How to Think Like a Philosopher

by Daniel Smith

From Socrates to Sartre, Avicenna to Angela Davis, this accessible guide will get you up to speed on the world’s greatest minds and help you to think like them.

You’ve heard of Plato, but do you understand his Theory of Forms ? What does René Descartes’ maxim ‘I think, therefore I am’ actually mean? And how is philosophy relevant to modern life?

Drawing on the thoughts and words of iconic philosophers from the ancient world right through to the present day , each chapter deals with a specific philosophical theory. Explore the conflict between free will and determinism , the political concept of Machiavellianism , the difference between metaphysics and epistemology, and what dialectics actually is in this accessibly-written guide to the smartest minds in history.

Genres: Philosophy

Hardcover

Published February 18, 2021

Reviews

[Joshua Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great short insight into a lot of the philosophical and ethical theories I loved learning at sixth form. The book doesn't go too in depth into each principle which keeps it light and easy enough to read. I particularly enjoyed the ethics chapter and the overviews of Plato's analogy of the cave and theory of the World of Forms. Great stuff that scratched an itch on my brain that's been wanting to revist philosophy!

[Dominique Dare · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think the book‘s title is a bit of a misnomer. It’s less about how to think like a philosopher and more what philosophers think about.

That said, it’s interesting as very small samples of numerous philosophical arguments. You could do worse than starting here - but there are so many chapters, it’s hard to remember it all. After reading it, if I ever get interested about a philosophical argument, I’d leaf through the chapter at least.

[Anand · Rating 3 out of 5]

probably the first ever book that I purchased myself with my own money, and that show how much i was interested in philosophy and yes indeed it did satisfied my hunger of philosophy that time and make enter in the world of philosophy and i don't know how much I understand or take from it but i sure learned a lot from it and i would like to revisit this book again in future so i would have different experience from my teenage self reading it.

[Roséanne Maharjan · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is interesting to read about the history of philosophy but I would say this book goes kinda back and forth so I find it difficult to track its content.

Good book but it feels like hard to get the flow reading the philosophy.

[Abi Ghifari · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is alright, in a sense that it introduces most concepts, history, and development of various branches of philosophy. But, I argue that the title is a misnomer, since the books does not really tell or teach you anything about how to think like a philosopher. Maybe "A Little History of Philosophy" or "The Essence of Philosophy" could be a more appropriate title, although might not be as impactful. However, this book is still an enjoyable read and I really appreciate the effort by the author to divide chapters into sub-chapters that are much more manageable to read, which also makes it easy to re-read and go back into.

[Queoni · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exceptional summary of interesting concepts and conclusions. Very informative and thorough for the few pages it consists of

[Drew Wright · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good introduction to Philosophical schools of thought.