Revealing® Philosophy explores the traditional categories of logic, metaphysics, epistemology, and aesthetics. But the text is anything but traditional. The self-paced and highly responsive format of Revealing® Philosophy is infused with material that provides a more comprehensive approach to philosophy in the Western tradition than most contemporary textbooks, including feminist, indigenous, American, and non-Western philosophies. Concrete examples drawn from history, contemporary culture, and literature capture the imagination of the student prior to exploring a philosophical topic.
Students who engage this introductory text will receive a solid grounding in the Western philosophic tradition. They will be introduced to a diverse set of philosophies that provide the critical thinking skills necessary in a cosmopolitan and multicultural society. The text does not shy away from challenging and controversial ethical, epistemological, or metaphysical topics.
Students are prompted to write journal entries that allow for reflection and critical application of ideas. Rather than treat each philosopher as merely a talking head, “spotlight” pages dig deeper into the lives and context of various thinkers bringing their philosophies alive. Pillars of the Western tradition (such as Plato, Aquinas, Locke, and Kant) are addressed, but so too are diverse figures who are not usually included in standard philosophy textbooks (such as Angela Davis, Jane Addams, W.E.B. DuBois, Nāgārjuna, Jaegwon Kim, and Mulla Sadra). Extensive use of quoted material and links to full texts give the student opportunities to read selections of original works.
Revealing® Philosophy modules:
- Exploring Philosophy
- Logical Arguments
- Metaphysics: What Is Reality?
- Metaphysics: Who Am I?
- Metaphysics: Is There a God?
- Foundations of Epistemology
- Approaches to Epistemology
- Social Epistemology
- Personal Ethics: Choices
- Personal Ethics: Character
- Social & Applied Ethics
- Aesthetics
Price: $50
Exploring Philosophy
What is Philosophy?
- Goals: What is Philosophy?
- Allegory of the Cave
- Wisdom
- Asking Questions
- Skepticism
- Spotlight: Socrates
- Who Is a Philosopher?
- Spotlight: Angela Davis
- Summary: What is Philosophy?
- Try It: What is Philosophy?
Why Study Philosophy?
- Goals: Why Study Philosophy?
- Why Philosophy?
- Skills Learned
- Philosophy & Careers
- Non-Instrumental Value
- Spotlight: Bertrand Russell
- Spotlight: Siddhartha Gautama
- Summary: Why Study Philosophy?
- Try It: Why Study Philosophy?
Areas of Study
- Goals: Areas of Study
- Traditional Subdivisions
- Approaches to Philosophy
- Applied Philosophical Fields
- Philosophies of Identity
- Belief & Unbelief
- Spotlight: Alain Locke
- Non-Western Philosophies
- Summary: Areas of Study
- Try It: Areas of Study
History of Western Philosophy
- Goals: History of Western Philosophy
- Importance of History
- Philosophical Timeline
- Major Philosophic Periods
- Ancient Philosophy
- Medieval Philosophy
- Modern Philosophy
- Contemporary Philosophy
- Summary: History of Western Philosophy
- Try It: History of Western Philosophy
Tools of Philosophy
- Goals: Tools of Philosophy
- Toolkit of Life Skills
- Reading & Listening Skills
- Critical Thinking
- Philosophical Research
- Writing Philosophy
- Speaking Philosophy
- Summary: Tools of Philosophy
- Try It: Tools of Philosophy
Logical Arguments
Defining Logic
- Goals: Defining Logic
- Identifying Witches
- Vocabulary of Logic
- Logic of Aristotle
- Categories of Logic
- Spotlight: Alfred Tarski
- Paradox: Liars
- Summary: Defining Logic
- Try It: Defining Logic
Arguments
- Goals: Arguments
- Can Terrorism Be Justified?
- Argument versus Rhetoric
- Spotting Arguments
- Deductive Arguments
- Inductive Arguments
- Spotlight: Andrea Nye
- Protagoras versus Euathlus
- Summary: Arguments
- Try It: Arguments
Argument Fallacies
- Goals: Argument Fallacies
- Vulcan Logic
- Informal versus Formal Logic
- Fallacies
- Aristotle: Fallacies
- Types of Fallacies
- Paradox: Meno
- Spotlight: Mary Margaret McCabe
- Summary: Argument Fallacies
- Try It: Argument Fallacies
Metaphysics: What Is Reality?
