Introduction to Philosophy

Reviewed by Michael Reno, Senior Lecturer of Philosophy, University of Mary Washington on 7/24/24

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

Overall, the text is admirable in trying to cover the main problems of a mostly post-analytically inclined philosophy discipline while also doing more than recite token contributions from those outside this tradition.  That said, there are weird emphases in some sections. I was excited to see what the authors did in Chapter 2 Critical Thinking, Research, Reading and Writing. Yet it starts off with a strange emphasis on a questionable version of biological/evolutionary determinism: "One insight of evolutionary biology is that every cell and organ in our body is adapted to its local environment for the purpose of making it more likely that our genes will survive into the next generation." This claim is both teleological and anthropomorphizes cells and organs. And this claim is then used to support the conclusion that our brains are just machines for finding a mate to pass on our genes and so not good at thinking rationally and doing philosophy and science. I get that the point is to make the case that critical thinking is something we need to work at, but being able to establish that we are evolutionarily unsuited for philosophy is neither necessary to this claim nor does it particularly motivate one to work on these things. There are alternative paths to this idea that don't require these particularly questionable assumptions. There are other examples of these strange choices throughout: Adorno/Marcuse not mentioned in a section on Frankfurt School Critical Theory, but Benjamin is. A long section on Maoism framed as though it was the culmination of Marxist theory.
This is not to deny the accuracy and usefulness of other aspects of these chapters, for example, the practical approaches to critical thinking, writing, and reading in Chapter 2 strike me as much more useful in philosophy classroom than the chapter's beginning.

Content Accuracy rating: 4

I honestly wasn't sure where to place the comment on comprehensiveness. I thought about putting it here. There aren't glaring falsehoods or anything, but the emphases in some places might give a distorted view of the importance of particular ideas or figures in the history of philosophy.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

Continues the tradition of philosophy texts emphasizing the past. Probably necessary for philosophy.

Clarity rating: 5

The book is approachable. It reads like a textbook from other disciplines.

Consistency rating: 5

Nothing sticks out as inconsistent.

Modularity rating: 5

Each chapter can easily stand alone. It has adequate subheadings and could well be supplemented with primary readings.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The text is a modified problems approach that retains some elements of an historical approach. This is nice. They pulled this part off.

Interface rating: 5

The pdf is well-formatted. No navigation issues.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

No grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

As mentioned above, the text does incorporate different voices from those that might be taught exclusively in some historical approaches or even in some problems approaches to introductory philosophy. Tucking critical race theory into the section on post-modernism doesn't strike me as totally accurate and limiting it to a couple of paragraphs seems a disservice.

Comments

Generally, I can't imagine using this as a stand-alone text. But, that's probably true of any philosophy textbook that doesn't incorporate primary texts. I can imagine using this as a supplement/introduction to certain topics. Overall, I wonder if future versions might go more in depth on particular sections with the understanding that book is modular and wouldn't be used in its entirety in a one-semester course. Overall, a decent introduction to the discipline, especially if you're looking for something that goes beyond the usual Western canon.

Reviewed by Masyn Phoenix, Adjunct Professor, Tillamook Bay Community College on 9/18/23

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

This is a good overview of many of the tenants of Western Philosophy, while also touching on and noting the differences from other philosophies around the world. The texts links to more information in a variety of formats like podcasts and videos, so students who learn better in different modalities can access those. The web/PDF version provides a hyperlinked index, and each chapter has a glossary of key terms.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

The content of this text was accurate and unbiased.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

Since we are talking about philosophy, most of the concepts and stories in this text are hundreds or thousands of years old, so in a sense they are timeless. However, like many modern, web-enhanced textbooks, there are external links within this book that will need to be maintained, checked, and changed if links get broken.

Clarity rating: 5

This book seems very easy to understand for an undergraduate student who is unfamiliar with this topic. It starts with more common language and terminology, but then gets more complex as students are building upon what they learned in pervious chapters. The text is written in language that is easy to understand for a modern reader, and passages from older philosophical writings are included, but then also explained in more modern English.

Consistency rating: 4

The text seemed consistent in terminology. The only lack of consistency I saw was that some chapters and sections had a lot of links to other videos, websites, and podcasts that students could link to for more information, and some chapters and sections barely had any. It made it seem like some concepts within the text did not have a lot of outside supporting material other than this textbook itself.

