Contemporary Analytic Philosophy

Contemporary Analytic Philosophy by James Bailie originally published in 1997 provides an overview of analytic philosophy from Frege to the present. It is a strong mix of key writings by leading thinkers in the analytic tradition as well as some clear and helpful analysis by Bailie. As with all these types of essay collections, it is advisable to look at the on-line table of comments, prior to purchasing. This excellent small anthology may be well suited to use in an introductory course on analytic philosophy. I had recently read Scott Soames' excellent two-volume series on analytic philosophy and found it and the present work to be quite complementary. Soames' coverage is narrower and deeper - its one significant short-coming being the omission of Frege. Bailie's work is broader and shallower including classic pieces from each of the writers. A few of lesser figures were also included; e.g. Austin, Grice and Putnam, which was nice to see. Davidson is the only inclusion that I would question - I just don't see him as particularly significant - perhaps a limitation on my part. Overall excellent work if wildly overpriced. I picked it up new at a book sale for $3; its probably worth at most $30.

The only conplaint I have with this book is that it lacks scholarship. This anthology does not contain an index.

This single book serves as an excellent intro to analytic philosophy. In each of various area of analytic philosophy, it contains several of the seminal articles. In addition, each chapter contains a several page intro and discussion of the articles. I highly recommend the book. I lowered the rating from 5 stars to 4 stars, because the book is priced about $20 too high.