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Story of Philosophy Paperback – July 1, 2001

4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 168 ratings

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Now updated and with a fresh new look, the highly successful The Story of Philosophy traces more than 2,500 years of Western philosophy, from Plato and Aristotle in ancient Greece to Saint Augustine and medieval philosophy, the golden century of German philosophy, Bertrand Russell and Albert Camus of the modern era, and much more. World-renowned philosopher and professor Bryan Magee expertly guides your exploration through the major philosophical issues, the important questions, and the key contributions of the great philosophers in this illustrated, accessible guide.

Discover the great thinkers in their historical contexts and learn the influences that shaped their lives and work. In The Story of Philosophy, Revised and Updated, each philosophical movement includes profiles of key philosophers and their important works, historical contexts and influences, important quotes, and other related people and ideas. Full-color photographs, artworks, and illustrations illuminate every page.

The Story of Philosophy, Revised and Updated gives you the information you need to think about life's greatest questions, opening up the world of philosophical ideas in a way that can be easily understood by students and by anyone fascinated by the ways we form our social, political, and ethical ideas.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"This gloriously illustrated and accessible book enables readers to embark on an adventure in philosophy.Young adults will find that the often closed doors of philosophy are now open and inviting." — School Library Journal

"Lavishly illustrated." — Library Journal

About the Author

Bryan Magee is a professor, television host and the author of several books, including The Philosophy of Schopenhauer and Confessions of a Philosopher.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ DK; First Edition (July 1, 2001)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 240 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 078947994X
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0789479945
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.6 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.25 x 0.63 x 9.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 168 ratings

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Bryan Magee
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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
168 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book provides a good introduction to philosophy with an overview of each philosopher's life and contributions. They find it easy to read, well-written, and visually appealing with interesting illustrations and sidebars throughout. The writing style is clear and easy to understand, without any big, difficult words. Overall, customers describe the book as visually appealing and entertaining.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

20 customers mention "Information quality"20 positive0 negative

Customers find the book provides an informative overview of philosophy. They appreciate the summary of each philosopher's personal life and contributions to philosophy. The book begins with ancient Greek philosophers and runs through modern day, providing a comprehensive overview. Readers find the flow of history engaging and easy to read, with many sidebars and digressions that consider various aspects of the subject.

"...philosophers, and runs to modern day, providing a summarization of each philosopher's personal life, contributions to philosophical thought,..." Read more

"The Story of Philosophy is a facinating and highly informative introduction to the history of western philosophy...." Read more

"...writing style is very clear and he makes extremely interesting points about the different philosophers and about philosophy in general...." Read more

"...I bought it for a class I was taking, and it helped alot,! Very informative great book. Easy to read, no big hard words. I like this book!" Read more

15 customers mention "Readability"15 positive0 negative

Customers find the book easy to read and engaging. It's a recommended textbook for many colleges. The author is knowledgeable and the book is well-written.

"...It is a book that would be fun to read either from start to finish or just skipping around. It is written in a way..." Read more

"...This s great book to read if you just want an overview of the history of philosophy as well as brief explanations of most of the schools of thought...." Read more

"This book is great,! I bought it for a class I was taking, and it helped alot,! Very informative great book. Easy to read, no big hard words...." Read more

"This is an excellent, simple history of philosophy for people (like me) who have little knowledge of the subject and want a clear, easy to remember..." Read more

11 customers mention "Visual quality"11 positive0 negative

Customers find the book visually appealing with interesting illustrations and sidebars. They find it beautifully done, entertaining, and colorful with lots of pictures. The type is easy to read.

"...The book is visually appealing with many photographs and illustrations, along with sidebars on nearly every page introducing the reader to..." Read more

"...-Kindersley (DK) books I've seen - is extremely well done, a beautiful book that invites browsing." Read more

"...usually four to eight pages long apiece, with interesting illustrations and sidebars, devoted to each important philosopher or philosophic..." Read more

"At first sight, this book may appear as a colorful, photo-packed elementary book on philosophy but it is much more...." Read more

8 customers mention "Writing style"8 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the clear writing style and interesting points in the book. They find it readable with no big, hard words. The book is illustrated well and has no writing or obvious marks.

"...His writing style is very clear and he makes extremely interesting points about the different philosophers and about philosophy in general...." Read more

"...Very informative great book. Easy to read, no big hard words. I like this book!" Read more

"...It's got great illustrations, and lots of pictures. The type is easy to read...." Read more

