First Philosophy: Fundamental Problems and Readings in Philosophy [Paperback]

Andrew Bailey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2002

This introductory anthology brings together forty-eight readings on eight topics central to philosophy. Mindful of the intrinsic difficulty of much of the material, the editor has provided comprehensive introductions both to the eight topics and to each individual selection. By providing a detailed discussion of the historical and intellectual background to each piece, he aims to enable readers to approach the material without unnecessary barriers to understanding. The topics—from "Does God exist?" to "Do we have free will?" and "What is justice?"—have been chosen with a view both to their philosophical importance and to their interest to the first-year student. In an introductory chapter, the editor provides a brief introduction to the nature of philosophical enquiry, to the nature of argument, and to the process of reading and writing within the academic discipline of philosophy.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"I would recommend First Philosophy to anyone teaching an introductory philosophy course." (Paul Churchland )

"First Philosophy has a good selection of articles for my purposes, and the accompanying introductory background material is absolutely brilliant." (Jillian Scott McIntosh )

"This is an extremely well-done philosophy text. The readings are well chosen, and each is accompanied by an unusually thorough introductory discussion. These introductions do an excellent job of putting the readings themselves in context, and of helping students to see the philosophical importance of each selection. This text should become a standard in introductory philosophy classes." (Patricia Blanchette )

"The main difference between other anthologies and First Philosophy is Bailey's supplementary material, which is excellent. The biographical materials are very interesting.... The explicative material is likewise excellent: clear, highly relevant, useful, easily understood.... The wonderful supplementary material makes this a very good text indeed, which should, I think, gain a large share of the market." (Jeff Foss )

"The editor has selected challenging readings for first-year students that cover a broad range of topics.... The introductions are fabulous;...students find them very helpful.... Overall, First Philosophy is an excellent anthology for first-year students; the text has made my job significantly easier." (Jennifer M. Phillips )

From the Author

Andrew Bailey, who obtained degrees from the University of Oxford and the University of Calgary, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Guelph. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 966 pages
• Publisher: Broadview Press; 1 edition (August 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1551113600
• ISBN-13: 978-1551113609
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #452,099 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb first-year text, July 7, 2011

By 

W J Jordan (Waterloo, Ontario, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: First Philosophy, second edition: Fundamental Problems and Readings in Philosophy (Paperback)

I was looking for a lightly edited book of important philosophical works for my section of Introduction to Philosophy. My section had a lot of science, math, and engineering students in it, and my pedagogical goal was to get these students involved in doing philosophy. I worked through chapters 3, 5, and then 4 over a 12-week (36-hour) course.

The introductory material is very good. It gives some description of the philosophers as people, tries to situate their work in the broader context of the area of philosophy at hand, and gives a brief overview of the structure and key point of the reading. The questions for reflection will take the students deeper into the material. I found these invaluable as I created lectures and sought discussion points.

For my purposes this book a number of small advantages. It is, in many ways, just another introductory anthology. However, works that are excerpted are marked clearly, so there is no illusion that one is reading the whole piece if it has been abridged. Feminist or situated epistemology is integrated within relevant topics, rather than being relegated to a late chapter as a curiosity. The book is inexpensive compared to other comparable anthologies, and the paper and binding reflect that--but it was less expensive than putting together a course package, so it is of great value if you want to put a good book of introductory readings into your students' hands. Finally, it is from a Canadian press, and I thought that was fitting for use at a Canadian university.

I will not hesitate to use the same text if I have the opportunity to teach an introductory metaphysics and epistemology course again.