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You think, therefore you are. Get a straightforward rundown on philosophy from the ancient world to today If you've ever pondered your existence over your morning coffee or considered the nature of crime and punishment, you're an amateur philosopher. From everyday questions about happiness and responsibility to deep, spiritual examinations about God and the cosmos, philosophy pervades every part of our lives. And even though it might seem complex at first glance, these questions that affect everyone on the planet can be understood and talked about by anyone! In Philosophy For Dummies, Dr. Tom Morris delivers a refreshing and engaging exploration of the fundamentals of philosophy and shows you that philosophy can be fascinating and fun at the same time. You'll be introduced to topics like the meaning of life, religious belief, and ways to live in the most satisfying ways. You'll also learn about the insights of some of history's greatest philosophers. This book is full of the questions--and proposed solutions--to the questions that keep philosophers up at night, like: When should we doubt our beliefs and knowledge? Is there a God? What is His/Her/Their nature? Do we have free will or are we simply acting out physical imperatives? Whether you're interested in the nature of the mind/soul versus the body, or you want to learn more about morals and ethics, Philosophy For Dummies will be your personal guide to some of life's most enduring problems and questions.… (more)
User reviews
This malaise becomes very evident about halfway into the book, when the question of god is discussed, and by which time the author has already set the stage with his argumentation that a) dualism is far more plausible than materialism and b) he believes in life after death. Now comes a far more detailed examination of various arguments for and against the existence of god than any section before has received, and the author, so predictably at this point, draws the conclusion any reader can smell from 100 pages back. Worse still, he is using this as a basis from which to discuss other topics later on in the book, all the while considering his case to be a proven one, eg. "life has no meaning if not through god". He actually does a whole chapter on Pascal's wager, prefaced by a hagiography of Pascal to make his wager seem more authoriative.
Fitting perhaps it is that the chapters about the existence of god, which give the appearance of being a central part in the book, betray at times such a lacking intellectual capability that it makes you ask yourself how did I end up reading this book?
This is not "Philosophy for dummies", this is "You're ignorant about philosophy and I'm going to convince you of everything I believe while pretending to be neutral". I feel for this guy's students.