Defining Metaphysics
- Goals: Defining Metaphysics
- The Matrix
- Metaphysics: Definition
- Metaphysics: Areas of Study
- Indigenous Metaphysics
- Spotlight: Parmenides
- Summary: Defining Metaphysics
- Try It: Defining Metaphysics
Idealism
- Goals: Idealism
- Power of the Mind
- Defining Idealism
- Idealism: Plato
- Idealism: Berkeley
- Idealism: Other Forms
- Spotlight: Schopenhauer
- Criticisms of Idealism
- Summary: Idealism
- Try It: Idealism
Realism
- Goals: Realism
- Nineteen Eighty-Four
- Defining Realism
- Materialism
- Scientific Realism
- Spotlight: Karl Popper
- Spotlight: Lynne Rudder Baker
- Criticisms of Realism
- Summary: Realism
- Try It: Realism
Time
- Goals: Time
- Time Travel
- Predestination Paradox
- What Is Time?
- Questions about Time
- Presentism versus Eternalism
- Spotlight: Martin Heidegger
- Summary: Time
- Try It: Time
Metaphysics: Who Am I?
Ontology & Existentialism
- Goals: Ontology & Existentialism
- I Heart Huckabees
- Defining Ontology
- Existentialism
- Spotlight: Mulla Sadra
- Spotlight: Jean-Paul Sartre
- Spotlight: Mary Daly
- Summary: Ontology & Existentialism
- Try It: Ontology & Existentialism
Identity
- Goals: Identity
- Ship of Theseus
- What Is Identity?
- Spotlight: G.W. Leibniz
- Personal Identity
- Personal Identity: Locke
- Personal Identity: Reid
- Personal Identity: Hume
- Personal Identity in Buddhism
- Summary: Identity
- Try It: Identity
Mind & Body
- Goals: Mind & Body
- Turing Test
- Philosophy of Mind
- Mind-Body Problem
- Other Minds
- Artificial Intelligence
- Consciousness
- Spotlight: Jaegwon Kim
- Summary: Mind & Body
- Try It: Mind & Body
Freedom & Determinism
- Goals: Freedom & Determinism
- Minority Report
- Causation
- Determinism
- Free Will
- Compatibilism
- Karma
- Spotlight: Hannah Arendt
- Summary: Freedom & Determinism
- Try It: Freedom & Determinism
Metaphysics: Is There a God?
Characteristics of God
- Goals: Characteristics of God
- The Bible
- God, Gods, or None
- God: Personal versus Ineffable
- God & Time
- God & Power
- God & Goodness
- God & Gender
- God, Religion & Theology
- Process Theology
- Liberation Theology
- Spotlight: Frances Wright
- Summary: Characteristics of God
- Try It: Characteristics of God
Arguments for the Existence of God
- Goals: Arguments for the Existence of God
- The Color Purple
- Faith
- Cosmological Arguments
- Ontological Arguments
- Teleological Arguments
- Moral Arguments
- Wager of Pascal
- Spotlight: Thomas Aquinas
- Summary: Arguments for the Existence of God
- Try It: Arguments for the Existence of God
Problem of Evil
- Goals: Problem of Evil
- South Park
- Evil
- Fundamental Problem of Evil
- Logical Problem of Evil
- Evidential Problem of Evil
- Theodicies
- Spotlight: Anne Conway
- Summary: Problem of Evil
- Try It: Problem of Evil
Comparative World Metaphysics
- Goals: Comparative World Metaphysics
- Gandhi
- World Religions
- Buddhist Metaphysics
- Spotlight: Nagarjuna
- Chinese Religious Metaphysics
- Hindu Metaphysics
- Islamic Metaphysics
- Summary: Comparative World Metaphysics
- Try It: Comparative World Metaphysics
Foundations of Epistemology
Epistemology: History & Definition
- Goals: History & Definition of Epistemology
- Sage of Baltimore
- Definitions of Epistemology
- Epistemological Terms
- Approaches to Knowledge
- Epistemology & Science
- Epistemology in Ancient Philosophy
- Epistemology in Medieval Philosophy
- Epistemology in Modern Philosophy
- Epistemology in Contemporary Philosophy
- Spotlight: Al-Farabi
- Summary: History & Definition of Epistemology
- Try It: History & Definition of Epistemology
Truth
- Goals: Truth
- Beloved
