Questions that Matter: An Invitation to Philosophy

by Miller, Ed.; Jensen, Jon

• ISBN13: 9780073386560
• ISBN10: 0073386561
• Edition: 6th
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-03-10
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Education

Summary

This classic text-reader introduces readers to the fundamental, timeless, and pressing questions of philosophy. The authors make the issues accessible for students with primary source readings incorporated into clearly written text material and an extensive pedagogical program that includes running summaries, high-interest boxes, biographies, epigrams, a philosophical dictionary. The new edition has been streamlined and revised to include a new chapter on Democracy, which expands the coverage of the ever-evolving realm of social and political philosophy.

Table of Contents

The Story as a Tool of Ethics

Thinking About Values The Best of Times, the Worst of Times? Good and Evil Is Morality Hardwired?

Values, Morals and Ethics Debating Moral Issues: The Role of Religion, the Law, Logic, Emotions, and Story-Telling Martha Nussbaum

Stories, Ethics, and Emotions Primary Reading: Martha Nussbaum,Love's Knowledge Primary Reading

The Lucifer Effect Narrative:Smoke Signals Narrative:Big Fish Narrative:East of Eden

Learning Moral Lessons from Stories Didactic Stories The New Interest in Stories Across the Professions

The Value of Stories in World Cultures Stories of Values Across the Ages Primary Reading: Plato

The Republic Primary Reading: Aristotle,Poetics Primary Reading: Umberto Eco

The Name of the Rose Primary Reading: Raymond Chandler

The Simple Art of Murder Narrative:Medea Narrative

The Sorrows of Young Werther Narrative

The Education on Mingo Narrative:Pulp Fiction

What Should I Do? Theories of Conduct

Ethical Relativism How to Deal with Moral Differences

The Lessons of Anthropology Refuting Ethical Relativism James Rachels and Soft Universalism Ethical Relativism and Multiculturalism Primary Reading

Anthropology and the Abnormal Primary Reading

Dwellers and Spirits: The Problem with Moral Absolutes Primary Reading

Paradox and Dream Narrative:The Poisonwood Bible Narrative

Possessing the Secret of Joy Narrative:Do the Right Thing

Myself or Others?

Psychological Egoism: From Virginia Tech to 9/11

Psychological Egoism: From Glaucon to Hobbes Shortcomings to Psychological Egoism Ethical Egoism and Its Critics Being Selfless: Levinas's Ideal Altruism vs. Singer's Reciprocal Altruism Selfish Genes, or Fellow-Feeling?

Dawkins, Midgley, Hume and de Waal Primary Reading: Plato,The Republic Primary Reading

The Rings of Tolkien and Plato: Lessons in Power, Choice, and Morality Primary Reading

Leviathan Primary Reading

The Ethics of Emergencies Primary Reading

Primates and Philosophers: How Morality Evolved Narrative:Friendsepisode: "The One Where Phoebe Hates PBS" Narrative:Return to Paradise Narrative

Atlas Shrugged Narrative:The Lord of the Rings

Using Your Reason, Part 1: Utilitarianism Jeremy Bentham and the Hedonistic Calculus Advantages and Problems of Sheer Numbers: From Animal Welfare to the Question of Torture

Higher and Lower Pleasures Mill's Harm Principle Act and Rule Utilitarianism Primary Reading

Of the Principle of Utility Primary Reading

Utilitarianism Primary Reading: Peter Singer

A Convenient Truth Narrative

The Blacksmith and the Baker Narrative

The Brothers Karamazov Narrative

The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas Narrative

Extreme Measures Narrative:Runaway Jury

Using Your Reason, Part 2: Kant's Deontology Consequences Don't Count

Having a Good Will Does

The Categorical Imperative Rational Beings Are Ends in Themselves Beings Who Are Things

The Kingdom of Ends Primary Reading

Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals Primary Reading

The Metaphysics of Morals Narrative:High Noon Narrative:3:10 to Yuma Narrative:Match Point

Personhood, Rights, and Justice What Is a Human Being?

The Expansion of the Concept "Human" Personhood: The Key to Rights Science and

Introduction

The Nature Of Philosophy

What Is Philosophy?

The Word Itself

The Fields of Philosophy

A Rational, Critical Enterprise Differing Conceptions

A Working Definition Philosophy, Religion, and Science Of Beards and Bread

Where do we Begin?

Professor Miller’s Four Principles

in Review Readings from: Diogenes Laertius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers Plato, Apology Whitehead, Process and Reality

Moore, Principia Ethica Camus

""The Myth of Sisyphus""

Husserl, Ideas James, ""The Present

Introduction to the Philosophical Journey: Where Are We Going and How Will We Get There?

Overview of the Journey

Socrates and the Search for Wisdom From Plato

Apology From Plato, Republic

Plato's Allegory of the Cave From Plato, Republic

Argument and Evidence: How Do I Decide What to Believe?

The Search for Knowledge

Overview of the Problem of Knowledge

Skepticism From

Meditations on First Philosophy From

Meditations on First Philosophy

Rationalism From

Meditations on First Philosophy

Empiricism From

An Essay concerning Human Understanding From

A Treatise concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge From

An Enquiry concerning Human Understanding From

An Enquiry concerning Human Understanding From

An Enquiry concerning Human Understanding From

An Enquiry concerning Human Understanding From

A Treatise of Human Nature

Kantian Constructivism From Immanuel Kant

Critique of Pure Reason From

Critique of Pure Reason

Epistemological Relativism From

Beyond Good and Evil

Rethinking the Western Tradition: Pragmatism From

Pragmatism's Conception of Truth

Rethinking the Western Tradition: Feminist Epistemology From

Women

Knowledge

and Reality

The Search for Ultimate Reality

Overview of Metaphysics

Overview: The Mind-Body Problem From

Tantalus

Dualism From

Discourse on the Method From

Meditations on First Philosophy From

Meditations on First Philosophy

Physicalism From

Persons and Their World

Functionalism and Artificial Intelligence From

The Mind-Body Problem From

Why People Think Computers Can't

Overview: Freedom and Determinism

Hard Determinism From

Walden Two From

Erewhon From

The Leopold and

Libertarianism From

Metaphysics From

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