Spanning over 2500 years of humanity’s quest for understanding, The Great Philosophers explores the fundamental ideas that have changed our view of the world. Moving from the Buddha, Confucius and the celebrated thinkers of ancient Greece to latter-day geniuses such as Nietzsche, Wittgenstein and Sartre, Stephen Law condenses and deciphers the key thoughts of 50 of history's greatest minds.
Whether illuminating Socrates's methods and Machiavelli's lessons on how to rule, or clarifying the aims behind Descartes's famous “I think, therefore I am” and Kant's “moral law within”, the emphasis is on clear and concise explanation. Avoiding the technical jargon and complex logic associated with most books on philosophy, here are straightforward descriptions of Plato and Locke on reality, Augustine and Sartre on freedom, Hobbes and Rousseau on government, Hegel and Marx on progress, Berkeley and Hume on God, Nietzsche and Mill on morality, Wittgenstein and Russell on meaning, and many others.
Each explanation is accompanied by a biographic sketch and iconic image of the philosopher in question, alongside significant quotations from their major works. Highly accessible and thought-provoking, this is the perfect introduction to philosophy.
About the Author
Stephen Law is Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at Heythrop College, University of London, and the author of The Philosophy of Gym, The Philosophy Files, The Outer Limits and The War for Children's Minds. He is also the editor of the Royal Institute of Philosophy journal Think.
