Philosophy, Logic, & Ethics

What is the good life? What is justice? Do we have free will? Does it matter? From ancient classics like Plato's Allegory of the Cave to modern standards like John Rawls's A Theory of Justice, the texts in this collection explore ideas and questions at the root of the human condition.

The Singer Solution to World Poverty

by Peter Singer

Publication year 1999

Genre Essay / Speech, Nonfiction

Themes Justice, Equality, Good & Evil

Tags Philosophy, Social Justice, Poverty, Business & Economics, Philosophy

Philosopher Peter Singer, known for his uncompromising commitment to utilitarian principles, published his opinion editorial “The Singer Solution to World Poverty” in The New York Times Magazine on 5 September 1999. In the essay, Singer argues that the inhabitants of affluent countries have a moral obligation to donate a significant portion of their wealth to charities that can save lives around the world.Singer begins by describing a situation from the 1998 Brazilian film Central Station... Read The Singer Solution to World Poverty Summary

The Social Contract

by Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Publication year 1762

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Politics & Government

Tags Philosophy, Age of Enlightenment, Education, Education, Sociology, World History, French Literature, Philosophy, Classic Fiction, Politics & Government

The Social Contract is a political treatise published in 1762 by the Genevan philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Rousseau argues about the best ways to establish and maintain political authority without unduly sacrificing personal liberty. He builds off 17th-century philosopher Thomas Hobbes’s idea of the “social contract” between the people and sovereign authority, departing from Hobbes in his views on monarchy and the natural state of humankind. The Social Contract was enormously influential on political thought before... Read The Social Contract Summary

The Society of the Spectacle

by Guy Debord

Publication year 1967

Genre Reference/Text Book, Nonfiction

Themes Community

Tags Philosophy, Sociology, French Literature, World History, Philosophy, Arts & Culture, Politics & Government

Guy Debord’s 1967 philosophy text, The Society of the Spectacle, analyzes the phenomena of alienation and argues that alienation’s root cause is located within the economic, political, and cultural spheres of modern society. While previous periods of capitalist development saw the hyper-exploitation of workers, the period of capitalism after WWII saw an improvement in labor conditions for greater numbers of workers in society. However, for Debord, this improvement in work conditions did not translate to... Read The Society of the Spectacle Summary

The Sociological Imagination

by C. Wright Mills

Publication year 1959

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Tags Sociology, Education, Education, Anthropology, Anthropology, Science & Nature, Social Science, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy, Philosophy, Politics & Government

C. Wright Mills’ The Sociological Imagination covers the recent history of sociology as a field of study relating to society and the lives of individuals therein. While Mills’ work was not well received at the time of publication due to his reputation, today it is one of the most widely read sociology books and a staple in sociology university courses. The questions this text raises and the attention it gives to reconceiving the contemporary human... Read The Sociological Imagination Summary

The Souls of Black Folk

by W.E.B. Du Bois

Publication year 1903

Genre Essay Collection, Nonfiction

Themes Race, Grief

Tags US History, Existentialism, African American Literature, Black Lives Matter, Race & Racism, Sociology, World History, Philosophy, Philosophy, Social Justice, Classic Fiction, Politics & Government

Published in 1903, W.E.B. Du Bois’s The Souls of Black Folk is an important contribution to African-American literature, American literature, and sociology. A collection of 14 essays, the work is Du Bois’s description of the state of the South and African Americans’ lives at the turn of the 20th century. This guide is based on the Amazon Classics Kindle book edition.In “Of Our Spiritual Strivings,” Du Bois describes the psychological struggles of African Americans as... Read The Souls of Black Folk Summary

The Spell of the Sensuous

by David Abram

Publication year 1996

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Indigenous Identity, Future, The Past, Animals, Appearance & Reality, Climate, Environment, Plants, Objects & Materials, Place, Space, Community, Globalization, Order & Chaos, Religion & Spirituality, Science & Technology, Language

Tags Philosophy, Science & Nature, Psychology, Religion & Spirituality, Anthropology, Anthropology, Psychology, Philosophy

... Read The Spell of the Sensuous Summary

The Spirit of Laws

by Montesquieu

Publication year 1748

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Justice, Politics & Government, Nature Versus Nurture

Tags Politics & Government, Business & Economics, Philosophy, Science & Nature, Age of Enlightenment, French Literature, World History, Philosophy, Classic Fiction

... Read The Spirit of Laws Summary

The Story of My Experiments with Truth

by Mahatma Gandhi

Publication year 1927

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Truth & Lies, Religion & Spirituality, Politics & Government, Colonialism, Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Social Class, Education, Justice

Tags Indian Literature, Philosophy, Religion & Spirituality, Politics & Government, Asian History, World History, Health, Poverty, Military & War, Race & Racism, Relationships, Social Justice

The Story of My Experiments with Truth is the autobiography of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, more widely known as Mahatma Gandhi. A key political and spiritual leader of India and the Indian independence movement, Gandhi penned this work to narrate his quest for truth and the principles that underpinned his life’s journey. Originally published in 1927, this memoir provides a meticulous account of Gandhi’s spiritual, moral, and political evolution. The literary era in which this was... Read The Story of My Experiments with Truth Summary

The Story of Philosophy

by Will Durant

Publication year 1926

Genre Reference/Text Book, Nonfiction

Themes Science & Technology, Beauty, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies, Good & Evil, Appearance & Reality, Community

Tags Philosophy, World History, Science & Nature, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy, Classic Fiction, Biography

... Read The Story of Philosophy Summary

The Stranger

by Albert Camus

Publication year 1942

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Good & Evil, Religion & Spirituality, Colonialism

Tags Classic Fiction, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Philosophy, Relationships, Race & Racism, French Literature, Absurdism, Education, Education, World History, Philosophy

The Stranger is a short novel by French author Albert Camus, published in 1942. The story combines themes of absurdism and existentialism and is considered a classic of 20th-century literature. This guide uses the translation by Stuart Gilbert.Plot SummaryMeursault, a young man living in Algiers, receives a message which tells him that his mother has died. He takes a bus to the retirement home where she lived and stays with her body before the funeral... Read The Stranger Summary

The Structure of Scientific Revolutions

by Thomas Kuhn

Publication year 1962

Genre Reference/Text Book, Nonfiction

Themes Science & Technology, Community, Order & Chaos

Tags Science & Nature, Education, Education, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy, Classic Fiction, Philosophy, World History, Sociology

The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (1962) by Thomas Kuhn stands as a seminal work that revolutionized the philosophy of science. As a scholar who shifted his focus from physics to the history of science, and later to the philosophy of science, Kuhn challenged prevailing notions about the nature of scientific progress, introducing concepts such as paradigms, normal science, and scientific revolutions. Situated at the nexus of science, history, and philosophy, Kuhn’s work upended the view... Read The Structure of Scientific Revolutions Summary

The Subjection of Women

by John Stuart Mill

Publication year 1869

Genre Essay / Speech, Nonfiction

Themes Equality, Marriage, Nature Versus Nurture

Tags Gender & Feminism, Women`s Studies, Philosophy, World History, Philosophy, Classic Fiction, Politics & Government

The book-length essay The Subjection of Women was written in 1869 by John Stuart Mill, an English philosopher known for his progressive, utilitarian ideas. The essay includes four chapters and was published in London by Lonmans, Green, Reader, and Dyer publishers. The Subjection of Women is a persuasive argument, laying out the problem of women’s legal, marital, and societal oppression to show that gender equality is necessary to ensure social justice, improve societal progress, and... Read The Subjection of Women Summary