- Truth & Philosophy
- Theories of Truth
- Coherence Theories of Truth
- Deflationary Theories of Truth
- Spotlight: Harry Frankfurt
- Summary: Truth
- Try It: Truth
Justification
- Goals: Justification
- Homosexuality
- Supporting a Claim
- Internalism versus Externalism
- Gettier Problem
- Spotlight: Lorraine Code
- Summary: Justification
- Try It: Justification
Approaches to Epistemology
Rationalism
- Goals: Rationalism
- Epic Theater
- Definitions of Rationalism
- Ancient Western Origins
- Karl Popper
- Internalism & Externalism
- Intuition
- Innate Knowledge & Concepts
- Spotlight: Alison Jaggar
- Summary: Rationalism
- Try It: Rationalism
Empiricism
- Goals: Empiricism
- Albert Einstein
- Definitions of Empiricism
- Ancient Greek Empiricism
- British Empiricism
- Phenomenalism
- Positivism
- Spotlight: William James
- Summary: Empiricism
- Try It: Empiricism
Pragmatism
- Goals: Pragmatism
- Leo Tolstoy
- Definitions of Pragmatism
- Origins of American Pragmatism
- Resurgence & Critiques
- Spotlight: Charles Sanders Peirce
- Spotlight: Jane Addams
- Summary: Pragmatism
- Try It: Pragmatism
Social Epistemology
Social Construction Theory
- Goals: Social Construction Theory
- Pink & Blue
- Defining Social Epistemology
- Social Construction Theory
- Spotlight: Alvin Goldman
- Spotlight: Patricia Hill Collins
- Summary: Social Construction Theory
- Try It: Social Construction Theory
Social Epistemology & Science
- Goals: Social Epistemology & Science
- Copernican Revolution
- Science & Society
- Spotlight: Thomas Kuhn
- Spotlight: Paul Feyerabend
- Summary: Social Epistemology & Science
- Try It: Social Epistemology & Science
Feminist Epistemology
- Goals: Feminist Epistemology
- What We Do Not Know
- Defining Feminist Epistemology
- Standpoint Theory
- Objectivity
- Spotlight: Sandra Harding
- Summary: Feminist Epistemology
- Try It: Feminist Epistemology
Power & Epistemology
- Goals: Power & Epistemology
- Food Pyramid
- Power, Truth & Knowledge
- Nietzsche: Will to Truth
- Fricker: Epistemology of Injustice
- Spotlight: Michael Foucault
- Summary: Power & Epistemology
- Try It: Power & Epistemology
Personal Ethics: Choices
Defining Ethics
- Goals: Defining Ethics
- Huckleberry Finn
- What Is Ethics?
- Categories of Ethics
- Origin or Source of Ethics
- Ethics, Epistemology, Metaphysics
- Spotlight: Miguel De La Torre
- Summary: Defining Ethics
- Try It: Defining Ethics
Relativism
- Goals: Relativism
- Female Genital Mutilation
- Forms of Relativism
- Criticisms of Relativism
- Respect for Cultural Diversity
- Summary: Relativism
- Try It: Relativism
Egoism
- Goals: Egoism
- Yada, Yada, Yada
- Ethical Egoism
- Altruism
- Spotlight: Friedrich Nietzsche
- Egoism, Individualism, Capitalism
- Spotlight: Ayn Rand
- Criticisms of Egoism
- Summary: Egoism
- Try It: Egoism
The Ends Do Not Justify the Means
- Goals: The Ends Do Not Justify the Means
- Revenge
- Moral Rules
- Deontological Ethics
- Good Will
- Spotlight: Immanuel Kant
- Biblical Deontology
- Contemporary Deontology
- Rights
- Criticisms of Principle-Based Ethics
- Summary: The Ends Do Not Justify the Means
- Try It: The Ends Do Not Justify the Means
The Ends Justify the Means
- Goals: The Ends Justify the Means
- Making Ethical Decisions
- Utilitarianism
- Bentham: Utilitarian Calculus
- Spotlight: John Stuart Mill
- Modern Utilitarianism
- Rule Utilitarianism
- Utilitarianism as Common Sense
- An Ethical Comparison
- Criticisms of Utilitarianism
- Summary: The Ends Justify the Means
- Try It: The Ends Justify the Means
Personal Ethics: Character
Virtue Ethics
- Goals: Virtue Ethics
- What Makes a Good Friend?
