This all contributes to an interconnected conceptual map for the reader. He uses his examples more like “intellectual toys,” twisting them until they break and make way for further progression. And he returns to many analogies throughout, extending them hundreds of pages later. The points he makes are expectedly down-to-Earth and digestible and have the dual purposes of exposition and highlighting implications that drive the inquiry forward. Blackburn captures an analogy with a clarity of mind to point to a fishiness or suspicion the reader readily picks up on.
In sum, Blackburn exposes nuance without technical burden.įurthermore, the bountiful beginner-friendly working examples and analogies are in the best interest of the novice philosopher. Blackburn presents connections only an experienced philosopher could make, making the book useful even to someone somewhat studied. This is one of many nuggets of gold that the novice may recognize but will only appreciate as they learn more about philosophy. Having been a topic I later learned about across several months in university, I recognized the sheer land that Blackburn was covering. For instance, in the span of about ten pages (namely 200–210), Blackburn covers formal logic and its interactions with language (i.e. His writing is not technical but manages to respect the necessary nuances of exploring the landscape of philosophy. Blackburn is extremely cautious (and successful) at straddling the line between writing that is intimidating, burdensome, or vexing to the novice and writing that is tantalizing and invites curiosity. Blackburn dares to stir, complicate, and entangle philosophical ideas in an introduction to philosophy-but not carelessly. (269)įound at the end of one of the later chapters, Blackburn’s style of teaching can be summed up in the above. We may indeed hope that it survives in the seas of thought I have tried to stir up this chapter.
It didn’t take long for me to discover Think, one of the few books r/philosophy recommends as a general introduction. The hope was for something broad yet with an appreciation for nuance. At the time, I was a Senior in high school not having read an once of philosophy. I first encountered a mention of Simon Blackburn’s 1999 Think: A compelling introduction to philosophy when I was looking for a good introductory book to philosophy.
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