Stories of Philosophy

An Introduction Through Original Fiction and Discussion

Thomas D. Davis

Introduces philosophical issues in a fun and dramatic manner, with original fictional stories by a philosopher/novelist
Offers accessible philosophical discussions that refer to the fictional stories, providing students with an interesting way to think about the issues
Covers both classic philosophical problems and current issues like feminist issues and race
Pedagogical features provide students with lots of support. These include "Preview" and "Let's Review" sections; biographical boxes of many of the philosophers discussed, boldfaced key terms and their definitions, questions for discussion, and suggested further readings.

Stories of Philosophy

An Introduction Through Original Fiction and Discussion

Thomas D. Davis

Description

Stories of Philosophy provides students with a fun and dramatic introduction to philosophical issues through fiction. It combines short stories written by the author, a philosopher and novelist, with detailed guided discussions to inspire students to think about issues related to logic, appearance and reality, the nature of mind, freedom and responsibility, the existence of God, and morality.

The twelve stories include a futuristic experiment in which scientists try to predict everything that a prisoner will do and think within a library-like prison cell; a comic dialogue between God and Satan, who have trouble figuring out what free will is supposed to be; and a medieval man suffering through a Black Death computer simulation done for homework and a little malicious pleasure by two school children.

The text is enhanced by pedagogical features including "Preview" and "Let's Review" sections, biographical boxes of many of the philosophers discussed, boldfaced key terms and their definitions, questions for discussion, and suggested further readings.

Stories of Philosophy

An Introduction Through Original Fiction and Discussion

Thomas D. Davis

Preface
The Evolution of This Text and How It Works
What Is Philosophy?
Acknowledgments
About the Author
1. LOGIC
Fiction
Philosophy Is Murder: A Nebuchadnezzar Hulk Mystery
Another Pilgrim's Progress
Discussion
Arguments
Deductive Arguments
Inductive Arguments
Analogical Induction
Inductive Generalization
Hypothetical Induction
Fallacies in Reasoning
Provincialism
Ad Hominem (to the Person)
Straw Man
Slippery Slope
False Dilemma
Appeal to Force
Equivocation
Begging the Question or Circular Argument
Inconsistency
Appeal to Popular Opinion
Hasty Conclusion
Suppressed Evidence
Appeal to Authority
Appeal to Ignorance
Impervious Hypothesis
Skepticism, Faith, and Philosophy
2. APPEARANCE AND REALITY
Fiction
Add Some More Boils
Why Don't You Just Wake Up?
Discussion
Commonsense Beliefs
Doubting the External World: Dreams
Descartes, Doubt and the Cogito
Doubting the External World: Perception
Direct Realism
Representative Realism: John Locke
Subjective Idealism: George Berkeley
Skepticism: David Hume
Can I Know There's An External World?
Are We Living in a Computer Simulation?
3. THE NATURE OF THE MIND
Fiction
Strange Behavior
Life after Life
Discussion
Substance Dualism
Three Materialist Theories of Mind
Why Materialism?
Behaviorism
The Identity Theory
Functionalism
Zombies and the "Hard Problem" of Consciousness
Three More Dualist Theories
Property Dualism
Epiphenomenalism
Panpsychism
Life after Death
Personal Identity
4. FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY
Fiction
Please Don't Tell Me How the Story Ends
A Little Omniscience Goes A Long Way
Discussion
The Determinism-Free Will Issue
Freedom of Action and Fatalism
Do We Have Contra-Causal Freedom?
Libertarianism and Its Critics
Is there a Coherent Concept of Contra-Causal Freedom?
Freedom as Compatible with Determinism or Indeterminism
Holding People Responsible
5. THE EXISTENCE OF GOD
Fiction
The Vision
Surprise! It's Judgment Day
Discussion
Religious Experience
Traditional Arguments for God's Existence
Assessing Arguments for God's Existence
The Ontological/Definitional Argument
The Cosmological/First Cause Argument
The Teleological/Design Argument
Atheism and the Problem of Suffering
Disbelieving in God
Omnipotence and Contradiction
Does Happiness Require Unhappiness?
The Free Will Defense
The Virtue Defense
Faith and Reason
6. MORALITY
Fiction
The Land of Certus
Those Who Help Themselves
Discussion
Metaethics Versus Normative Ethics
Moral Objectivism and Moral Subjectivism
An Argument for Moral Subjectivism
Moral Subjectivism Reconsidered
What About Cultural Relativism?
A More Technical Take on Metaethics
From the Moral Point of View
Utilitarianism and John Rawls
Morality, Virtue, and Living Well
Feminism and the Ethics of Care
Race From the Moral Point of View
Credits
Index

Stories of Philosophy

An Introduction Through Original Fiction and Discussion

Thomas D. Davis

Author Information

Thomas D. Davis has taught at Grinnell College, the University of Redlands, San Jose State University, and DeAnza College. His publications include Contemporary Moral and Social Issues: An Introduction Through Original Fiction, Discussion and Readings (2014) and three novels.

Stories of Philosophy

An Introduction Through Original Fiction and Discussion

Thomas D. Davis

Reviews and Awards

"Stories of Philosophy captures the reader's attention with vivid narratives that illustrate with subtlety and precision various philosophical concepts, theories, and arguments. It is a pedagogical tour de force."--Mark Alfano, Delft University of Technology

"Davis is the best storywriter among philosophers that I am aware of, and his short stories are an effective way to engage students' imagination and thinking about possibilities and different positions on philosophical issues. I like how he consistently starts with the stories, then expands on the philosophical issues in them into a broader canvas of debates and positions. The book is a complete and integrated package for all instructors who like to do something alternative to just doing a history of philosophy."--Guy Axtell, Radford University

"Stories of Philosophy is comprehensive, engaging, clear, and written at an appropriate level. The inclusion of the literary introductions makes this volume more engaging for students than other texts. I also like its inclusion of discussions of personal identity, women, minorities, and a host of other often-ignored topics."--Stephen H. Daniel, Texas A & M University

"I think that using fiction to hook the reader is an excellent idea, and one that I've tried using previously. The blend of classical and modern philosophers used to illustrate the different concepts is appreciated."--Karl A. Stocker, Eastern Connecticut State University