The Oxford Illustrated History of Western Philosophy (Oxford Illustrated Histories)

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One of my pastimes is reading histories of philosophy because I assume that they will help me get a better grasp of the subject since they are written for a general audience. This history is, for the most part, not for the general reader - perhaps a level or so higher. The opening section on the ancient philosophers was incredibly difficult to get through. The author's writing style is not very clear - he seems to bring in seemingly unrelated ideas out of nowhere. You can get some nuggets here and there, but as an introductory chapter it was disappointing and I almost quit.

I did continue, however, and the section on the middle ages was actually quite rewarding and much easier to follow.

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One major lesson was that the philosophical era is unfairly degraded as being empty of meaningful philosophy. It was, in fact, rich with enough thinkers to debunk that.

The Oxford Illustrated History of Western Philosophy

The remaining chapters also were challenging but not as difficult as the opening chapter. The truth is that the subject matter will always be challenging but can be handled better or worse by individual writers. The final chapter on political philosophy resulted in the book ending on a bad note for two reasons: At one point he refers to Spain as "priest-ridden"; in another section where he is discussing political philosophers using God's granting dominion over creation to Adam to make a case for the divine rights of kings, Quinton gratuitously comments that they did not bother to ask whether Adam at all existed.

Well, he may have well asked why they did not inquire whether Anthony Quinton existed. Finally, there is an odd error at the end of the book, in the afterword. Anthony Kenny writes that in a work like this not all philosophers could be covered so that unfortunately mention of someone like Freidrich von Hayek would sadly be omitted.

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Is this the way philosophers joke in books like this, or is it the lazy editing that may have also been responsible for the admission of some non-accessible submissions? Overall the book is definitely worth it. Again, the subject matter is difficult, so one can't take too many point s away for lack of comprehension, and there are enough passages that provide clarity on certain points by certain philosophers.

Formas de pagamento aceitas: Augustine and Aquinas, though advancing the cause of Christian doctrine, picked up where their pagan Greek forebears had left off. We witness how, during the Renaissance, the profound empiricist ideas underlying Descartes's famous utterance--"I think, therefore I exist"--lived in a tense but complementary relationship with Locke's rationalist theories.

Moving into the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the book explores how Hume greatly influenced Kant's conception of the "transcendental aesthetic," and how Hegel drew upon the lesser known but groundbreaking work of Fichte and Schelling.

The authors bring the story up to our own time, vividly recounting the existential trend from Nietzsche "God is dead" to Sartre, along with other increasingly fractious schools of thought. Along the way, we not only encounter the vast intellectual riches of the Western mind, but we also meet the personalities behind the great thoughts, from the saintly Hume described by Adam Smith as having "come as near to perfection as anybody could" to the ill-mannered outcast Fichte.

And the hundreds of maps and striking illustrations including full-color reproductions of art ranging from medieval manuscripts to the works of Raphael, Ingres, and Magritte form an integral part of the book, revealing the interweaving of art and ideas through the ages, as artists have striven to give visual immediacy to philosophical concepts. The Oxford History of Western Philosophy is the most authoritative single-volume account ever written for the general reader. Engagingly written and astonishingly far-reaching, it provides the consummate introduction to the intellectual bedrock upon which Western civilization is built.

Illustrated with over color and black-and-white pictures, chosen to illuminate and complement the text, this lively and readable work is an ideal introduction to philosophy for anyone interested in the history of ideas. From Plato's Republic and St. Augustine's Confessions through Marx's Capital and Sartre's Being and Nothingness , the extraordinary philosophical dialogue between great Western minds has flourished unabated through the ages.

Dazzling in its genius and breadth, the long line of European and American intellectual discourse tells a remarkable story--a quest for truth and wisdom that continues to shape our most basic ideas about human nature and the world around us. Paperback , pages.

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up. Lists with This Book. Feb 20, Robert Stevenson rated it it was ok. And how can you call yourself a history of western philosophy and not include Erasmus one of the founders of humanism. Jun 04, Jonathan rated it really liked it. A fair history of philosophical thought through the ages. Of course due to its length, it misses some big names and glosses over some important concepts in favor of explaining others at length, and the section on the ancient stoics is especially poor.

But by and large it was helpful. I especially appreciated the breakdown of Kant's thought although it's still very confusing , the whole Descartes-Kant section was great, the Medieval philosophy section was very even-handed about ideas that are of A fair history of philosophical thought through the ages. I especially appreciated the breakdown of Kant's thought although it's still very confusing , the whole Descartes-Kant section was great, the Medieval philosophy section was very even-handed about ideas that are often ridiculed, and the further reading at the back has wrecked my reading list.

A very good reference for getting a general idea of certain key points of western thought, but -even though i enjoyed it during the first pages- I found the choice of such a book being written by various writers problematic.

It is a coprehensive and relatively easy way to get in touch with the work of many thinkers, but by no means enlightening in a life-changing way. Something like a written "philosopphy bites". Saying that, I have to say that I love the philosophy bites podcast for what it is A very good reference for getting a general idea of certain key points of western thought, but -even though i enjoyed it during the first pages- I found the choice of such a book being written by various writers problematic. Saying that, I have to say that I love the philosophy bites podcast for what it is and I also enjoyed reading this book, but it is what it is.

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Jun 05, Ben Labelle rated it really liked it Shelves: The first chapter, on ancient philosophy, had the best prose, but was the least informative. I found the chapter on the continental philosophers confusing—which may have been because of my lack of focus, unclear writing, or just plain confusing ideas. I found it strange that political philosophy was given a seperate chapter.

This would probably make a good introductory history of philosophy, being single-volume and written by a team of scholars. This is a complete and authoritative history of philosophy in the western tradition. Each subject areas is written by experts within that particular field of philosophy, and then keenly edited by Anthony Kenny.

The edits are not idealistic, but rather edited in a way that the reading is more pleasurable and less "dry" than the usual philosophical numbness. This book tells the story from the very foundations of ancient western philosophy up to the present day with a focus on the intellectual dev This is a complete and authoritative history of philosophy in the western tradition.

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