Aspects of Western Philosophy

Routledge eBooks, 2005

This course provides a general overview of the main philosophical topics discussed from Socrates to Sartre. The course develops historically the most important subfields of philosophy: philosophy of nature, philosophy of mind, metaphysics, ethics, epistemology (theory of knowledge), aesthetics and philosophy of history. We successively discuss Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, Aquinas, Descartes, Hume, Kant, Hegel, Nietzsche, Wittgenstein and Sartre. Because the course is intended for students of fields other than philosophy (as well as for its short duration), the discussion focuses on only one of the most relevant ideas of each mentioned European philosophers, instead of exploring their entire system of thought. Students are required to follow the class and take notes, to answer comprehension questions, to write a short essay and to participate in class debates.

researchgate.net, 2021

This article is aimed at philosophers, scholars, students, and non-philosophers who have a philosophical disposition. It does not provide detailed biographical notes or any discussion, defense and argumentation of ideas or explanatory examples. It provides an evolutionary perspective as well as a statement of the main ideas of each philosopher in plain language. It has a strong focus on theories of knowledge and several important thinkers in other areas of philosophy are not included. It is expected that the interested reader will seek detailed discussions on ideas of particular interest in other philosophical sources.

This Oxford Handbook examines the radical transformation of worldview taking place in the period from the middle of the 16th century (from the publication in 1543 of Copernicus' De Revolutionibus) to the early 18th century (the years immediately before Hume and the Enlightenment). The intention of the volume is to cover both well-known and undeservedly less well-known philosophical texts by placing these works in their historical context which includes tight interconnections with other disciplines (e.g., experimental science) as well as historical and political events. By proceeding in this manner the editors hope to recover a meaning of "philosophy" that comes closer to the way its early modern proponents would have understood and practiced it. The editors also point to the reader-friendly character of this Handbook: in addition to grouping chapters in five categories (metaphysics; the mind; epistemology; ethics and political philosophy; and religion), cross-references to chapters or pages dealing with the same (or similar) issues make it possible for readers to consult the book selectively. Due to space constraints, in the remainder of this review I propose to take advantage of this feature and briefly look at the articles

Encyclopedias and philosophers are rarely concise. This classic encyclopedia, now updated, combines philosophers and conciseness in a manner perfectly suited to students and other non-specialists. Readers will enjoy philosophy in action here.

The Routledge Companion to Theism, 2010

I begin with a very brief, very general outline of the history of Western philosophical treatments of theism. I then discuss contributions to this history from pagans, Jews, Muslims, Christians, and non-believers. Finally, I make some comments about the range of conceptions of God that is evident in this history.

The fifth issue of the ESJP marks an important moment for the journal, for several distinct reasons. With regard to the content, I am delighted that we have started to receive submissions from subfields of philosophy that were underrepresented in previous issues: the history of philosophy and theoretical philosophy. It is important that the ESJP will continue to represent the best written work produced by students of the faculty of philosophy, Erasmus University Rotterdam. This issue is a case in point with respect to the versatility of that faculty. It features contributions from an MA-student, a student engaged in the Research Master program in Early Modern and Intellectual History (which includes courses in philosophy) and, last but not least, two papers written by Research Master students of the Erasmus Institute for Philosophy and Economics. The inclusion of material from very diverse branches of the philosophical tree has only been possible thanks to the faculty staff. The editorial board is particularly grateful to them for nominating excellent papers written for their own courses and for reviewing papers written for other courses.

Philosophical Books, 1996