3. Life satisfaction
Daniel M. Haybron
in Happiness: A Very Short Introduction
Can we use life satisfaction as a measure of happiness? ‘Life satisfaction’ looks at the idea that we measure our own happiness levels using subjective standards. This view has appeal as it ...
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1. Life and character
A. C. Grayling
in Wittgenstein: A Very Short Introduction
Ludwig Wittgenstein was a philosopher but he is famous beyond the boundaries of philosophy. Like philosophy itself, he could be difficult and profound. Many contemporary philosophers think ...
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8. Transcendental philosophy
Roger Scruton
in Kant: A Very Short Introduction
Kant's immediate successors regarded Kant as having changed the course of philosophy. However, even during his lifetime, the intellectual world was torn by controversy over the meaning of ...
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Curtain raiser
Matthew Bevis
in Comedy: A Very Short Introduction
What does comedy mean? In Plato's Philebus, Socrates speaks of comedy ‘not only on the stage, but on the greater stage of human life; and so in endless other cases’. This isn't very helpful ...
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7. The meaning of life
Stephen Law
in Humanism: A Very Short Introduction
Can we question the meaning of life without believing in God? ‘The meaning of life’ questions what a ‘meaningful life’ can be. It is difficult to provide a complete philosophical ...
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8. Humanist ceremonies
Stephen Law
in Humanism: A Very Short Introduction
Humanists like to have ceremonies as much as religious people. Ceremonies do not have to be religious or supernatural. People who engage in ritualistic activity need not assume that such ...
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Home: A Very Short Introduction
Michael Allen Fox
Thoughts and feelings about home traditionally provided people of all cultures with a firm sense of where they belonged, and why. But the world is rapidly changing: populations are ...
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1. The many faces of home
Michael Allen Fox
in Home: A Very Short Introduction
Homes are central to human life, but defining what home is can be problematic. Home is a fundamental and universal concept, yet it has multiple associated and layered meanings for different ...
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3. Do you know what I mean?
Michael Beaney
in Analytic Philosophy: A Very Short introduction
From the very origins of philosophy, philosophers have been especially conscious of the inadequacies and limitations of language. But they have disagreed on whether this reflects a ...
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9. Endangered languages
John C. Maher
in Multilingualism: A Very Short Introduction
By the end of the 21st century, half the languages spoken in the world today may have disappeared. Fewer than 10,000 people speak 52 per cent of languages. Many language communities have ...
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3. Defending knowledge
Duncan Pritchard
in Scepticism: A Very Short Introduction
‘Defending knowledge’ considers some of the different philosophical responses to the problem of radical scepticism. It begins with the natural response to a philosophical puzzle: to insist ...
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Wittgenstein: A Very Short Introduction
A. C. Grayling
Wittgenstein: A Very Short Introduction explains the nature and impact of Wittgenstein's views in terms of twentieth-century analytical philosophy and describes both his early ...
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5. Russell's influence
A. C. Grayling
in Russell: A Very Short Introduction
‘Russell's influence’ describes the impact of Bertrand Russell on mainstream philosophy in the English language as it has been practised since the years between the two world wars, logic, ...
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5. Différance
Simon Glendinning
in Derrida: A Very Short Introduction
‘Différance’ shows that, for Derrida, the task of the subject once called ‘philosophy’ is no longer achieving superlative conceptual clarity by rendering what we mean perfectly transparent ...
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3. The transcendental deduction
Roger Scruton
in Kant: A Very Short Introduction
Kant asks: how is synthetic a priori knowledge possible? His answer to this question contains two parts, one of which is subjective and the other objective. ‘The transcendental deduction’ ...
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5. The categorical imperative
Roger Scruton
in Kant: A Very Short Introduction
The Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals which preceded the Critique provides a summary of Kant's moral viewpoint. Both works look at ‘ practical reason’. ‘ The categorical ...
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Happiness: A Very Short Introduction
Daniel M. Haybron
Happiness: A Very Short Introduction considers the true nature of happiness and the current thinking on the subject, from psychology to philosophy. What is happiness? Is it ...
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8. A good life
Daniel M. Haybron
in Happiness: A Very Short Introduction
What do we mean by a good life? A good life must come to an end. ‘A good life’ looks at what could be said to constitute such a life. There are two fundamental parts: whether your life is ...
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4. Measuring happiness
Daniel M. Haybron
in Happiness: A Very Short Introduction
Can happiness be measured or is it too elusive and complex to measure? ‘Measuring happiness’ looks at the issues associated with trying to measure happiness. Measures of happiness can be ...
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4. Plotting mischief
Matthew Bevis
in Comedy: A Very Short Introduction
Good comedy has a knack of good timing and storytelling. It is the art of surprise, but established routine is what makes surprise possible. Jokes work because we expect the result, and our ...
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