Philosophy for Beginners

There are two schools of thought concerning the 'For Beginners' series of texts. The subject matter that they attempt to address is tastelessly watered-down to the point of absurdity, placing serious topics such as philosophy and political thought into a superficial pop culture context. The subjects are so scandoulsly generalized that the reader comes away from the text more confused than before the reading. On the other hand, there is the view that this series presents precise introductions to otherwise dense material, paving the way for further study. My opinion tends towards the latter, because these texts are in fact precise, honing down the ideas in a language that can be understood by intelligent people with a desire to understand the subject under discussion. In ~Philosophy~ a vast amount of material is touched on from the pre-Socratics to Derrida's post structuralism. A ambitious project, but Richard Osbourne along with Ralph Edney as illustrator has managed to pull it off with accuracy, humour and elegance.This publication is not presenting itself as anything else other than what it is - an overview of western philosophy from the early Greeks to present time. Having some background in philosophy, personally the sections on the Dark Ages, Holy Roman Empire, and the rise of Scholasticism in the first millennia was informative, reminding me of the huge influence St Thomas Aquinas had at the time - his famous 'Summa contra Gentiles', which set out to prove to non Christians, through natural reason, the importance of Chrisianity and the existence of God. Interestingly, the author's at the end of the Aquinas section comment that the explanation concerning the philosopher's thought was a bit "sketchy, but it's only a Beginner's Guide." This was a subtle cue from the author's that this text is in fact only an introduction and not to expect much more.This book is an appropriate beginning to a vast and complex subject. If this text sparks some interest, the bibliography at the back is divided into Introductory, Advanced and General references, including a few excellent books to read if one plans to pursue the subject further. Osborne et al, have done a terrific job of tackling such a notoriously difficult subject and making it interesting and accessible.

This book was my most quoted book that I used on my way to a BA in Philosophy. This book will give one a solid foundation in Philosophy in about four to five hours. This is an Analytical philosopher's view point though.The book goes through the history in a very concise, sometimes oversimplified method. It is a quick read. It also boils down ideas in an excellent manner most of the time. I have to suggest that one should read the original philosophical text or a good reader to go further in a subject area. This book is a great jumping off point though.Good luck and Thanks for your time.

What a wonderful little book. Philosophy for Beginners covers the full sweep of Western philosophy, from the earliest Greek thinkers through Derrida, in just under 200 pages. Even better, most of the material is presented in a comic-book format. With this little book it is truly possible to review the progress (?) of Western philosophy in an evening's read.Obviously the challenge for Osborne is to present something meaningful and intelligible about various thinkers and schools of thought in such a brief survey. And he does so in a way that is both fair, based on my knowledge, and refreshingly humorous. Even as a "not quite" beginner I found this little book enlightening.There are a few caveats. First, this is very much a survey of Western philosophy, which is not immediately clear from the title. Little attention is paid to other philosophic traditions. Second, some of the discussion of current thinkers is difficult to follow. But it is my sense that this has more to do with the complexity of what those thinkers are attempting and our lack of distance from their thinking. No doubt in a hundred years we will be able to do a better job of presenting what seems today to be plethora of different thinkers and approaches. But there is no reason to wait when you can get started with this fun little book.

Because of the broad scope of philosophy, one does not know where to begin in the subject. This book is a great place to start for it gives a historical overview of philosophy and its philosophers. Starting from the ancient Greeks all the way to Structuralism. Giving short and concise prescriptions of different philosophers of all the major and most influential subjects. From existentialism to the sophists to the age of reason and phenomenology. Highly reccomended for those just getting into philosophy and looking for a place to start.

Having studied Philosophy formally through 2 Universities, I can honestly say that I got a better BIG PICTURE of Western philosophy from this book. The combined mediums of text and cartoon makes a potentially door subject very accessible.