[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-detail-40617-en":3,"doc-seo-40617-105":30,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":90},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",{"doc_id":7,"user_id":8,"nickname":9,"user_avatar":10,"doc_module":4,"category_id":11,"category_name":12,"doc_title":13,"doc_description":14,"doc_content":15,"file_id":16,"file_url":17,"file_type":18,"file_size":19,"view_count":20,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":21,"is_downloadable":21,"audit_status":21,"page_count":22,"language":23,"language_code":24,"site_id":25,"html_lang":24,"table_of_contents":26,"faqs":27,"seo_title":13,"seo_description":14,"update_tm":28,"read_time":29},40617,1374391975076,"Riley","https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/avatar/14000253ca4ec9f6853?x-image-process=image/resize,m_fixed,w_180,h_180&k=1783305029341752051",2,"Literature","Philosophy The Basics Fourth edition","Philosophy: The Basics presents a clear, beginner-friendly introduction to key problems in philosophy, guiding readers through core questions and the limits of philosophical inquiry. The contents move from philosophy’s history, why study philosophy, and how to use the book, then explore major debates on God (design, fine-tuning, first cause, ontological arguments, evil, free will, miracles, Pascal’s wager, faith, and death). It also addresses ethical theory and meta-ethics, comparing duty-based views, Christian ethics, Kantian ethics, consequentialism, utilitarianism, virtue theory, and objections.","PHILOSOPHY  \nTHE BASICS  \n‘Philosophy: The Basics deservedly remains the most recommended introduction to philosophy on the market. Warburton is patient, accurate and, above all, clear.  \nThere is no better short introduction to philosophy.’Stephen Law, Heythrop College, University of London  \n‘Introductory philosophy can be a lot like learning to ride a bike: intriguing but laced with bumps, bruises, and frustrations. Warburton retains the intrigue but softens the bumps, bruises, and frustrations. And students have a unique opportunity to learn how to ride!’  \nPaul K. Moser, Loyola University of Chicago  \n‘Simply and lucidly, does exactly what it says on the cover. An excellent way into the basics of philosophy, this book doesn’t just instruct but tries to set the reader thinking as well.’  \nEdward Craig, University of Cambridge  \n‘Nigel Warburton offers an excellent guide to the practice of philosophical thinking aimed squarely at the newcomer.’  \nDave Leal, University of Oxford  \n‘After ten years and three previous editions, this is still the best book of its kind.’Don Cupitt, University of Cambridge  \n‘The book is beautifully written, admirably clear without being at all solemn, pretentious or patronising.’  \nD.H. Mellor, University of Cambridge  \n‘It is hard to imagine an introduction to philosophy which, in equally compact form, would cover the basic issues of philosophy with greater clarity, fairness, and relative thoroughness.’  \nRonald E. Santoni, Denison University  \nNigel Warburton is Senior Lecturer at the Open University. He is editor of Philosophy: Basic Readings, second edition, co-author of Reading Political Philosophy and author of Philosophy: The Classics, second edition, Thinking from A-Z, second edition, Freedom: An Introduction with Readings, The Art Question, Ernö Goldﬁnger: the Life of an Architect and Philosophy: the Essential Study Guide.  \nYou may also be interested in the following Routledge titles:  \nPhilosophy: The Classics, second edition Nigel Warburton  \nThinking from A to Z, second edition Nigel Warburton  \nFreedom: An Introduction with Readings  \nNigel Warburton  \nPhilosophy: the Essential Study Guide  \nNigel Warburton  \nPhilosophy: Basic Readings, second edition Edited by Nigel Warburton  \nParadoxes from A to Z  \nMichael Clark  \nCritical Reasoning: A Practical Introduction, second edition Anne Thomson  \nA Short History of Modern Philosophy  \nRoger Scruton  \nThe Concise Encyclopedia of Western Philosophy and Philosophers, second edition Edited by J. O. Urmson and Jonathan Rée  \nPHILOSOPHY THE BASICS Fourth edition  \nNigel Warburton  \nFirst edition published 1992  \nReprinted 1992, 1993, 1994  \nSecond edition published 1995  \nReprinted 1996, 1998  \nThird edition published 1999  \nReprinted 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003  \nFourth edition published 2004  \nby Routledge  \n11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge  \n29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001  \nRoutledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group  \nThis edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2004.  \n© 1992, 1995, 1999, 2004 Nigel Warburton  \nAll rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.  \nBritish Library Cataloguing in Publication Data  \nA catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data  \nA catalog record for this book has been requested  \nISBN 0-203-50641-3 Master e-book ISBN  \nISBN 0-203-57444-3 (Adobe eReader Format)  \nISBN 0–415–32772–5 (hbk)  \nISBN 0–415–32773–3 (pbk)  \nFOR MY MOTHER  \nCONTENTS  \nPreface xiii  \nIntroduction 1  \nPhilosophy and its history 2  \nWhy study philosophy? 3  \nIs philosophy difﬁcult? 5  \nThe limits of what phil","cbCaitJu8R5qFpch","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaitJu8R5qFpch","pdf",1406000,3,1,184,"English","en",105,"# Preface\n# Introduction\n# Philosophy and its history\n# Why study philosophy?\n# Is philosophy difficult?\n# The limits of what philosophy can do\n# How to use this book\n# Further reading\n# Internet resources\n# God\n# Right and wrong","[{\"question\":\"What does the book cover about philosophy and its scope?