we leave you a series of more than 25 books on Philosophy in PDF format that will make your life much easier.

Here ends our selection of free Philosophy books in PDF format. We hope you liked it and already have your next book! The book progresses systematically while placing key ideas and thinkers in historical and contemporary context.

Central topics include the analysis of knowledge, the nature of epistemic justification, rationalism vs. The Primacy of the Public presents a framework for engineering and technology ethics focused around three core ethical principles: the principle of welfare, the autonomy principle, and the fairness principle. To support this framework, the book begins with an examination of multiple perspectives we may take on engineering and technology, all of which support the centrality of ethical analysis and evaluation.

These include the nature of engineering as a profession, the social context of engineering and technology, and the view that many technologies constitute social experiments.

Introduction to Philosophy: Philosophy of Religion introduces some of the major traditional arguments for and against the existence of God, as well as some less well-known, but thought-provoking arguments for the existence of God, and one of the most important new challenges to religious belief from the Cognitive Science of Religion.

An introductory chapter traces the connection between philosophy and religion throughout Western history, and a final chapter addresses the place of non-Western and non-monotheistic religions within contemporary philosophy of religion. Introduction to Philosophy: Logic provides students with the concepts and skills necessary to identify and evaluate arguments effectively.

The chapters, all written by experts in the field, provide an overview of what arguments are, the different types of arguments one can expect to encounter in both philosophy and everyday life, and how to recognise common argumentative mistakes. McAleer not only unpacks the key overarching questions of the text — What is justice?