"Received in time for class, book had no writing or obvious marks so looked good too (so was as described)!..." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on February 9, 2024
    I've been disappointed with most books of this kind, but not with this one. The book begins with the ancient Greek philosophers, and runs to modern day, providing a summarization of each philosopher's personal life, contributions to philosophical thought, influences, etc., providing just the right amount of information without losing the reader in the weeds. I'm learning a lot from this book.
  • Reviewed in the United States on October 27, 2010
    The Story of Philosophy is a facinating and highly informative introduction to the history of western philosophy.
    It is a book that would be fun to read either from start to finish or just skipping around. It is written in a way
    that is understandable to readers new to the subject, while not being dumbed down. The book is visually appealing with many
    photographs and illustrations, along with sidebars on nearly every page introducing the reader to subjects relating to the main text. My only complaint is that I think the title should be "The Story of Western Philosophy", because it only lightly covers eastern and arabic philosophy, which is rather odd considering that my copy promonently features the Buddha on the cover. However, it does provide a helpful "For further reading" section that includes works on those subjects. Altogether, this is an excellent book that I am glad to add to my library. I also recommend as a good companion to this book DK's "World Religions" by John Bowker.
    4 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on October 8, 2011
    This is a very readable although fairly short illustrated history of philosophy, by an extremely knowledgeable author. This s great book to read if you just want an overview of the history of philosophy as well as brief explanations of most of the schools of thought. Magee has written many works on philosophy and has created a couple of BBC series on philosophy. His writing style is very clear and he makes extremely interesting points about the different philosophers and about philosophy in general. There are many digressions and sidebars throughout the book that consider various philosphical points in a very brief manner (for example, "Can the existence of God be proved?", "The power of ideas", and "The Einsteinian revolution"). The book itself - like most Dorling-Kindersley (DK) books I've seen - is extremely well done, a beautiful book that invites browsing.
    3 people found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on December 7, 2012
    This book is great,! I bought it for a class I was taking, and it helped alot,! Very informative great book. Easy to read, no big hard words. I like this book!
  • Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2014
    This is an excellent, simple history of philosophy for people (like me) who have little knowledge of the subject and want a clear, easy to remember overview. The format is forty or so chapters, usually four to eight pages long apiece, with interesting illustrations and sidebars, devoted to each important philosopher or philosophic movement from the ancient Greeks to the twentieth century.

    I have read other books that cover the same ground as this one, but they weren't as clear and were perhaps too technical and detailed for a non-philosopher like me. At any rate, I never retained much of what I read on philosophy until I found this book.
    4 people found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on October 17, 2004
    At first sight, this book may appear as a colorful, photo-packed elementary book on philosophy but it is much more. Bryan Magee elegantly and, most important, fairly presents the philosophers, their beliefs, their influence, and the 'eternal' questions they left us.

    Above the excellent summarization and presentation, the great feature of the book is he clearly traces the development of ideas through generations of philosophers. Even for someone like me, who has taken philosophy courses at University level, this book is a great way to get a quick overview. The pictures and side boxes also add the historical context to the formation of the philosophers' ideas.
    11 people found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on February 4, 2013
    My son liked it but didn't say much more about it. He's a philosophy buff and learned some stuff from it, though.
  • Amazon Customer
    Reviewed in the United States on February 21, 2016
    I am taking a class in school, and had checked this book out at the library. I liked it so much, I kept checking it out. So I decided to buy it, which I rarely do. It's got great illustrations, and lots of pictures. The type is easy to read. Most importantly, it seems to be a complete history of the evolution of philosophy.

Top reviews from other countries

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  • sauns
    5.0 out of 5 stars The Best!
    Reviewed in Canada on January 1, 2025
    Everyone should read this book!
  • Ramesh Kandadai
    5.0 out of 5 stars Primer
    Reviewed in India on February 3, 2019
    Excellent primer for those starting out to learn philosophy and its history through the zges
  • Paolo
    5.0 out of 5 stars Soddisfatto
    Reviewed in Italy on April 26, 2017
    Edizione molto curata, bella impaginazione e ben fatto, contenuti davvero molto interessanti e utili per approfondire la conoscenza dell'inglese, collana editoriale che non delude mai le aspettative del lettore, spedizione rapidissima e imballaggio buono, davvero molto soddisfatto.
  • onur
    4.0 out of 5 stars great book, not so great delivery
    Reviewed in Australia on March 13, 2019
    It is a great book, briefly goes through the time and highlights all important concepts. I recommend everyone to have one in their library. It could also be a great gift.

    However the book itself came a little damaged, probably because it came all the way from the US. I don't know if it was my bad luck or not but I am not happy with it, hence the 4 stars.
  • mondayman
    5.0 out of 5 stars Masterly, lucid and concise essays on tough topics
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 3, 2011
    Bryan Magee has previously produced some wonderfully clear explanations of the work of important philosophers such as Schopenhauer and Karl Popper, and has brought off the extraordinarily difficult task of presenting philosophy in two BBC television series. He is a populariser only in the sense that he remains clear: he does not skimp on anything. However, I was worried when I saw that he had brought out a book of about 40 short essays on major philosophers - from the Greeks onwards - in the Dorling Kindersley format. The lavish illustration would not leave enough room for a serious text, I thought. Happily I was wrong. For the lay reader, there is illumination in every essay, not only about the philosopher in question, but about the links between his thought and that of others. The short box-lists of key works by each thinker are almost worth the price of the book by themselves.