The Big Questions: A Short Introduction to Philosophy

This is my favorite book this semester. Solomon is humorous and effective in explaining the basics of philosophy. I'm not the type who can read and easily memorize the material, but I did with this book! Solomon has such an entertaining, yet incredibly informative manner of writing that it's difficult not to comprehend everything written. The book is replete with real-world, non-corny examples. It speaks to you, and has questions for you as an individual to reflect on at the beginning of each chapter, and even within it. It is also helpfully (not condescendingly) redundant, which is probably why it's so easy to remember the material. The subjects are appropriate for an introduction to philosophy. As for the included CD-ROM, I was VERY impressed. It has texts by the invaluable ancient philosophers, as well as modern philosophers. The CD-ROM has so much material that even trying to read all of it for class in an academic YEAR would be near impossible. It has both introductory-course appropriate works, as well as some excellent for upper-division undergraduate courses or perhaps even for graduate students. This is a great book for anyone taking an introductory philosophy course, even if it is not assigned. In addition to all of this, it is written in conversational vocabulary, providing the college student or non-student reader with a breath of fresh air away from elevated, pretentious vocabulary.

This is the only philosophy book, that I've read, that gave me a real understanding of the subject. I used this book, in a philosophy class, to explain what my textbook was supposed to.

A reflection of this books makes me feel as if I have not pondered life and living enough. A deep insight to who you are and how you feel about life, people and reltionships.

Solomon's "Big Questions" is an excellent beginning for anyone looking for a serious but approachable introduction to a wide variety of philsophical issues and methods. I teach an Introduction to Philosophy class at the high school level and use a large amount of the material in this book. I have found students can access Solomon's writing quite well; he is both terse and clear. "Big Questions" breaks down issues of free will, mind-body relationship, the existence of God, the meaning of life, and includes a very useful overview of philosophical methods including formal logic. It is a well organized survey of western philosophy, with the inclusion of non-western philosophy as well. I would highly recommend.

This is an excellent introduction to philosophy...the only problem with it is that it does not include enough primary source material. But it is packed with other good stuff...including Solomon's wonderful explanations and clear writing on some very difficult topics.