Modularity rating: 5

The class I teach only hits certain aspects found in this text. I was able to use segments of this text, and supplement them with my materials and create a robust text for my class.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

As with many introductory Philosophy texts, this book starts with the idea of "what philosophy is," and builds from there. While its Applied Ethics chapter is near the end, there are a couple chapters after it. I find it valuable in these introductory courses to finish all the "theoretical" philosophy before ending with how students might use what they learned in their daily lives. But since this is an OER, I would be able to make those changes if I wanted to.

Interface rating: 5

All of the links I tried worked, and everything looks formatted correctly.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I did not see any grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

Something that is rare in introductory Philosophy texts is highlighting much beyond Western European Philosophy. This text talks about philosophies from around the world that existed before Greece, and even has those chapters prior to chapters on "Classical Philosophy." There is also a wide variety of cultures and non-Western viewpoints in every chapter in the text.

Reviewed by Eli Shupe, Assistant Professor, University of Texas at Arlington on 1/2/23

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

This textbook covers a wide variety of topics. The authors had to make some hard choices about what to include for the sake of brevity and, for the most part, I think the choices they made were good ones.

The section on biomedical ethics, for example, is a very serviceable introduction. It discusses abortion, euthanasia, and clinical trials. It also includes a robust summary of the four principles of medical ethics, which it presents it as a part of the section on clinical trials. That organizational choice is unconventional but, I think, effective, as it allows for the principles to be further explained in terms of their role in research ethics.

I would have liked to see a distinct section on the Philosophy of Mind, although I appreciate that the metaphysics section attempted to meet me halfway by including a (somewhat slapdash) discussion of the metaphysics of consciousness.

Content Accuracy rating: 4

I was mostly satisfied on this score. I cannot speak to all of the sections of the book, but I thought the content on ethics and logic, for example, was fairly reliable. The discussion of non-capitalist frameworks in Chapters 11 and 12 struck me as a little bit blithe and uncharitable.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

The textbook does a good job connecting its content to world affairs and contemporary moral problems. It also shows admirable restraint here, in that it manages to invoke current events without being too specific in the particulars, which ensures that the textbook won’t too quickly become obsolete. The section on Ethics and Emerging Technologies in the Applied Ethics chapter a good example of the restraint that I have in mind here—the textbook rightly chooses to discuss ongoing advances in artificial intelligence, but keeps the focus on the general philosophical questions that are raised by such technologies. As a result, this section is likely to remain relevant regardless of the ways in which those technologies evolve in the near future.

Clarity rating: 4

I was impressed at many points with this textbook’s concision and clarity. The chapter covering normative moral theories was particularly strong. In the past, I have struggled to find a short reading to assign students about deontology that was succinct but also substantive. The one in this textbook fits the bill and I will be using it in some of my classes.

I did notice some relatively minor explanatory oversights that I suspect might lead to unclarity. On page 313, for instance, the question of whether a machine can possess intentionality is invoked. Unfortunately, the word ‘intentionality’ is not defined, and this is the first and only time that the term it appears in the textbook. I fear that this is sure to confuse undergraduates.

Consistency rating: 5

The textbook is stylistically and organizationally consistent.

Modularity rating: 5

This textbook is extremely modular. Most of the sections could be read (and assigned to students) in isolation.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

Very good.

Interface rating: 4

The PDF came with native bookmarks dividing it into navigable sections and subsections, which I appreciated. There are some minor formatting issues. On page 315, for instance, the “Clinical Trials” subheading is smaller than it ought to be, making it appear as if it belongs to the previous section on euthanasia and assisted dying.

Given that this is a textbook that is likely to be distributed to and read by students mostly as a PDF, it would be nice if the page numbers printed within the text conformed to the document's page numbers in a PDF viewer. This may require starting numbering within the text at a number greater than one, which is a bit ungainly, but I think that the advantages gained in ease of use for instructors assigning page ranges would make it worth doing.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I did not notice any grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

I very much appreciated the in-depth discussion of non-Western philosophical traditions. Although I did not read them closely, I also noted sections on both intersectionality and epistemic injustice, which seem like good inclusions.

Comments

Of the several that I have looked at, I believe that this is the best open access introductory philosophy textbook currently available.

Reviewed by Albert Spencer, Assistant Professor, Portland State University on 12/4/22

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

This textbook covers all of the perennial philosophical questions and represents a wide range of global traditions. I was particularly impressed with quality of the separate sections on Indigenous, Chinese, and Indian philosophy and their inclusion in other sections (e.g. Dharmakirti in 7.2 Knowledge & Mencius in 8.3). My only qualm is that as a pragmatist I would have appreciated more references to that tradition beyond the obligatory reference to William James's soft determinism (6.4 Free Will).

