Philosophy: Dictionaries

Modern social thought ranges widely from the social sciences tophilosophy, political theories and doctrines, cultural ideas andmovements, and the influence of the natural sciences. Provides an authoritative overview of the main themes of socialthought. Long essays and entries give full coverage to each topic. Covers major currents of thought, philosophical and culturaltrends, and the individual social sciences from anthropology towelfare economics. New edition updates about 200 entries and includes new entries,suggestions for further reading, and a bibliography of all sourcescited within the text.

The Blackwell Dictionary of Western Philosophy is a concisereference to the whole history of western philosophy, from ancientGreece to the present day. Spans all the major branches of western philosophical inquiry,all of the key figures Explains the meaning and usage of each philosophical concept ina fresh and engaging style Each entry on philosophical terms concludes with anillustrative quotation from a significant philosopher, to enhancethe reader?s understanding Entries on terms and individual philosophers are fullycross-referenced Co-written by the editor of the popular volume The BlackwellCompanion to Philosophy (Second Edition, 2002)

This is the leading, full-scale comprehensive dictionary of philosophical terms and thinkers to appear in English in more than half a century. Written by a team of more than 550 experts and now widely translated, it contains approximately 5,000 entries ranging from short definitions to longer articles. It is designed to facilitate the understanding of philosophy at all levels and in all fields. Key features of this third edition include: * 500 new entries covering Eastern as well as Western philosophy, and covering individual countries such as China, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain * Increased coverage of such growing fields as ethics and philosophy of mind * More than 100 new intellectual portraits of leading contemporary thinkers * Wider coverage of Continental philosophy * Dozens of new technical concepts in cognitive science and other areas * Enhanced cross-referencing to add context and increase understanding * Expansions in both text and index to facilitate research and browsing

This dictioanry is the first to anatomize the philosophical tradition and to show the thoughts, paradoxes, errors and breakthroughs that underlie human speculation. Organized alphabetically by philosopher, and comprehensively indexed by thought and concept, it enables readers to discover who said what, and what was said by whom. More than three hundred philosophers are represented, from Aristotle to Zeno, among them Aquinas, De Beauvoir, Einstein and Sartre, and the quotations range from short, cryptic phrases to lengthy statements.

This dictionary is the ideal one volume philosophy reference source for general readers, students, and academics. It covers all the key concepts, doctrines and schools of thought from both the Anglo-American and Continental philosophical traditions. A unique feature is the powerful series of philosophical self-portraits by leading figures, including Sir Isaiah Berlin, Alasdair MacIntyre, W. V. O. Quine, Richard Rorty and John Searle.

Providing an illuminating and informed introduction to central philosophical issues, concepts and perspectives in the core fields of metaphysics, epistemology and philosophical logic, the Dictionary takes the most common terms and notions and clarifies what they mean to the philosopher and what sort of problems the philosopher finds associated with them. Thoroughly revised and updated, the bibliographies supply core reading lists, and each entry uses extensive cross referencing to related themes and concepts to provide a greater sense of access, control and comprehension. The Dictionary will also provide those working in proximate fields with an understanding of areas of overlapping interest, concepts of common applicability and the full range and diversity of philosophical analysis and insight.

The Dictionary of World Philosophy covers the diverse and challenging terminology, concepts, schools and traditions of the vast field of world philosophy. Providing an extremely comprehensive resource and an essential point of reference in a complex and expanding field of study the Dictionary covers all major subfields of the discipline. Key features: * Cross-references are used to highlight interconnections and the cross-cultural diffusion and adaptation of terms which has taken place over time * The user is led from specific terms to master entries which provide valuable historical and cultural context * Each master entry is followed by at least two suggestions for further reading on the subject, creating a substantial bibliography of world philosophy * References extend beyond philosophy to related areas such as cognitive science, computer science, language and physics Subdisciplines covered include:* aesthetics * ethics * sociopolitical philosophy * the philosophy of law * epistemology * logic * the philosophy of science * the philosophy of mind * the philosophy of culture and history * metaphysics * the philosophy of religion Entries are drawn from West Africa, Arabic, Chinese, Indian, Japanese, Jewish, Korean, Latin American, Maori and Native American philosophy including the important and so far largely neglected instance of Pre-Hispanic thought: Nahua philosophy.

A Heidegger Dictionary enables the student to read Heidegger's immensely rich and varied works with understanding, and assigns him to his rightful place in both contemporary philosophy and in the history of the subject.

Having only emerged in the past few decades, Feminist Philosophy is rapidly developing its own thrust in areas of particular importance to feminism-and women more generally-while also reevaluating and reshaping most other fields of philosophy, from ethics to logic and Marxism to environmentalism. It draws not only on feminist philosophers but criticizes, approves, or appropriates the work of the leading philosophers of all times. The introduction to this reference work provides a useful overview of the subject area and the chronology runs the gamut from Ancient Greek philosophers to contemporary feminist ones. The cross-referenced dictionary entries cover both the central figures and ideas from the historical tradition of philosophy, as well as ideas and theories from contemporary feminist philosophy, such as epistemology (the philosophy of science) and topics that have been introduced by the feminist movement itself, like abortion and sexuality. In addition to including entries on Aristotle, Plato, Descartes, Kant, Wollstonecraft, Beauvoir, and Daly, relevant aspects of other fields of philosophy, the major concepts, and prevailing interpretations and conjectures are also covered. A comprehensive bibliography allows for further reading.

