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Ask HN: Can anyone recommend some philosophy reading?

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Ask HN: Can anyone recommend some philosophy reading?

#1
So one of my friends has been accusing me of being a Nihilist lately - mainly because I don't really care about the whole Osama thing - and this has made me curious again about philosophy. I know a little bit from various things I learned in university, but I really want to learn more about the thought and writings of various philosophers.

That being said however, I have read Foucault and a couple of other philosopher's texts before and it was difficult. I know that is partially the point, however I figured the intellectually curious HN community must be able to recommend some easier to read, yet still in-depth and not patronising books discussing philosophy?

Re: Ask HN: Can anyone recommend some philosophy reading?

#4
post #3

Friedrich Nietzsche http://www.theperspectivesofnietzsche.com/nietzsche/nphil.ht...

Start with this one : http://www.amazon.com/Story-Philosophy-Opinions-Greatest-Phi...

Will give a picture of different philosophers of their time and then you can pick up whatever philosophy you like to read further.

Re: Ask HN: Can anyone recommend some philosophy reading?

#6
post #4
post #3

Friedrich Nietzsche http://www.theperspectivesofnietzsche.com/nietzsche/nphil.ht...

Start with this one : http://www.amazon.com/Story-Philosophy-Opinions-Greatest-Phi... Will give a picture of different philosophers of their time and then you can pick up whatever philosophy you like to read further.

I meant a top level comment :)

Re: Ask HN: Can anyone recommend some philosophy reading?

#7
anarchy, state, and utopia: http://www.amazon.com/Anarchy-State-Utopia-Robert-Nozick/dp/...

or, if you find yourself particularly liberal, a theory of justice: http://www.amazon.com/Theory-Justice-Original-John-Rawls/dp/...

thank you for the moment of nostalgia -- CC was a formative class in my college experience: http://www.college.columbia.edu/core/classes/cc.php

Re: Ask HN: Can anyone recommend some philosophy reading?

#8
post #6
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Start with this one : http://www.amazon.com/Story-Philosophy-Opinions-Greatest-Phi... Will give a picture of different philosophers of their time and then you can pick up whatever philosophy you like to read further.

I meant a top level comment :)

I thought that was just an extremely subtle comment on the source you recommended.

Re: Ask HN: Can anyone recommend some philosophy reading?

#9
Gilles Deleuze: Something short, Postscript on the Societies of Control https://pdflibrary.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/deleuzecontro...

Or you can listen to it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIus7lm_ZK0

https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Gilles_Deleuz...

Re: Ask HN: Can anyone recommend some philosophy reading?

#10
Hume's Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dialogues_Concerning_Natural_Re...). A tour de force rebuttal of the watchmaker and other creationist arguments. He did not allow it to be published during his lifetime for fear of the response it would provoke. A classic Philosophy 101 text too.
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