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Here is an anthology with a difference. Covering all the central areas of philosophy in sixty varied readings, it nevertheless provides a compact and accessible source book.Guided Readings presents the key ideas and arguments in the writings of philosophers from Plato and Aristotle, through Descartes, Locke, Hume and Kant, to modern figures like Russell and Wittgenstein, and contemporaries like Putnam and Searle. Incisive editing pares the source material down to the essentials, while commentaries and questions guide the reader towards a deeper understanding of the fundamental problems.This volume can be used with its companion, Simply Philosophy, to provide a complete introduction to the central themes and issues of Western philosophy. But it can also be used on its own, as a reader-friendly, text-based way into the heartland of the subject.Features* Sixty short extracts, carefully chosen to cover all the central issues * Clear and helpful comments and questions focus on the main ideas* Approachable and up-to-date

This is the standard general account in English of Islamic philosophy and theology. It takes the reader from the religio-political sects of the Kharijites and the Shiites through to the assimilation of Greek thought in the medieval period, and onto the early modern period. Watt concludes with an analysis of Western influences on modern Islamic theology.

This volume presents a comprehensive statement in defense of the doctrine known as classical, hedonistic utilitarianism. It is presented as a viable alternative in the search for a moral theory and the claim is defended that we need such a theory. The book offers a distinctive approach and some quite controversial conclusions. Torbjorn Tannsjo challenges the assumption that hedonistic utilitarianism is at variance with common sense morality particularly as viewed through the perspective of the modern feminist moral critique.

Scottish devolution brought high hopes for an open political culture. But how far have these been fulfilled? Open Scotland? argues that in the field of political communication the old, established ways of the British state still remain firmly in place. Westminster and Whitehall still cast long shadows over Edinburgh.This book offers the first full-scale coverage of how media, politicians and lobbyists interact in the new Scotland. Based on their exceptional first-hand access to the key players, Philip Schlesinger, David Miller and William Dinan have written an inside account of the struggles to establish the rules of the game for covering politics.They have talked to the journalists of Scotland's political media pack who are at the heart of the new political system and who have a decisive impact on the image of the Scottish Parliament and government. They have observed and interviewed the professional lobbyists and reveal their strategies for achieving a respectable image in Scottish public life. And they have analysed some of the key rows and the failures of news management inside Scotland's government.Open Scotland? offers an insight to the world of lobbyists, journalists and spin doctors, revealing the motivations behind the news stories in Scottish politics today.

Concerned with topics at the heart of Kant's aesthetics, this provoking reading of The Critique of Judgement focuses on often misunderstood or neglected themes. Starting from the issues of the truth and justifiability of our critical assertions, Anthony Savile develops Kantian theory broadly across the arts, and shows it working with subtlety and rigour in cases as diverse as music and architecture. New light is thrown on the exemplary necessity of our aesthetic pleasures, on the Antimony of Taste, on the distinction between free and dependent beauty, on the supposed idealism of taste, and on the a priori limits of fine art. Eminently subjective material is here given a place in Kant's overall idealism in a sophisticated discussion that will invite the close attention of Kant scholars and aestheticians alike.

In this unique exposition of important and yet often neglected developments in the history of Western spirituality, Stefan Rossbach reminds us of the philosophical and spiritual underpinnings of the Cold War era, drawing on the traditions of apocalypticism, millenarianism and 'Gnostic' spirituality.Beginning with the 'Gnostic' systems of late Antiquity, the analysis follows 'lines of meaning' which extend through the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance, right up to the present. From the long-term perspective which is thereby established, the spectre of a man-made nuclear apocalypse appears as the latest and most dramatic expression of an outlook on the human condition which refuses to accept limits in the imposition of human designs on the world. The paradoxical continuities that underlie the sense of epoch evoked by the end of the Cold War highlight this work's profound implications for our understanding of contemporary international politics.

Various schools of philosophy have tried to position the thought of Henri Bergson over the last eighty years. In France he has been regarded primarily as an early form of phenomenologist, in the United States and Britain he is still regarded as a vitalist philosopher. This introductory study looks instead at Bergson's use of philosophical form itself and aims to dispel the view that Bergson ever stuck to one type of philosophy at all, be it vitalism or phenomenology. The claim of any one form of thought to the title of 'first philosophy' is challenged by the idea of a Bergsonian metaphilosophy which states that, in a universe with no static foundations, there can never be first philosophies. In other words, if everything is changing, then this must be no less true of philosophy. In pursuit of this approach, John Mullarkey explores each of Bergson's seven major works from a metaphilosophical perspective. Taking each book in chronological order of publication, the first four chapters are devoted to examining one of Bergson's works against the background of current debate within its respective field - the metaphysics of space and time, the philosophy of mind, the philosophy of biology, and sociobiology. The remaining four chapters take a problem-based approach examining the role of ethics, ontology, methodology and metaphilosophy in Bergson's thought. This book is an important and lucid reassessment of an influential philosopher which sets his work in philosophical contexts appropriate to his thought.Key Features* Covers all major aspects of Bergson's thought and all his philosophical writings.* Places Bergson's work in its proper philosophical context between Continental and Analytical traditions.* Relates Bergson's ideas to contemporary philosophical debate, showingthe importance of his work to Thomas Nagel, Gilles Deleuze, Emmanuel Levinas, philosophy of mind, biology and ethics.* Written in a clear style which assumes no prior knowledge of

How might Scotland achieve independence? And what would be the consequences, for Scotland and the rest of the UK? Independence is ever-present on the Scottish political agenda. This book is the first serious study of the likely road to independence, and the consequences for the Scottish people and the Scottish economy. Scottish Independence starts with a detailed guide to the stages along the route to independence and goes on to analyse the legal, political and economic consequences. It asks key questions:*If Scots vote for an SNP government in Edinburgh, how will that government deliver its manifesto promise of achieving independence in Scotland? *If the Scots attain independence, what will change? What will Scotland's place be in the world? Can Scotland remain in the EU?*What are the economics of independence? Would there be a flight of capital and a stock-market fall? How much economic freedom would an independent Scotland have?*How much would change in the daily lives of Scots as a result of independence? How much autonomy would Scotland have as a small independent state in Europe?Scottish Independence will have an impact on public policy and on academic thinking, and is of key interest to politicians, civil servants, academics, journalists and anyone interested in Scotland's future.