A Comparative History of World Philosophy: From the Upanishads to Kant by Ben-Ami Scharfstein


A Comparative History of World Philosophy: From the Upanishads to Kant
Title : A Comparative History of World Philosophy: From the Upanishads to Kant
Author :
Rating :
ISBN : 0791436845
ISBN-10 : 9780791436844
Language : English
Format Type : Paperback
Number of Pages : 702
Publication : First published February 27, 1998

A Comparative History of World Philosophy presents a personal yet balanced guide through what the author argues to be the three great philosophical Chinese, European, and Indian. The book breaks through the cultural barriers between these traditions, proving that despite their considerable differences, fundamental resemblances exist in their abstract principles. Ben-Ami Scharfstein argues that Western students of philosophy will profit considerably if they study Indian and Chinese philosophy from the very beginning, along with their own. Written with clarity and infused with an engaging narrative voice, this book is organized thematically, presenting in virtually every chapter characteristic views from each tradition that represent similar positions in the core areas of metaphysics and epistemology. At the same time, Scharfstein develops each tradition historically as the chapters unfold. He presents a great variety of philosophical positions fairly, avoiding the relativism and ethnocentrism that could easily plague a comparative presentation of Western and non-Western philosophies.

A Comparative History of World Philosophy: From the Upanishads to Kant Reviews

  • Bernard English

    The emphasis is on the philosophical not the historical so much. Therefore, the comparisons are sometimes very detailed. The afterward in particular makes it clear that Scharfstein make great efforts at coming to his own understanding of the philosophers and didn't only rely on others' accounts. There are many references to the secondary literature but also to the translations of the originals. This is in contrast to the The Sociology of Philosophies: A Global Theory of Intellectual Change, which covers much more ground but forced, Randall Collins, the author, to acknowledge his reliance mostly on the secondary literature. Scharfstein writes in the afterward that since no final agreement on truth has been attained by philosophy, "maybe the transformation that a person undergoes in creating or assimilating philosophy is more important than the abstract truth that is attributed to it." And quoting Wittgenstein in support: "No one can think a thought for me in the way no one can don my hat for me." Anyone interested in philosophy will enjoy his afterward and be inspired to read the whole book. He also includes a pretty detailed bibliography.