Being Philosophical

An Introduction to Philosophy and Its Methods

Hetherington, Stephen

1. Edition April 2024
276 Pages, Hardcover
Professional Book

ISBN: 978-1-5095-5457-7

John Wiley & Sons

Short Description

Being Philosophical guides readers through the perplexing initial moments of meeting philosophy by taking them inside philosophical thinking as an activity.

In a beginner-friendly voice, Stephen Hetherington elucidates how intellectual 'tools' from a diversity of traditions, east and west, can enable us to start doing philosophy - that is, to think 'from scratch' in a philosophical way. He explores many classical topics and issues that have preoccupied philosophers from Plato, early Buddhists, and Confucius to Karl Marx and beyond - selves, souls, identity, will, knowing and reasoning, among others - and presents possible methods for responding to different theories.

Inviting and conversational, Being Philosophical is the book needed by every new philosophy student - or anyone wondering whether they might want to explore the world of philosophy.

Further versions

Extended Contents
Preface and Acknowledgements
Introduction
1 Who Are You?
2 Philosophical Reading and Writing
3 How Do You Know?
4 Philosophical Reasoning
5 How Should You Act?
6 Philosophical Viewing
Index

Stephen Hetherington is Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at the University of New South Wales.

S. Hetherington, University of New South Wales, Australia