This book is a good companion book if you are puzzling through Aristotle's original texts and need help figuring out what he is saying. But for the beginner who just wants Aristotle's ideas and does not want to read Aristotle's original texts, this book is not good.
Consider this example: "In the notion of the possible two moments are included. The possible must be something that involves no impossible consequence; but also it must be something whose contrary is not necessarily false. It is thus not the contradictory of the impossible; it is that which is neither impossible nor necessary, and in view of the latter characteristic 'A may be B' is convertible with 'A may not be B'."
Note that Ross assumes that the reader knows the meaning of the technical terms "contrary", "contradictory", "moments", "convertible". Thus, no explanation is given.
For the layman with no philosophical training, Aristotle For Everybody is an easy to understand, if oversimplified, summary of Aristotle's ideas. I have also heard good things about Aristotle: The Desire To Understand, but I haven't read it.
Ross's book seems to be more of a key to the original texts, to be read as a supplement to the original texts.
It may be that this chapter on Logic which I am currently reading is hard for the beginner to understand, and that later chapters are more intelligible. The Introduction does say that "the general reader...will be well advised not to read the book straight through, nor to start at the beginning; the easiest approach would be through the chapters on ethics and politics and then on philosophy of nature."
ISBN-13: 978-0415328579
ISBN-10: 0415328578
Why is ISBN important? ISBN 
Scan an ISBN with your phone
Use the Amazon App to scan ISBNs and compare prices.
This bar-code number lets you verify that you're getting exactly the right version or edition of a book. The 13-digit and 10-digit formats both work.
Use the Amazon App to scan ISBNs and compare prices.
Loading your book clubs
There was a problem loading your book clubs. Please try again.
Not in a club? Learn more
Join or create book clubs
Choose books together
Track your books
Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free.
Discover the latest buzz-worthy books, from mysteries and romance to humor and nonfiction. Explore more
Frequently bought together
- +
Total price:
To see our price, add these items to your cart.
Choose items to buy together.
Products related to this item
Page 1 of 1Start overPage 1 of 1
Products related to this item
Page 1 of 1Start overPage 1 of 1