Content Accuracy rating: 5

Each section does a masterful job of introducing a perennial question and providing the major historical and contemporary positions on the subject without favoring one over the other. This requires students to provide their own analysis and reflection as they contemplate the Review Questions.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

This textbook is a solid introduction to historical and contemporary philosophy and surveys all of the major topics.

Clarity rating: 5

I found the writing to be very accessible with technical terms highlighted and defined in the Key Terms section. Also, the videos and graphics throughout the term were very illuminating and interesting.

Consistency rating: 5

I felt that each module followed a similar format to aid comprehension, that a variety of positions were covered, and that multimedia was introduced that would allow students to apply their learning to popular media and their own experience.

Modularity rating: 5

The textbook chunks material into sections that are quite manageable. It also balances large topics (e.g. Metaphysics) with thorough surveys of subtopics (e.g. Substance, Self & Identity, Cosmology & God, Free Will). As a result, I could imagine using this textbook both for my PHL 201 Being & Knowing and PHL 202 Ethics course. The former would focus on Chapters 6 & 7 (Metpahysics & Epistemology) and the latter would focus on Chapters 8-11 (Value Theory, Normative Theory, Applied Ethics, and Political Philosophy). I could also see the other chapters sprinkled into either course as needed.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The textbook does an admirable job of providing a general introduction to the history, methods, and skills on philosophy in CH 1-5, then shifts to thorough examinations of the major branches of philosophy in CH 6-11, and concluding with contemporary debates in Ch 13. Thus, it builds general knowledge first and then fills in the details once that base on learning is established.

Interface rating: 5

The interfance is very intuitive and it is easy to find each module and to search the whole text suing the Index. I also liked the highlighting feature and I am sure students will also.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I did not notice any.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

I spoke to this topic in my first answer on Comprehensiveness. It includes a wide range of global cultures and highlights their relevance to contemporary conversation. I would like to see a bit more Indigenous scholars engaged outside of the section on Indigenous Philosophy, but this textbook is still better than most.

Comments

On the whole I am very impressed with this textbook! It is more inclusive and comprehensive than most textbooks on the market, it is well organized and accessible, and most importantly it is free. I will most likely adopt this textbook for one of more of my classes. I also like the variety of supplements provided in each chapter (e.g. Summary, Key Terms, References, Review Quesitons, Further Reading), but I am sad that textbook does not provide a bank of Multiple Choice or Short Answer questions that I could incorporate into weekly quizzes. Are those available in an edition for Instructors?

Reviewed by Ian Werkheiser, Associate Professor, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley on 11/16/22

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

The book does a good job surveying some of the history of philosophy, including Ancient Greek as well as other traditions (e.g. philosophy coming out of China, India, Africa, and North America). Its primary focus though is a survey of the different kinds of philosophy as most modern philosophers would likely divide the discipline. The book gives a good introduction to these areas, pointing out some interesting and significant issues in each, tools used to tackle those issues, and some useful takeaways for those students who might not continue taking classes in the field.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

The course content is accurate, with a good use of citations to support their work and for further reading. This is useful when evaluating an OER text, and is also a good demonstration of best practices for students who will be working on their own paper.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

The book is up-to-date and accessible, but deals with universal issues, and does so without reference to overly time-specific references.

Clarity rating: 5

The text is lucid and clear, and though it introduces quite a lot of philosophy-specific terminology, it does so intentionally and takes time to explain the terms and provide needed context.

Consistency rating: 5

The text is very consistent, and connects back to earlier sections, has a clear outline, and maintains consistent terminology throughout.

Modularity rating: 5

Though as I mentioned above the text builds on itself well and connects back to earlier sections, it would be quite possible to use individual chapters modularly (e.g. using the section on epistemology at the beginning of an epistemology course). Any important terms are defined, and particular earlier chapters aren't necessary (though are helpful). Each section contains its own comprehension study questions, references for further reading, and so on.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The book is well organized with a clear roadmap and signposts throughout.

Interface rating: 5

The text is easily navigable. If viewed as a webpage there are helpful hyperlinks connecting everything, but items are well labeled with consistent pagination for those students who prefer to print a chapter out to read it (though there are multiple delivery methods such as videos which they would still benefit from watching online that are integrated throughout the text).

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

The book is clearly written with clear, readable, and correct grammar.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

While clearly focusing on Western philosophy, the authors do a good job including non-Western philosophical sources as equally valid disciplines which can interact in ways that are mutually beneficial.