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kricitt 's review for:
informative
medium-paced
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Magee presents a strong mostly-chronological history of philosophy in this DK illustrated version. The prose is strong, though marred at times by the hectic pace of covering millennia in just over 200 pages. Later in the book, Magee's strong anticommunism and anti-Marxism mar some of his coverage of thinkers like Marx, Popper, and the Existentialists. Overall, though, this stands as a good introduction to the history of philosophical thought and development. I would not suggest this to a complete beginner, but if one is familiar with the general progression from Plato through Descartes, to Hegel so on, Magee fills the gaps and clears some things up.
A note about the DK illustrated edition: the asides, quotations, and side-notes are distracting at times. I would have preferred to read this in a text-only form - at the sacrifice of some lovely pieces of art.
Magee presents a strong mostly-chronological history of philosophy in this DK illustrated version. The prose is strong, though marred at times by the hectic pace of covering millennia in just over 200 pages. Later in the book, Magee's strong anticommunism and anti-Marxism mar some of his coverage of thinkers like Marx, Popper, and the Existentialists. Overall, though, this stands as a good introduction to the history of philosophical thought and development. I would not suggest this to a complete beginner, but if one is familiar with the general progression from Plato through Descartes, to Hegel so on, Magee fills the gaps and clears some things up.
A note about the DK illustrated edition: the asides, quotations, and side-notes are distracting at times. I would have preferred to read this in a text-only form - at the sacrifice of some lovely pieces of art.