The Philosophy Book: From the Vedas to the New Atheists, 250 Milestones in the History of Philosophy (Union Square & Co. Milestones)

This was a great intro to philosophy. It briefly describes influential events and people that shape our world and history of philosophy to help you decide who you want to research more.

The book is beautiful and very clear. Not too deep, but that is up to you to get further information on topics that you may get interest (and you get a wid range of topics in this book). In my opinion, the book is aimed to novices with an interest in philosophy. Not aimed to experts.

From my experience the most important thing about philosophy is: The understanding that everything flows from the assumptions we make at the beginning of the argument and/or discussion. Everything flows from the assumptions one makes at the beginning. The introduction in the book by Mr. Bassham is very good. Please be aware that Mr. Bassham has included two entries for Alvin Plantinga, page 462- "1974-Essentialism," and page 490- "1984 Revival of Christian Philosophy." "Mr. Plantinga From 1963 to 1982, Plantinga taught at Calvin University before accepting an appointment as the John A. O'Brien Professor of Philosophy at the University of Notre Dame.[3] He later returned to Calvin University to become the inaugural holder of the Jellema Chair in Philosophy.[4]" (Wikipedia).

Excellent overview of the major figures.

I like it.

This may actually be the most exciting and stimulating introduction to philosophy ever written. Anyone who picks it up and looks through it however cursorily will quickly be impressed with the magnificent range and subtlety of the presentation. And what a presentation: 250 gorgeous, stunning illustrations, all on the right side, with an oversize page on the left containing background information. If I can count correctly, THE PHILOSOPHY BOOK: FROM THE VEDAS TO THE NEW ATHEISTS is the ninth book in the Sterling series of 500 page encyclopedias, But the earlier books were all on science and technology, on topics like math, physics, the history of medicine, drugs, space, psychology. But 9 is a charm because this book breaks out of the mold. It is not on a hard science or even a soft science, nor is it on a technology. Professor Bassham realizes this and, in the introduction, he explains that though philosophy is not cumulative like science, it is hardly the waste of time that H L Mencken says it is. In fact many philosophical ideas deepen after centuries of discussion. Political theories, psychological theories, and deontic theories are particularly prone to improvement over time. Just think of the influence of Plato, Rousseau, Hobbes, John Stuart Mill, Adam Smith, Karl Marx, Derek Parfit, and Robert Nozick on the modern world! This book is so rich and deep in part because of the author's implicit definition of what constitutes "philosophy." For Professor Bassham, as for Plato, Hegel, James, Derrida, and Foucault before him, philosophy is the way a culture or a person learns to make sense of the world. THE PHILOSOPHY BOOK is particularly knowledgeable about Eastern religion and Eastern philosophy from the Upanishads and the Analects to the Buddhist meme that there is only one mind. There is also rich material on Islamic philosophy which, as everybody knows, was the start up and the inspiration for Maimonides and Aquinas. The great thinkers of medieval Islam were literally the carriers of Aristotle, Euclid, and Ptolemy, figures largely unknown to the West for over a thousand years. And Aristotle was in turn the start up for Western science. TPB breaks the mold of at least some of the books in the Sterling series in yet another way: It occasionally allows three or four spreads to thinkers who cannot be covered in one or two spreads. For example Nietzsche and Bertrand Russell each get three spreads. This is intelligent and appropriate, Philosophy then, when it is works the way it is supposed to, involves an extended fascination with new and exciting ideas in physics, biology, psychology, the arts, politics, morality, and ethics. When all these ideas get to be cooking or brewing, philosophy comes along and finds links and patterns that unify two or more of these subject areas. Metaphysics, logic, and epistemology is the end product of the synthesis of the arts and sciences. The great summas of the past were put together by the likes of Plato, Aristotle, Aquinas, Kant, Hegel, and Marx. In our day, we too look forward to an appropriate summa that will deliver the totalization of our knowledge and experience in the context of historical moment. The reason that this book is at once so harmonious and so uncanny and unsettling is because Bassham has a strong awareness of the vast potential of philosophy to unify and explain so many facets of our world. This is a book that is an absolute must for anyone with an interest in philosophy. It has the potential to inspire a whole generation of thinkers.

A great overview and introduction to various philosophers and time-periods of philosophy as it has evolved. Bassham's book reads much like a reference work that brings the reader into the world of philosophy - ranging from Ancient Greek philosophies, Eastern philosophies, and various modern philosophical movements. Important philosophers and figures are briefly explored page by page.

Rather

The pictures are very beautiful the text well written. Very few philosophy books I came across has such superb illustrations

I have just finished reading Gregory Bassham’s "The Philosophy Book: From the Vedas to the New Atheists", and I think it is well worth a look if you have ever found yourself staring at the ceiling at 2 am wondering what it all means. It is part of that "Milestones" series, which essentially tries to cram 3,000 years of human overthinking into 250 digestible pages. It is an ambitious goal, and while no one is going to become the next Socrates just by reading this, it is a fantastic map of where we have been intellectually. 🧐 THE STRUCTURE The book is organised chronologically, which is quite helpful for seeing how ideas actually evolve. You start with ancient Indian Vedic traditions and end up with modern debates about atheism and science. Each entry is just one page of text facing a big illustration. In my opinion, this is the book’s biggest selling point. It is perfect for those of us with short attention spans or very little free time. You can learn about the "Allegory of the Cave" while waiting for the kettle to boil and then get on with your day feeling slightly more enlightened. ☕ THE WRITING AND RESEARCH Bassham is a professor, so he knows his stuff, but he doesn't write like he's trying to bore a lecture hall to death. He manages to keep the tone light and even sneaks in a bit of dry humour when dealing with some of the more eccentric thinkers. However, because everything is limited to one page, some of the deeper, more brain-melting concepts (looking at you, Kant) get a bit oversimplified. It is more of a "Greatest Hits" album than a deep dive into the archives. MY HONEST TAKE I would give it a solid 4 out of 5 stars. It is inclusive, giving plenty of space to Eastern philosophies rather than just sticking to the usual European suspects. The main downside is that just as you start to wrap your head around a complex idea, the page ends and you are onto the next milestone. It can feel a bit like speed-dating with geniuses. 🏛️ WHO IS IT FOR? If you are already a philosophy scholar, you probably won't find anything new here. But for everyone else, it is a brilliant, non-preachy way to get acquainted with the big ideas that shaped our world. It is a great gift for a curious friend or a nice addition to your own bookshelf for those moments when you want to feel a bit more connected to the long history of human thought. It is a reminder that we have been confused about the meaning of life for a very long time, and we are in good company. 🌍

Excellent production. Masterly short essays, and interesting illustrations.

Beautiful book! Full color, great page stock and a hard cover delight for those bibliophiles that appreciate a good quality hard cover. Content is fantastic but a bit reductionist -I kind of would prefer more space could've been used on certain entries. Would be even better if it included an entry about me, Ha Ha Ha, perhaps someday..

As expected from this series of wonderful books, the Philosophy Book is a fantastic distillation of philosophical information. Highly recommended.