Philosophy: A Very Short Introduction

If you ever slogged through an intro to philosophy class (or not), found the topic interesting, wanted more, but was clueless where to begin, this book is the place to start. Professor Craig lays out what philosophers do, the problems they address and their various methods of seeking the answers to their initial questions. These questions: ethical, moral, political, linguistic, ,etc., are approached through examples from texts and through Professor Craig’s breezy, succinct explanations. You come away from this book with a concrete idea of what philosophy is and how philosophers work. Quite possibly, you’ll start reading more philosophy after using this book as an entry drug. In reading the book I found it tremendously helpful to read the short works described in chapters 2 ( Plato’s “Crito”), 3 (Hume’s “On Miracles”) and 4 ( A portion of the Buddhist text “The Questions of King Milinda”) after reading those chapters once and then re-reading the chapters after reading the texts. This helped me understand the context of those chapters as well as laid down a knowledge base that helped absorb Craig’s ideas in the subsequent chapters. This book, while very short, is really a great introduction to philosophy and a good place to start reading if the subject intrigues you.

This is a nice introduction to Philosophy but it is not a conventional one. It is not a history, for example, though it has historical elements; and it is not a delineation of philosophy's specific fields (e.g. ethics, metaphysics, epistemology, and so on), though it talks about some of those fields. Nor does it attempt to provide a systematic list of philosophy's principal themes. It refers to some classic texts in philosophy (Plato's Crito; Hume's Essay on Miracles, et al.) but it does not, of course, reprint them within this small space. At some points it creates a one-sided dialogue with the reader, in which the reader is encouraged to examine certain passages in the classic texts. At other points there are discussions of isms and current themes, e.g., the rights of animals. There is a very useful, but brief bibliography at the end of the book that suggests opportunities for further readings. The bottom line is that the book jumps from place to place, idea to idea, philosopher to philosopher, and is a bit of a jumble. At the same time there is a sense of unity in the text that arises from the genial demeanor of the author and his reassurances offered to the reader that the doing of philosophy is not an impossible task and that the reader is probably up to the job. The result is more of a 'good read' than a coherent introduction to the subject of philosophy. The writing is pleasant and lucid and many important subjects are addressed. The book is relatively unique in its inclusion of elements of eastern philosophy and the manner in which eastern philosophic themes can be woven together with western ones. There are a set of nice illustrations. All in all this is a pleasant book on the general subject of philosophy. While not a systematic introduction to the subject it is a leisurely and attractive 'discussion of' philosophy.

There are many things I am not good at. I’ve gone to a few activities at Painting with a Twist but my portraits are, well, pretty terrible. I can grill a steak but beware if you eat anything I’ve cooked more complicated than a slab of beef. I love baseball and I used to be pretty decent at it but at no point in time have I been a very strong batter. Now that I’ve tooted by own humble-horn let me add to the above list the broad topic of philosophy. I love epistemology and logic but I don’t much care for metaphysics and ethics. It’s probably because I’m not very good at working through all the philosophical positions that surround metaphysics and ethics. But Edward Craig won’t let me off the hook on any aspect of philosophy. If I or anyone else were to claim that philosophy is useless then I or “they will be talking about the ineffectuality of certain types of thought, or of human beings’ incapacity to deal with certain types of question. And then instead of rejecting philosophy [I or] they will have become another voice within it” (2). We are all philosophers of one sort or another. For people like me who have only read a handful of philosophical works, Craig’s contribution to the VERY SHORT INTRODUCTION series is helpful in most regards. Before I get to those helpful items, let me just mention one problem I had with the volume. Craig is a Brit and he writes like one. I’m an American and though I’ve read plenty of Shakespeare, grew up reading the King James Bible, and love British television shows like “Good Neighbors,” “The Vicar of Dibley,” and “Keeping Up Appearances,” I found the prose of PHILOSOPHY: A VERY SHORT INTRODUCTION a bit wonky at times. When you read it, be prepared to re-read some sentences so you are clear on what he is discussing. Admittedly, the issue is more likely my own than Craig’s. It isn’t his fault I’m a simple minded American. But it would have been nice if the prose had been easier to read. Let’s move on. What makes this volume a worthy contribution to human knowledge and understanding? First, the book’s format is based upon specific philosophers and their positions on different aspects of philosophy. Chapter two covers ethics and Craig discusses Plato’s work CRITO in which he details a conversation between the soon-to-be executed Socrates and his friend Crito. Chapter three covers epistemology and there we encounter David Hume and his analysis of miracles. Chapter four is all about metaphysics and we meet a Buddhist named Nagasena and a king named Milinda. Other chapters deal with specific themes like consequentialism, contract theory, and integrity (chapter 5) or Idealism, dualism, and skepticism (chapter 6). Chapter 7 is perhaps the best chapter of them all. Craig deals with Descartes, Hegel, Darwin, and Nietzsche. And in so doing he gives us some interesting problems to think about. When discussing the implications of Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection, Craig wonders what would happen if Descartes had lived after Darwin. What would Descartes do with the implication that the mind is the product of natural processes and not the gift from God that he had supposed? How radical would it change his entire philosophy? Chapter 8 of this very short introduction to philosophy draws out the implications of philosophical thought on different groups like the individual, the State, women, and philosophers. Philosophy has direct bearing on just about everything and this book has certainly opened up my eyes to the truth of that. But this book is only a very short introduction and the bibliography serves us a springboard to other works including those by Bertrand Russell, David Hume, and so many more. If you are interested in philosophy and don’t know a lot about the topic, this is the book for you. If it does its job, it will spur you onto reading more books on philosophy covering the topics of logic, metaphysics, ethics, and epistemology. The VERY SHORT INTRODUCTION series has them all and I plan on reading each of them to try and get a grip on the philosophical world. If you think you will never use philosophy then, well, you really need to read this book. Philosophy isn’t dead. It isn’t useless. It is part of everything.

