An Introduction to Modern European Philosophy

by Jenny Teichman (Editor), Graham White

An Introduction to Modern European Philosophy, contains scholarly but accessible essays by nine British academics on Hegel, Schopenhauer, Kierkegaard, Marx, Nietzsche, Husserl, Heidegger, Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Maritain, Hannah Arendt, Habermas, Foucault, and the 'Events' of 1968. Written for English-speaking readers, it describes the varied traditions within 19th- and 20th-century European philosophy, reflecting the dynamism and plurality within the European tradition and presenting opposing points of view. It deals with both French and German philosophers, plus Kierkegaard, and is not confined to any one school of thought. It has been purged of jargon but contains a glossary of important technical terms. There is a bibliography of further reading and website information at the end of each chapter.

Genres: Philosophy

240 pages, Paperback

First published November 15, 1995

Reviews

[Joe Stockley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great breakdown and introduction to modern philosophy, mostly well written, a few chapters are not introductory but require pre-established knowledge. As philosophy goes, it was very digestible.

[TR · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mostly I prefer to read philosophers in their own words, but in the cases of most of the ones profiled in this book I knew that most of their ideas were false, since some of their most basic assumptions were wrong. I read this just to fill in some gaps in my understanding of recent intellectual history. It's useful for getting the basics of postmodern 'philosophy'.

Students of Nietzsche and Heidegger will find the sections on them unsatisfactory. There are also some major figures missing: Bataille, Kojeve, Derrida. It doesn't make sense to omit them but include someone like de Beauvoir.