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Cover

Introduction to World Philosophy

A Multicultural Reader

Edited by Daniel Bonevac and Stephen Phillips

Publication Date - January 2009

ISBN: 9780195152319

624 pages
Paperback
7-3/8 x 9-1/4 inches

In Stock

The most comprehensive Western and world philosophy reader available

Description

Featuring selections from around the globe, Introduction to World Philosophy: A Multicultural Reader provides a diverse and engaging introduction to five key areas of philosophy: ethics, philosophy of mind and self, epistemology, metaphysics, and philosophical theology. The editors have arranged these topics according to their increasing complexity--from the most concrete (ethics) to the most theoretical (philosophical theology)--making the material as accessible as possible for students. Organized both chronologically and geographically, the anthology's five parts include readings from Indian, Chinese, Greek, Christian, Jewish, Islamic, Spanish, Latin-American, and African traditions, as well as selections from early modern, Kantian, and post-Kantian philosophy.
Introduction to World Philosophy contains 136 selections (24 by women), organized into 25 chapters; these chapters are divided into 93 sections, each of which opens with a detailed introduction that prepares students for the readings that follow. The parts and chapters can be used in any order and in any combination. The text's unique modular structure gives instructors great flexibility in designing and teaching introduction to philosophy courses. T

Reviews

"Bonevac and Phillips are among the most respected anthologists in the profession, and their introductions to the selections are among the most impressive I've encountered. Each selection is clearly and fully introduced, with concise summaries of even the most complex arguments. Their ability to synthesize material from widely different cultures and eras is truly amazing."--Frank X. Ryan, Kent State University

"The coverage of non-Western traditions is broad and balanced, and the selections from Western sources represent the breadth of the philosophical tradition. Bonevac and Phillips are to be commended for interweaving the different traditions in such a way as to make side-by-side comparisons very easy."--Mark Owen Webb, Texas Tech University

"Bonevac and Phillips' introductions are concise and relevant, providing definitions and pertinent information for students to begin approaching new philosophical material. This is an important and timely work and one of the most comprehensive sourcebooks I have seen."--Donna M. Giancola,Suffolk University

