A great deal of the satisfaction of studying philosophy lies in exploring its landmark arguments. Working from this premise, Great Philosophical Arguments: An Introduction to Philosophy focuses on the debates that define and drive the field. Editor Lewis Vaughn presents seventy-eight readings--both classic selections and contemporary works--that are topically organized into six chapters: the existence of God, knowledge and skepticism, mind and body, free will and determinism, ethics, and contemporary ethical debates. The readings are grouped by argument into pro/con dialogues within each chapter. Each of the thirty-four arguments is introduced with a brief outline, which is followed by two to four essays presenting the classic statement of the argument, critiques and defenses of it, and discussions of related debates.FEATURES: * A substantial introductory chapter and extensive chapter introductions* Essay questions at the end of each argument section and chapter* Pedagogical features including boldfaced key terms, biographical text boxes, suggestions for further reading, and a glossary* An appendix on how to read and write argumentative essays* An Instructor's Manual and Test Bank on CD featuring chapter summaries, reading summaries, PowerPoint-based lecture outlines, and test questions* A Companion Website at www.oup.com/us/vaughn containing study questions, interactive quizzes, flashcards, and helpful links

Author Biography

Lewis Vaughn is the author or coauthor of numerous books, including Philosophy: The Quest for Truth, Eighth Edition (2011), Classics of Philosophy, Third Edition (2010), Contemporary Moral Arguments (2010), The Power of Critical Thinking, Third Edition (2009), Bioethics (2008), and Writing Philosophy (2005), all published by Oxford University Press.