Philosophy is a large subject which can be made as complex as one wishes, so any introductory philosophy book will struggle with the problem that it simply isn't possible to achieve both breadth and depth, especially when the book is "very short." Some books aim for breadth, but they generally wind up rushing through names and ideas in a superficial way which is ultimately ineffective and unsatisfying. Other books go for depth by focusing on one or a few topics, but examining selected trees without a sense of the overall forest fails to adequately orient the beginner. I think that Craig's book actually manages to find a nice balance between breadth and depth, despite being very short. He starts by correctly identifying the three main questions philosophy wrestles with: - How ought we to live? - What really exists? - How do we know? (Note: I've listed the above questions in the order given by Craig, and this ordering is a practical one which probably corresponds to the sequence in which the questions will naturally emerge for most reflective people. However, if one wishes to take a more theoretical approach, it might make sense to reverse the ordering of the questions.) Craig discusses various possible responses to these questions (and many related sub-questions) in general terms and using a variety of brief examples, but he also explores a handful of case studies of philosophers and portions of their books in substantial depth, thus showing us what a real work of philosophy looks like and how it can be fairly evaluated. An added and very important plus is that he draws his examples from both Western and Eastern philosophy, and provides insightful comparisons between them; this is rare in introductory philosophy books, especially short ones. While anyone serious about philosophy will need to put a lot of time and effort into it, everyone has to start somewhere, and this book is about as good a short introduction as I've found so far, so I recommend it.

Disclaimer up front: my review is for the first addition published in 2002. I have not read the second edition published in 2020. Professor Craig provides a high level survey of philosophy for readers with no prior exposure. The reader will learn how famous philosophers have thought about how to live and make sense of the world. Most of the examples come from western thinkers but there is some discussion of eastern philosophy as well. The book is fairly accessible and infused with some dry humor. There are many introductions to philosophy available for the readers who didn’t take a philosophy course in college. I recommend Nigel Warburton’s “Philosophy: The Basics” and Philip Stokes‘ “Philosophy: 100 Essential Thinkers”. These books are not as concise as Craig’s VSI to Philosophy but they provided more depth without being too difficult for the uninitiated reader.

As a philosopher who is often asked about what philosophy is, what its practical uses are, where should a person start if they want to study philosophy carefully, etc, I was genuinely excited to pick up Philosophy: A Very Short Introduction. I had figured that I would read and then recommend it as the best starting point for the philosophy novice. I was not totally wrong, but neither was I totally right. The books merits are that it introduces the general reader to some of the big branches of philosophy (epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, etc), some of the big names in philosophy (Socrates, David Hume, Epicurus, John Stuart Mill), and some of the various schools of philosophy (idealism, empiricism, rationalism, etc). However, it does so in a very scattered manner and the terms are not as clearly defined as one would like, especially since the book is marketed toward those who are beginners in philosophy. The author on one page is talking about ethics, then miracles, then idealism... but it is scattered rather than connected. It helps, however, that the author is good with words, because while it is scattered it is not boring. I would recommend this book to beginners, but books like Bertrand Russell's The Problems of Philosophy are better introductions to the field.

Introductory philosophical texts tend to adopt one of two possible approaches: Either they give a chronological account of famous thinkers and schools, or they examine a set of topics - ethics, free will, nature of mind, etc. Craig opts for something different and rather interesting. The first three chapters are intended to be read in tandem with the works they summarize, namely Plato's "Crito", Hume's "On Miracles" and the Buddhist "King Milanda's Chariot". How many readers will actually do that is doubtful but it is an interesting idea that introduces the reader to three very different areas of philosophy. We then, somewhat more traditionally, have summary introductions to some philosophical themes and 'isms'. Next, Craig presents reviews of a very personal selection of philosophical classics. 'Idiosyncratic' may be a better word than 'personal' as it includes Darwin's "The Origin of Species" which would not normally feature in such a list. Finally, we have a description of philosophy as a discipline, asking what purposes and interests it serves. There's a lot of good things to say about this little book. It is a well-written, lively and authoritative introduction. Craig references the Hindu tradition as well as the Western and gives plenty of encouragement and advice for further study.

Craig discusses some Continental philosophy and incorporates authors like Darwin from outside philosophy proper. A fun little read for those like me who have trouble getting through long tracts.

Excellent introduction to philosophy. This was a topic I had been curious about for some time. I really appreciated the approach. Seems to been written at about a college level so the average high school grad could read it and understand it.

Ich habe mir zwaar erwartet, etwas Neues zu lesen, aber dass ich Bekanntes in völlig neuer Art präsentiert bekomme, die mich persönlich so anspricht, das übersteigt meine Erwartungen bei weitem

Was a Christmas gift. Arrived on time and in excellent condition.

It's very readable but It seems to be more of an introduction to philosophers rather than an introduction to philosophy - so I'm left feeling slightly unsatisfied.

Excellent book for understanding philosophy