\",\"answer\":\"It explains philosophy’s relationship to history, why study it, whether it is difficult, and the limits of what philosophy can accomplish. It also provides guidance on how to use the book and where to find further reading and internet resources.\"},{\"question\":\"What arguments about God are discussed?\",\"answer\":\"The book covers the Design Argument, Fine Tuning, the First Cause Argument, the Ontological Argument, discussions of knowledge/proof and God’s existence, the Problem of Evil and attempted solutions, the Free Will Defence, miracles and Hume’s treatment, and Pascal’s Wager, along with criticisms and related topics like faith, non-realism, and death.\"},{\"question\":\"Which ethical theories does the book introduce?\",\"answer\":\"It presents duty-based theories, Christian ethics and criticisms, Kantian ethics and criticisms, consequentialism including utilitarianism and criticisms, negative utilitarianism, rule utilitarianism, virtue theory, applied ethics, and transitions to ethics and meta-ethics such as naturalism, moral relativism, and emotivism.\"}]",1783313444,283,{"code":4,"msg":31,"data":32},"ok",{"site_id":25,"language":24,"slug":33,"title":13,"keywords":34,"description":14,"schema_data":35,"social_meta":85,"head_meta":87,"extra_data":89,"updated_unix":28},"philosophy-the-basics-fourth-edition","",{"@graph":36,"@context":84},[37,52,67],{"@type":38,"itemListElement":39},"BreadcrumbList",[40,44,47,49],{"item":41,"name":42,"@type":43,"position":21},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":45,"name":46,"@type":43,"position":11},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",{"item":48,"name":12,"@type":43,"position":20},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/literature/",{"item":50,"name":13,"@type":43,"position":51},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/philosophy-the-basics-fourth-edition/40617/",4,{"url":50,"name":13,"@type":53,"author":54,"headline":13,"publisher":56,"fileFormat":59,"inLanguage":24,"description":14,"dateModified":60,"datePublished":61,"encodingFormat":59,"isAccessibleForFree":62,"interactionStatistic":63},"DigitalDocument",{"name":9,"@type":55},"Person",{"url":41,"name":57,"@type":58},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-07-12","2026-07-06",true,{"@type":64,"interactionType":65,"userInteractionCount":20},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":66},"ViewAction",{"@type":68,"mainEntity":69},"FAQPage",[70,76,80],{"name":71,"@type":72,"acceptedAnswer":73},"What does the book cover about philosophy and its scope?","Question",{"text":74,"@type":75},"It explains philosophy’s relationship to history, why study it, whether it is difficult, and the limits of what philosophy can accomplish. It also provides guidance on how to use the book and where to find further reading and internet resources.","Answer",{"name":77,"@type":72,"acceptedAnswer":78},"What arguments about God are discussed?",{"text":79,"@type":75},"The book covers the Design Argument, Fine Tuning, the First Cause Argument, the Ontological Argument, discussions of knowledge/proof and God’s existence, the Problem of Evil and attempted solutions, the Free Will Defence, miracles and Hume’s treatment, and Pascal’s Wager, along with criticisms and related topics like faith, non-realism, and death.",{"name":81,"@type":72,"acceptedAnswer":82},"Which ethical theories does the book introduce?",{"text":83,"@type":75},"It presents duty-based theories, Christian ethics and criticisms, Kantian ethics and criticisms, consequentialism including utilitarianism and criticisms, negative utilitarianism, rule utilitarianism, virtue theory, applied ethics, and transitions to ethics and meta-ethics such as naturalism, moral relativism, and emotivism.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":50,"og:type":86,"og:title":13,"og:site_name":57,"og:description":14},"article",{"robots":88,"canonical":50},"index,follow",{"doc_id":7,"site_id":25},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":91},[92,96,99,103,108,113,118,123,128,131,135],{"id":21,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":93,"show_sort_weight":94,"slug":95},"Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":11,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":12,"show_sort_weight":97,"slug":98},80,"literature",{"id":51,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":100,"show_sort_weight":101,"slug":102},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":104,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":105,"show_sort_weight":106,"slug":107},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":109,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":110,"show_sort_weight":111,"slug":112},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":114,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":115,"show_sort_weight":116,"slug":117},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":119,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":120,"show_sort_weight":121,"slug":122},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":124,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":125,"show_sort_weight":126,"slug":127},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":126,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":129,"show_sort_weight":126,"slug":130},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":132,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":133,"show_sort_weight":132,"slug":134},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":136,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":137,"show_sort_weight":104,"slug":138},19,"General","general"]