A History of Western Philosophy; And its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day

Disclaim- i only wrote some of this, ambien did the rest

Absolutely sensational book. Perfect for someone wanting a strong overview of Western Philosophy and Philosophical Development , but it not interested in reading some hagiographic hero-worship great men of the world trash. I have also recently grown weary of the opposite side of the hero-coin, people's histories which are eminently valuable for their own purposes, but take away from what we should be studying.

We Should be studying these Men (and some women). Many of them were of particular genius, of particularly radical or revolutionary philosophy. The danger is to study these men as though...after a period where intellect through the world is fallow one or two great men came to the scene and starting a revolution of ideas which then got western Philosophy back on track .

These men were great, not always in there moral judgement, or in the own lives, but they were, on some level, men of Greatness, great thinkers, great moralizers, great theologians, great scientests.And they did say and write and think things which their descendants (us) have continually used as the logical basis for all thought.

Given that we do, in our schools, in conversation, in our universities, given that we do seam to treat them as great men...well let's try to understand them. Once we have gained some understand of their philosophies, we can criticize the processes and conclusions.

ALso its fun, and funny

Russel writes : when an intelligent man expresses a view to us which is obviously absurd, we should not attempt to prove that it is somehow true, but we should try to understand how it ever came seem true, This exercise of historical thinking and psychological imaginaton at once enlarges the scope of our thinking, and helps us to realize how foolish many of our own cherished prejudices will seem to an age which has a defferent temper of mind. (39).

Russel - the chief defect of post-Plato philosophers
"One of the defects of all philosophers since Plato is that their inquiries into ethics proceed on the assumption that they already know the conclusions to be reached." (79)

ON PLATO - it has always been correct to praise Plato, but not to understand him. This si the common fate of great men. My object is the opposite. I wish to understand him, but to treat him with as little reverance as if were a contemporary English or American advocate of Totalitarianism.

ON THE ENTRANCE INTO THE DARK AGES
"It is strange that the last men of intellectual eminence before the dark ages were cncerned, not with saving civilization or expelling the barbarians or reforming the abuses of the administration, but with preaching the merit of virginity and the damnatin of unbaptized infants. Seeing that these were the preoccupations that the Church handed on to the converted barbarians, it is no wonder that the succeeding age surpassed almost all other fully historical periods in cruelty and superstition." (366)

"The finding or arguements for a conclusion given in advance is not philosophy, but special pleading"(463).

"French troops shocked the Indians by actually killing people in battle:

just the best