A211 Philosophy and the Human Situation

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Philosophy and the Human Situation is a basic introduction to philosophy, divided into six books, complete with readings and exercises. It provides a foundation for further study in the subject and also teaches a number of skills that can be applied usefully in other academic disciplines.

The first three books deal with the ethics of our relationships with our fellow human beings in society (Book 1), with the other animals (Book 2), and with the wider environment that includes plants and ecosystems (Book 3).

The second three are about what kind of thing human beings are. Book 4 looks at how we should conceive of ourselves after Darwin, Book 5 at whether we should think of ourselves as having a mind as well as a body with a brain in it, and Book 6 brings together a number of the preceding themes in the context of philosophy of religion.

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