Looking to get "into" philosophy...

[Jimellow]

I am currently reading The Last Season by Eric Blehm. It tells the tale of a backwoods ranger in the Sierra Nevada wilderness who goes missing. The ranger, Randy Morgenson, read the works of various philosophers, and I am intrigued and interested in checking out a few myself.

Intro to Philosophy class aside, I have not had much exposure to philosophy, and due to me not being interested in the subject matter at the time, I would consider myself to have no familiarity with philosophy or the various philosophers of the past.

Initially, I am looking for a book that overviews the various philosophers and their philosophies. Ideally it isn't too deep, but also provides enough information that will allow me to specialize and focus on an aspect or type of philosophy that interests me most. Later, I hope to specialize and potentially become more familiar with a single philosopher; later still, adding multiple philosophers to my knowledge base.

As a secondary question, I am curious about how one approaches reading philosophy. Does one read the original works of Plato, for instance, or do they read translations that are more readable and approachable by a non-scholar in the field?

I would say I am more interested in the notions and ideas of a given philosopher than I am the exact words he wrote, however I do realize that the translation process also risks eliminating key components of an author's original work.

I find philosophy to be a very interesting, even fascinating, but difficult, subject, and I would like to make an effort at increasing my understanding, and exposure to the various philosophies. I expect it to be an enjoyable challenge.

I welcome any recommendations, comments, or advice regarding either of my questions and/or philosophical readings in general.

EDIT: After a quick Amazon search, the book The Great Philosophers : An Introduction to Western Philosophy by Bryan Magee (LINK) seems like it might be worth a read. If anyone is familiar with this particular book, I'd appreciate feedback regarding it as well.

[Kostya]

Personally, I think that the most readable, entertaining and comprehensive introduction to Western philosophy is 'A History of Western Philosophy' by Betrand Russell, probably the greatest philosopher of the twentieth century himself.

Bryan Magee is not bad though.

It also depends on what you take philosophy to be. Are you interested in matters of logic and the like? Or are you more interested in 'Why are we here?' kind of philosophy.

[CSflim]

I'll Second Bertrand Russell's History of Western Philosophy.

Also, there is a Philosophy board on the site here, so you might want to have a look in there.

[Jimellow]

Originally Posted by Kostya

Personally, I think that the most readable, entertaining and comprehensive introduction to Western philosophy is 'A History of Western Philosophy' by Betrand Russell, probably the greatest philosopher of the twentieth century himself.

Bryan Magee is not bad though.

It also depends on what you take philosophy to be. Are you interested in matters of logic and the like? Or are you more interested in 'Why are we here?' kind of philosophy.

Due to my limited exposure to either, I am honestly unsure. If I had to pick one, I would tend to favor the 'Why are we here' option, however ideally I will be exposed to both through reading.

After "Looking inside" Magee's book, it seems to feature interviews with those in the field of philosophy, regarding various philosophers. This seems interesting, but also a book I may enjoy reading more as an aside, or follow-up than an initial introduction.

I also came across a Story of Philosophy by Will Durant, that I enjoyed based on the few pages made accessible by Amazon.

I think I will order, and read, all three, including Bertrand Russel's work. I also checked that out, and found it to be very readable.

I was reluctant to reply so soon, as that often seems to provide closure for threads, but I'd definitely be interested in further replies regarding this topic.

[Mondak]

How about something like:

Philosophy: Who Needs It? by Ayn Rand

I liked it. It contains an introduction to Objectivist Philosophy as well as Rand's take on other philosophies / philosophers.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/045...Fencoding=UTF8

[Nimetic]

Ditto that.

I've been listening to philosophy CDs in the car during my commutes. The introductory CDs were informative but a little too light for me. The narrator kept describing sources rather than quoting them.

The more stimulating material was a couple of MIT lectures that I got off P2P networks.

[Jimellow]

Originally Posted by Nimetic

Ditto that.

I've been listening to philosophy CDs in the car during my commutes. The introductory CDs were informative but a little too light for me. The narrator kept describing sources rather than quoting them.

The more stimulating material was a couple of MIT lectures that I got off P2P networks.

Interesting... Do you have any recommendations or titles of recommended CDs? The MIT lectures are also intriguing, and I'd certainly be interested in checking them out as well.

As for the books.. They arrived a few days ago. I just started Will Durant's The Story of Philosophy and am enjoying it. I'm only 20-30 pages into it, and it is not quick reading, but it's very rewarding and requires that the reader focus on the material at hand. I really look forward to the time I am able to put aside to read the book, as I find it very enlightening.

[Ace_O_Spades]

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/039...024940?ie=UTF8

The Dream of Reason: A History of Philosophy from the Greeks to the Renaissance

This was the textbook for our intro to philosophy class, but it could easily have been a book I picked up for my own collection

I highly recommend it. It was an easy and fun read.

[MahlerIsGod]

I am not a particular fan or either Rand or Russell (though I find him to be quite witty). Reading a history of philosophy by a philosopher could be a little constraining and could possibly not reflect all points of view. I would suggest the above suggestion or even one of my favorite books:
The Passion Of The Western Mind by Richard Tarnas
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/034...777428?ie=UTF8
I found it to be a wonderful and concise history and not just because my master, Joseph Campbell, has a ringing endorsement on the cover. I highly recommend this book.

[Kostya]

Reading a history of philosophy by a philosopher could be a little constraining and could possibly not reflect all points of view.

Isn't this true of any author?

I am not a particular fan or either Rand or Russell

Seeing as you consider Joseph Cambell to be your master, I'm not surprised.

[shakran]

Try Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintainence by Pirsig. Good way to get into philosophy, and then read the sequel, Lila, which goes much more in depth.