The philosopher David Hume was born in Edinburgh, Scotland on April 26, 1711. Known for his re-thinking of causation, morality, and religion, Hume has left a lasting mark on history. James Madison, the "father" of the U.S. Constitution, drew heavily on Hume's writing, especially his "Idea of Perfect Commonwealth," which combated the belief at the time that a large country could not sustain a republican form of government. Hume's writing also influenced Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations and the philosophy of Immanuel Kant. The Historical Dictionary of Hume's Philosophy is the only Hume dictionary in existence. The book provides a substantial account of David Hume's life and the times in which he lived, and it provides an overview of his philosophical doctrines. This is done through a chronology, an introductory essay, a bibliography, and over a hundred cross-referenced dictionary entries covering key terms, as well as brief discussions of Hume's major works and of some of his most important predecessors, contemporaries, and successors.

This dictionary provides a comprehensive and cohesive expository account of about one hundred and fifty key concepts covering the entire range of Hobbes's thought, from philosophy, political theory and science, to theology, history and mathematics.

The thought of G.W.F. Hegel while he is one of the most influential philosophers of all time is difficult to interpret or encapsulate, in part due to his use of language and in part due to the large number of Hegelian successors who have expanded upon his work. For this reason, the Historical Dictionary of Hegelian Philosophy is an extraordinarily useful tool to understand the work and environment of Hegel himself, along with the range of his followers' thought.

This one-volume encyclopedia of logic introduces the central concepts of the field in a series of brief, non-technical, cross-referenced dictionary entries. The 352 alphabetically arranged entries give a clear, basic introduction to a very broad range of logical topics. Entries can be found on deductive systems, such as propositional logic, modal logic, deontic logic, temporal logic, set theory, many-valued logic, mereology, and paraconsistent logic. Similarly, there are entries on topics relating to those previously mentioned such as negation, conditionals, truth tables, and proofs. Historical periods and figures are also covered, including ancient logic, medieval logic, Buddhist logic, Aristotle, Ockham, Boole, Frege, Russell, Gödel, and Quine. There are even entries relating logic to other areas and topics, like biology, computers, ethics, gender, God, psychology, metaphysics, abstract entities, algorithms, the ad hominem fallacy, inductive logic, informal logic, the liar paradox, metalogic, philosophy of logic, and software for learning logic. In addition to the dictionary, there is a substantial chronology listing the main events in the history of logic, an introduction that sketches the central ideas of logic and how it has evolved into what it is today, and an extensive bibliography of related readings. This book is not only useful for specialists but also understandable to students and other beginners in the field.

Historical Dictionary of Schopenhauer's Philosophy presents a narrative that weaves the significant events of Arthur Schopenhauer's life within the greater fabric of his existence. The chronology lists these events, the introductory essay provides an overview of his philosophical thought and his belief that philosophy was the purpose of his life, and the more than 200 dictionary entries review the key ideas, concepts, doctrines, and philosophical figures related to his thought. A comprehensive bibliography provides a list of the most frequently cited German collections of Schopenhauer's work, noteworthy German primary source materials, English translations of Schopenhauer's books, and English-language collections of essays drawn from Schopenhauer's Oeuvre. This engaging work opens the door to a better understanding of Schopenhauer's philosophy for readers of all levels.

Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951) was undoubtedly one of the most important philosophers of the 20th century, and perhaps of any century. He was also a fascinating, charismatic, and irritating man. His philosophical ability was recognized almost immediately by Bertrand Russell, and during his lifetime his work influenced first logical positivism and then ordinary language philosophy. Since then it has also become central in post-analytical philosophical thought. Beyond the world of academic philosophy it has inspired playwrights, poets, novelists, architects, film-makers, and biographers. There remains, however, great disagreement about what exactly, if anything, his works mean. Historical Dictionary of Wittgenstein's Philosophy, therefore, is intended for anyone who wants to know more about the philosophy and the life of this enigmatic thinker. It is written to be accessible to a general audience, but follows the issues tackled and raised by Wittgenstein as far as is necessary to make clear their significance. The book contains an introductory overview of his life and work, a timeline of the major relevant events in and after his life, an extensive bibliography, and, above all, an A-Z of ideas, people, and places that have been involved in his philosophy and its reception. The dictionary is written with no particular agenda and includes entries on philosophers (and others) who influenced Wittgenstein, those he influenced in turn, and some of the main figures in contemporary Wittgenstein scholarship. There are biographical entries to fill out the information provided by the timeline, and perhaps most useful, there are detailed entries, with cross-references, on all the major concepts and arguments associated with Wittgenstein's work in his early, middle, and late periods. Suggestions for further reading are also included, as well as a guide to the literature on Wittgenstein and a bibliography broken down by subject area. It has the form of a reference work but could easily be used as a general introd

How do you keep up in the age of information when there's so much to know and so little time? Here's the ideal solution: a practical book of knowledge offering in-depth analysis, detailed interpretation, and penetrating insight into the key concepts, the most influential minds, and the major intellectual movements in history. A World of Ideas is an essential tool for anyone who wants to be fully informed and stay ahead of the curve in today's world. Now you can get to the bottom of the big bang theory; find out where Freud's ideas were coming from, and where Einstein's may ultimately take us; demystify surrealism and survivalism, nature and nurture, communism and capitalism. With hundreds of in-depth entries, drawn from a wide range of fields--including religion, philosophy, psychology, economics, politics, history, art, literature, and science--A World of Ideas enables you to turn immediately to the term in question for a comprehensive description of its history, meaning, and context. - Hundreds of entries, alphabetically arranged, with key words and concepts highlighted and cross-referenced - Reviewed and approved by an academic board of leading scholars - A unique emphasis on multicultural influences and the long-neglected impact of women on the history of ideas - An extensive bibliography of further readings and resources Here are the concepts that shaped civilization . . . the minds that made history . . . the thinkers, the thoughts, and the theories--everything you need to know to fully understand the world we live in. Concise and authoritative, meticulously researched and lucidly written, this invaluable resource is sure to become a standard reference for years to come.