compelling dictionary philosophy introduction

books:

'Master Harold'... and the Boys (Oxford Paperbacks)

18 reviews
Athol Fugard

Oxford Paperbacks, 1983

A rich, deeply moving play
Our theater group decided to do this play this season. I'm ashamed to say I had not heard of it before and was a little dubious about it as a result. Boy, was I in for a shocker! It's a great, great play, full of humanity and pathos and humor and insight. I'll have seen it almost 20 times by the time our run is over and I know I'll wish I could have seen it more times. Everytime I watch it, I ...

A Theory of Justice

52 reviews
John Rawls

Oxford Paperbacks, 1973

Comic reviews
I suppose one of the great attributes of the internet is that it allows the juxtaposition of the good, the bad and the ugly. Where else could one find reviews of one of the twentieth century's towering works that variously describe it as a recipe for a police state, an incitement to theft, or as written by someone with no understanding of philosophy (my personal favourite - thanks Adrian!)

Ethics: A Very Short Introduction
Simon Blackburn

Oxford Paperbacks, 2003

Our self-image as moral, well-behaved creatures is dogged by scepticism, relativism, hypocrisy, and nihilism, by the fear that in a Godless world science has unmasked us as creatures fated by our genes to be selfish and tribalistic, or competitive and aggressive. In this 'sparklingly clear' (Guardian) introduction to ethics Simon Blackburn tackles the major moral questions surrounding birth, death, happiness, desire and freedom, showing us how ...

How to Do Things with Words (Oxford Paperbacks)

7 reviews
J.L. Austin

Oxford Paperbacks, 1976

A Brisk tour through Speech Act Theory
At many points, J.L. Austin's How to do Things with Words reads more like a linguistic textbook than a philosophy text. Whether you count this as a benifit or a distraction will depend on your disposition (it certainly beats reading Kant), but whatever your views on the subject, the work is a useful introduction to Speech Act Theory. How to do Things with Words examines a part of language that ...

The Problems of Philosophy (OPUS)

25 reviews
Bertrand Russell

Oxford Paperbacks, 2001

The hobo philosopher
Bertrand has written on many different subjects and many of his books can often appeal to the general reader. This book is for those interested in philosophy and who enjoy esoteric arguments. It is for the person with an average philosophical interest and not necessarily the Ph.D. candidate. Bertrand tells us that if we wish to become philosophers we must be willing to tackle the absurd. ...

Think: A Compelling Introduction to Philosophy

16 reviews
Simon Blackburn

Oxford Paperbacks, 2001

Thinking is not as easy as it once was
Blackburn has written this book as a defense of philosophy as a practical tool for making sense of the world in which we live. To be perfectly frank making sense of the world is a relatively difficult task. Rather than discuss the history of philosophy Mr. Blackburn turns his attention to the topics of philosophy: Does free exist, is there a god, how do we know what we know. Over its two ...

A Short History of the Movies (Oxford Paperbacks)

6 reviews
Gerald Mast

Oxford Paperbacks, 1984

Still the definitive film history text.
As a writer, Mast is without equal as a teacher, historian, and critic. The most readable, valuable film history text, in my opinion. Thank goodness it's still in print.

The Oxford Book of American Short Stories

Oxford Paperbacks, 1994

The Good Soldier : A Tale of Passion (The World's Classics) [Paperback] by...

55 reviews
Ford Maddox Ford; Ford Madox Ford; Editor-Thomas C. Moser

Oxford Paperbacks, 1990

Narrative Extradonaire [30]
Although formulaic in concept for early 20th century literature, this book's style separates itself from its peers. During pre World War I, we meet the British Edward and Leonora Ashburnham and American Florence and John Dowell. As though it was a Fitzgerald novel -- the American couple resides in luxury, in Europe, the woman is talkative but fragile, and there is something brewing among the ...

The Tudors (Very Short Introductions)

1 review
John Guy

Oxford Paperbacks, 2000

All that glisters
I am working my way through the 8 entries in the Very Short Introduction series that were originally part of The Oxford Illustrated History of Britain, and I have not been disappointed yet. This very worthy entry in the series, covering the reigns of the Tudor monarchs, has been 'substantially revised and updated', as of 2000. Professor Guy introduces the chief protagonists and covers the ...

Elmer Gantry (20th Century Classics)

34 reviews
Sinclair Lewis

Oxford Paperbacks, 1983

A Timeless Classic... Can I get a hyprocritical AMEN!
Excellent read, extremely interesting and intelligent prose. Lewis has a field day exposing the sinful, sanctimonious world of evangelism in early twentieth century Mid-America. And does he ever expose it! You will be hard pressed to find a more disreputable jackass in all of literature than Sinclair's main protagonist the Reverend Elmer Gantry. Long before the days of Jim & Tammy Baker & the ...

Jacob's Room (World's Classics)
Virginia Woolf

Oxford Paperbacks, 1992

The Riverside Chaucer (Oxford Paperbacks)

21 reviews
Geoffrey Chaucer

Oxford Paperbacks, 1988

sitting on the dock of a bay...
To gauge Chaucer's merit as a poet and as a HUMAN is in our time demanding and therefore questionable. Velleity MAY yield amusement. I will quote Ezra Pound: "Anyone who is too lazy to master the comparatively small glossary necessary to understand Chaucer deserves to be shut out from the reading of good books for ever. ... As to the relative merits of Chaucer and Shakespeare, English ...

Stations of the Sun

9 reviews
Ronald Hutton

Oxford Paperbacks, 2001

A Great Source
This book is a great source for information about British customs and lore. Hutton is excited about his subject and holds it in deep regard all the wile telling us the way it really is. I learned a lot from this book and I consider it essential reading for everyone (especially neo-pagans) who has an interest in this subject. As a neo-pagan I wouldn't want to have this vast subject ...

Visions

63 reviews
Michio Kaku

Oxford Paperbacks, 1999

Read & Invest
Visions can be broken down into 2 different "main" subjects...computer technology and the medical field, and how they will evolve in the near future; as well as in the distant future. If you read this book, one of your thought processes should be about investing; especially when the computer chip is no longer made on silicon wafers and tranistors. If you are a person who thinks outside the ...

A Dictionary of Modern English Usage (Oxford Paperback Reference)

18 reviews

Oxford Paperbacks, 1988

The standard to which all the others are compared
It is somewhat amazing that this book, first published in 1926, is still in print. The language has changed quite a bit since then; thousands of words have been added, hundreds have gone obsolete, and hundreds more have had their meanings shaded; and of course many of Fowler's pronouncements are now merely echoes of battles long lost or won. Not only that, but two newer editions of A Dictionary ...

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