Table of Contents

    Preface
    Timeline
    Part I: Ethics
    1. Ethics in the Philosophical Traditions of India
    1.1. Karma and Dharma in Hindu thought
    1.1.1. From the Bhagavad Gita
    1.2. The Bhakti Movement
    1.2.1. Akka Mahadevi
    1.2.2. Janabai
    1.2.3. Lalla
    1.2.4. Mirabai
    1.3. Early Buddhism
    1.3.1. The Buddha, from The First Sermon
    1.3.2. From The Dhammapada
    1.4. Songs of the Buddhist Nuns
    1.4.1. From Psalms of the Sisters
    1.5. Buddhist Virtues
    1.5.1. From The Lankavatara Sutra
    1.6. Jainism
    1.6.1. From the Acaranga Sutra
    1.7. The Skepticism and Materialism of Charvaka
    1.7.1. From Sarva-Darsana-Samgraha
    2. Chinese Ethics
    2.1. The Virtue Ethics of Confucius
    2.1.1. Confucius, from The Analects
    2.2. The Intuitionism of Mencius
    2.2.1. From Mencius
    2.3. Xunzi's Pessimistic View of Human Nature
    2.3.1. Xunzi, from "That the Nature is Evil"
    2.4. Confucian and Neo-Confucian Women Writers
    2.4.1. Ban Zhao, from Lessons for My Daughters
    2.4.2. Ban Zhao, "Traveling Eastward"
    2.4.3. Li Qingzhao, from Hou Hsu
    2.4.4. Li Qingzhao, from Complete Poems
    2.5. The Virtue Ethics of Daoism
    2.5.1. Laozi, from Dao-de-Jing
    2.6. Daoist Women Writers
    2.6.1. Yu Xuanji, from Poems
    2.6.2. Sun Bu-er, from Poems
    3. Ancient Greek Ethics
    3.1. Socrates on Virtue
    3.1.1. Plato, from Laches
    3.2. Plato's Conception of Virtue
    3.2.1. Plato, from the Republic
    3.3. Aristotle on Virtue
    3.3.1. Aristotle, from Nicomachean Ethics
    4. Medieval Christian, Jewish, and Islamic Ethics
    4.1. The Ethics of the Fathers
    4.1.1. From the Babylonian Talmud
    4.2. Augustine on Weakness of Will
    4.2.1. Augustine, from Confessions
    4.2.2. Augustine, from On the Trinity
    4.3. Al-Farabi on Happiness
    4.3.1. Al-Farabi, from The Attainment of Happiness
    4.4. Maimonides on Happiness and Virtue
    4.4.1. Moses Maimonides, from Guide of the Perplexed
    4.5. Aquinas on Law and Virtue
    4.5.1. St. Thomas Aquinas, from Summa Theologica
    4.6. St. Catherine of Siena on the Paradoxes of Wisdom
    4.6.1. Letter to Monna Alessa Dei Saracini
    4.6.2. Letter to the Venerable Religious Brother Antonio of Nizza, of the Order of the Hermit Brothers of St. Augustine at the Wood of the Lake
    4.7. Christine de Pizan's Feminism
    4.7.1. Christine de Pizan, from The Treasury of the City of Ladies
    4.8. Virtue in St. Teresa of Ávila
    4.8.1. St. Teresa of Ávila, from The Ways of Perfection
    5. Ethics in Modern Philosophy
    5.1. Princess Elizabeth's Critique of Reason in Ethics
    5.1.1. Elizabeth to Descartes--The Hague, August 16, 1645
    5.1.2. Elizabeth to Descartes--The Hague, September 13, 1645
    5.1.3. Elizabeth to Descartes--Riswyck, September 30, 1645
    5.1.4. Elizabeth to Descartes--The Hague, April 25, 1646
    5.2. Hume's Empiricist Ethics: From Is to Ought
    5.2.1. David Hume, from A Treatise of Human Nature
    5.3. Kant's Deontology
    5.3.1. Immanuel Kant, from Fundamental Principles of the Metaphysics of Morals
    5.4. Madame de Staël on the Passions
    5.4.1. Madame de Staël, from Influence of the Passions upon the Happiness of Individuals and of Nations
    5.5. Utilitarianism
    5.5.1. John Stuart Mill, from Utilitarianism
    6. African Ethics
    6.1. The Ethiopian Enlightenment
    6.1.1. Zera Yacob, from The Treatise of Zera Yacob
    6.2. The Communitarian Utilitarianism of the Akan
    6.2.1. Kwame Gyekye, from An Essay in African Philosophy: The Akan Conceptual Scheme
    6.3. East African Islamic Ethics
    6.3.1. Kai Kresse, from Philosophising in Mombasa
    Part II: Philosophy of Mind and Self
    7. The Self in Indian Philosophy
    7.1. The Upanishads on a Higher Self
    7.1.1. From the Brhadaranyaka Upanishad
    7.1.2. From the Chandogya Upanishad
    7.1.3. From the Mundaka Upanishad
    7.1.4. From the Svetasvatara Upanishad
    7.1.5. From the Maitri Upanishad
    7.1.6. From the Taittiriya Upanishad
    7.1.7. From the Katha Upanishad