- Spotlight: Aristotle
- Eudaimonia
- Thomas Aquinas & Virtues
- Confucian Virtue
- Contemporary Virtue Theories
- Criticisms of Virtue Theories
- Summary: Virtue Ethics
- Try It: Virtue Ethics
Care Ethics
- Goals: Care Ethics
- To Steal or Not to Steal
- A New & Challenging Approach
- Elements of Care Ethics
- Spotlight: Nel Noddings
- Genealogies of Care
- An Evolving Ethic
- Criticisms of Care
- Summary: Care Ethics
- Try It: Care Ethics
Ethics of Identity
- Goals: Ethics of Identity
- Colbert Report
- Epistemic Privilege
- Does Race Matter?
- Spotlight: Cornel West
- Does Gender Matter?
- Does Class Matter?
- Sexual Orientation
- Intersectionality
- Summary: Ethics of Identity
- Try It: Ethics of Identity
Animal & Environmental Ethics
- Goals: Animal & Environmental Ethics
- Rabbits: Pets or Meat?
- Moral Status of Animals
- Protecting Animals
- Utilitarianism & Animal Welfare
- Spotlight: Peter Singer
- Ethical Veganism
- Ethics of Care for Animals
- Environment & Ethics
- Anthropocentrism
- Ecofeminism
- Spotlight: Vandana Shiva
- Summary: Animal & Environmental Ethics
- Try It: Animal & Environmental Ethics
Social & Applied Ethics
Justice
- Goals: Justice
- Death Penalty
- Social Ethics
- Defining Justice
- Forms of Justice
- Spotlight: John Rawls
- Care/Justice Debate
- Spotlight: Susan Moller Okin
- Summary: Justice
- Try It: Justice
Political Philosophy
- Goals: Political Philosophy
- Immigration Debate
- Defining Political Philosophy
- Political Philosophies
- Social Contract Theories
- Spotlight: John Locke
- Citizenship
- Feminist Political Philosophy
- Spotlight: Seyla Benhabib
- Just War Theory
- Summary: Political Philosophy
- Try It: Political Philosophy
Business & Economic Theories
- Goals: Business & Economic Theories
- Enron Scandal
- Business & Economics
- Spotlight: Adam Smith
- Spotlight: Karl Marx
- Business Ethics
- Stakeholder Theory
- Ethics of Corporate Culture
- Ethics of Corporate Compensation
- Summary: Business & Economic Theories
- Try It: Business & Economic Theories
Utopias
- Goals: Utopias
- Thomas More: Utopia
- Utopian Thinking
- Varieties of Utopias
- Spotlight: Plato
- Spotlight: Charlotte Perkins Gillman
- Dystopias
- Summary: Utopias
- Try It: Utopias
Aesthetics
Political Philosophy
- Goals: Art
- Art & Controversy
- Defining Aesthetics
- Art as Imitation
- Art as Form
- Art as Expression
- Spotlight: R.G. Collingwood
- Spotlight: Susanne K. Langer
- Summary: Art
- Try It: Art
Artists & Audiences
- Goals: Artists & Audiences
- Pygmalion
- Who Is an Artist?
- Feminist Aesthetics
- Artistic Intention
- Spotlight: John Dewey
- Apollonian & Dionysian
- Summary: Artists & Audiences
- Try It: Artists & Audiences
Art & Its Purposes
- Goals: Art & Its Purposes
- Federal Art Project
- Does Art Have a Function?
- Art & Ethics
- Spotlight: G.W.F. Hegel
- Art & Social Purpose
- Spotlight: Theodor W. Adorno
- Summary: Art & Its Purposes
- Try It: Art & Its Purposes
About the Author: Maurice Hamington, Ph.D. (Portland State University)
Maurice Hamington is Professor of Philosophy, Executive Director of University Studies at Portland State University. He holds a Ph.D. in Philosophy from the University of Oregon, a Ph.D. in Religion and Social Ethics, and an M.B.A. and a Graduate Certificate in Women’s Studies from the University of Southern California. He has taught philosophy for over thirty years. Maurice has authored four books: Care Ethics and Poetry with Ce Rosenow (Palgrave Macmillan, 2019; The Social Philosophy of Jane Addams (University of Illinois Press, 2009); Embodied Care (University of Illinois Press, 2004); and, Hail Mary? The Struggle for Ultimate Womanhood in Catholicism (Routledge, 1995). Maurice has also edited many books and published numerous articles in peer-reviewed journals and chapters in academic books. He has won awards for his research at the University of Southern Indiana and Metropolitan State University of Denver. His edited volume, Contemporary Feminist Pragmatism, was named an Outstanding Book of 2012 by the Organization for the Study of Communication, Language, and Gender.