If you are New to Philosophy

[PierreGringoire]

Or just trying to figure out WHO to read. You don't care who, but you don't want to start reading a philospher and end up having to read the WHOLE treatise, when you'd rather be reading a "more reasonable philosopher." Or a philosopher that is more right for you. Buy the book called "the European Philosphers from Descartes to Nietzsche". It is a collection of the "best", but abridged, although extremely educational anyways; philosphers ranging from the two noted. The philosophers are Descartes, Pascal, Spinoza, Leibniz, Rosseau,Kant, Fichte, Hegel, Schopenhaur, Comte, Mach, and Nietzsche. It is a 900 page book and is every debaters dream to have. It is a "Modern Library classics" book and I highly reccomend it. Another book is called (although I don't have it, I plan on getting it) "The American Trasncendentalists." And it includes works from Thuro(badly mispelled) and Emmerson, and other Trancendentalists. It is also a modern Library classic. I'll throw "The Essential writings of Existentialism" or it may be "the Basic writings....". I've read Descates and Pascal so far and I'm beginning to read Spinoza. It is an awesome book to have.

[optimisticnad]

hey thanks. that quite useful actually...il ave to check my bank balance and see if i can afford a 900page philosophy book, back to uni on friday so bought lots and lots of books.

[optimisticnad]

im too nice! whenever i see a thread with no replies i always put a post! done it lots of time! cos id like one day people to show me the same courtesy and Im not exactly sure what i believe but I know one thing for sure: what goes around comes around. Now...can we not get religion involved with that statement?!

[Nightwalk]

Good suggestions PierreGringoire; I'd like to add Will Durant's The Story of Philosophy: The Lives and Opinions of the World's Greatest Philosophers, perhaps the best introduction to the Philosophy newbie. Another more comprehensive ice-breaker would be the 9-vol. A History of Philosophy by Frederick Copleston.

[optimisticnad]

9 volume? what u trying to do, make me poor! cant afford the 900 page book u think il get the 9 volume? lol. but all excellnt suggestions and iv put on my reading list for x-mas.

[subterranean]

Another suggestion: A History of Western Philosophy And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day by Bertrand Russell.


Further, the novel Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder is also a fine introduction to the world of philosophy.

[PierreGringoire]

Personally (I'll just throw it out there) Socrates Republic got me started in philosophical reading. Prior to Philosophy I was interested into Greek Mythology and Roman Mythology (Aschylus, Sophocles, and Ovid).. So I thought it would be cool to read a "philospher" (a thinker) from those times... it's the best literary decision I ever made. My whole existence entirely shifted:D . So yes, The Repubic is also another excellent read.

[optimisticnad]

perhaps this isnt the right place to say this, particularly in comparison to the nature of conversation-all deep and meaninfgul, but...subt! youv chnaged your avatar, you no longer scare me!

[Kurtz]

A book tht really ignited my passion for philosophy was Plato's "The Symposium". This is a really quick read and full of important ideas.

[subterranean]

Personally (I'll just throw it out there) Socrates Republic got me started in philosophical reading. Prior to Philosophy I was interested into Greek Mythology and Roman Mythology (Aschylus, Sophocles, and Ovid)...

Yes..andwhat is cool about them is that these mythologies are presented in a form of stories, hence make them easier (to some extend) to be read :)

[subterranean]

perhaps this isnt the right place to say this, particularly in comparison to the nature of conversation-all deep and meaninfgul, but...subt! youv chnaged your avatar, you no longer scare me!

Nad, I'm not here to freak out anyone ;)

[Verbatim]

Another suggestion, think about the world.

[optimisticnad]

Nad, I'm not here to freak out anyone ;)

i know but i quite like when people scare me, it reminds me iv got barriers and not as free as i like to think I am. *damn you, now u got me feeling all melancholic* :-)

[PierreGringoire]

Another suggestion, think about the world.
Yes, but reading philosphy is thinking about the world....with training wheels...

[grace86]

I love all these philosophy books. I've only touched on philosophy in my humanities courses but I am definitely going to have to check them out! I have just started to become interested in the Greek and Roman pieces so maybe I will start with the coordinated recommendations!

Hehe I have some thoughts on Descartes...but it is slightly off topic so I will start a thread later!