    7.2. Vedanta, Samkhya, and Yoga: Hindu Paths to Self-Awareness
    7.2.1. Shankara, from the Brahmasutra Commentary
    7.2.2. Ishvarakrishna, from Verses on the Analysis of Nature (Samkhyakarika)
    7.2.3. From The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali
    7.3. Indian Buddhism: No-Self, Bundle Self, and Impermanence
    7.3.1. From Questions to King Milinda
    7.4. Exegesis, Logic, and Materialism: The Everyday Self
    7.4.1. Kumarila, from Notes on the Verses
    7.4.2. Madhava, from Compendium of Philosophy
    7.4.3 From the Nyaya Sutra
    7.4.4. Udayana, from Atmatattvaviveka
    8. The Self in Chinese Buddhism
    8.1. Chinese Buddhism: The Consciousness-Only School
    8.1.1. Xuanzang, from The Treatise on the Establishment of the Doctrine of Consciousness-Only
    8.2. Tibetan Buddhism: The Self as Transcendent
    8.2.1. Yeshe Tsogyal, from Autobiography
    8.3. Zen Buddhism: The Self as Empty
    8.3.1. From the Heart Sutra
    8.3.2. From The Recorded Conversations of Zen Master Yixuan
    9. Ancient Greek Philosophy of Mind
    9.1. Plato: The Eternal, Tripartite Soul
    9.1.1. Plato, from Phaedo
    9.1.2. Plato, from Phaedrus
    9.2. Aristotle on the Self and Human Function
    9.2.1. Aristotle, from De Anima
    10. Mind and Body in Early Modern Philosophy
    10.1. Descartes's Dualism of Mind and Body
    10.1.1. René Descartes, from Meditations on First Philosophy
    10.2. Princess Elizabeth's Critique of Descartes's Dualism
    10.2.1. Princess Elizabeth, Letter to Descartes--The Hague, May 16, 1643
    10.2.2. Princess Elizabeth, Letter to Descartes--The Hague, June 20, 1643
    10.2.3. Princess Elizabeth, Letter to Descartes--The Hague, July 1, 1643
    10.2.4. Princess Elizabeth, Letter to Descartes--The Hague, April 25, 1646
    10.3. Locke on Criteria of Personal Identity
    10.3.1. John Locke, from An Essay Concerning Human Understanding
    10.4. Hume: The Constructed Self
    10.4.1. David Hume, from A Treatise of Human Nature
    11. African Philosophy of Mind
    11.1. Amo's Critique of Descartes
    11.1.1. Anton Wilhelm Amo, from The Apatheia of the Human Mind
    11.2. The Akan Conception of Mind and Self
    11.2.1. Kwasi Wiredu, from "The Concept of Mind"
    11.2.2. N. K. Dzobo, from "The Image of Man in Africa"
    11.3. African Perspectives on Personal Identity
    11.3.1. Leke Adeofe, from "Personal Identity in African Metaphysics"
    Part III: Epistemology
    12. Indian Theories of Knowledge
    12.1. Indian Realism: Nyaya and Vaisheshika
    12.1.1. From the Nyaya Sutra, with Commentary by Vatsyayana
    12.2. Nagarjuna's Skeptical Regress
    12.2.1. Nagarjuna, from Averting the Arguments
    12.3. New Logic Responses to Skepticism
    12.3.1. Ganghesa, from The Jewel of Thought about Epistemology
    13. Chinese Theories of Knowledge
    13.1. Daoist Skepticism
    13.1.1. From Zhuangzi
    13.2. The Empiricism of Wang Chong
    13.2.1. Wang Chong, from Balanced Enquiries
    14. Ancient Greek Theories of Knowledge
    14.1. Plato's Internalism
    14.1.1. Plato, from Meno
    14.1.2. Plato, from Theaetetus
    14.2. Aristotle on Thought and Inference
    14.2.1. Aristotle, from On the Soul
    14.3. Sextus Empiricus's Skepticism
    14.3.1. Sextus Empiricus, from Outlines of Pyrrhonism
    15. Jewish, Christian, and Islamic Theories of Knowledge
    15.1. The Skepticism of Philo of Alexandria
    15.1.1. Philo, from On Drunkenness
    15.2. Augustine's Foundationalism
    15.2.1. Augustine, from Answer to Skeptics
    15.2.2. Augustine, The City of God
    15.3. Avicenna (ibn Sina) on Logic and Science
    15.3.1. Avicenna, from A Treatise on Logic
    15.3.2. Avicenna, from The Book of Healing
    15.3.3. Avicenna, from On the Soul
    16. Modern Theories of Knowledge
    16.1. Descartes's Foundationalism
    16.1.1. René Descartes, from Meditations on First Philosophy
    16.2. John Locke's Empiricism
    16.2.1. John Locke, from Essay Concerning Human Understanding
    16.3. Leibniz's Rationalism
    16.3.1. G. W. Leibniz, from New Essays Concerning Human Understanding
    16.4. Hume's Empiricism
    16.4.1. David Hume, from An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding
    17. Spanish, Portuguese, and Latin American Theories of Knowledge
    17.1. The Skepticism of Francisco Sanches
    17.1.1. Francisco Sanches, from That Nothing is Known
    17.2. The Contextualism of Unamuno
    17.2.1. Miguel de Unamuno, from The Tragic Sense of Life
    Part IV: Metaphysics
    18. Classical Indian Metaphysics
    18.1. Classical Realist Ontology
    18.1.1. From the Vaisheshika Sutras of Kanada
    18.2. Hindu Idealism
    18.2.1. Shankara, from the Brahmasutra Commentary
    18.3. Buddhist Idealism
    18.3.1. Dignaga, from the Investigation of the Object of Awareness
    18.4. Jainist Perspectivism
    18.4.1. Vadi Devasuri, from Ornament Illuminating the Means and Principles of Awareness
    19. Ancient Greek Metaphysics
    19.1. Plato's Forms (Universals)
    19.1.1. Plato, from Republic
    19.2. Aristotle: Categories and Causes
    19.2.1. Aristotle, from Categories
    19.2.2. Aristotle, from Metaphysics
    19.2.3. Aristotle, from Physics
    20. Metaphysics in Early Modern Philosophy
    20.1. Primary and Secondary Qualities
    20.1.1. René Descartes, from Meditations on First Philosophy
    20.1.2. John Locke, from An Essay Concerning Human Understanding
    20.2. The Idealism of Berkeley and Hume
    20.2.1. George Berkeley, from Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous
    20.2.2. George Berkeley, from Principles of Human Knowledge
    20.2.3. David Hume, from A Treatise of Human Nature
    21. Metaphysics in Kant and Post-Kantian Philosophy
    21.1. Kant's Copernican Revolution
    21.1.1. Immanuel Kant, from Critique of Pure Reason
    21.2. Hegel's Historicism
    21.2.1. G. W. F. Hegel, from Phenomenology of Mind
    21.3. Peirce's Pragmatism
    21.3.1. Charles Sanders Peirce, from "How to Make Our Ideas Clear"
    21.4. Nietzsche's Perspectivism
    21.4.1. Friedrich Nietzsche, from Human, All Too Human
    21.4.2. Friedrich Nietzsche, from The Cheerful Science
    21.5. Russell's Rejection of Idealism
    21.5.1. Bertrand Russell, from Problems of Philosophy
    22. Spanish and Latin American Metaphysics
    22.1. The Logic of Peter of Spain
    22.1.1. Peter of Spain, Tractatus
    22.2. The Perspectivism of Ortega y Gasset
    22.2.1. José Ortega y Gasset, from The Modern Theme
    22.3. The Metaphysical Labyrinths of Jorge Luis Borges
    22.3.1. Jorge Luis Borges, from "Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius"
    Part V: Philosophical Theology
    23. Classical Christian Theology
    23.1. Augustine
    23.1.1. Augustine, from Confessions
    23.1.2. Augustine, from Enchiridion
    23.2. Anselm's Ontological Arguments
    23.2.1. Anselm, from Proslogion
    23.3. The Cosmological Arguments of St. Thomas Aquinas
    23.3.1. Thomas Aquinas, from Summa Theologica
    23.4. The Christian Mysticism of Julian of Norwich
    23.4.1. Julian of Norwich, from Revelations of Divine Love
    24. Medieval Islamic Theology
    24.1. Ibn Sina (Avicenna) on the Existence of God
    24.1.1. Avicenna, from On the Nature of God
    24.2. Al-Ghazali's Critique of Theology, and Averroes' Defense
    24.2.1. Averroes, from The Incoherence of the Incoherence; Al-Ghazali, from The Incoherence of the Philosophers
    24.3. Sufi Mysticism
    24.3.1. Rabi'a al-'Adawiyya, from Readings from the Mystics of Islam
    24.3.2. Zeb-un-Nissa, from Poetry from the Hidden One
    25. Modern Theology
    25.1. Descartes's Arguments for God's Existence
    25.1.1. René Descartes, from Meditations on First Philosophy
    25.2. Pascal's Wager
    25.2.1. Blaise Pascal, from Thoughts
    25.3. Leibniz and the Problem of Evil
    25.3.1. G. W. Leibniz, from Theodicy
    25.4. Paley's Argument from Design
    25.4.1. William Paley, from Natural Theology
    25.5. Hume's Counterarguments and Refutations
    25.5.1. David Hume, from Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion