Recommended reading

• Textbooks
• General introductions
• Philosophical Skills and Critical Thinking
• Epistemology
• Ethics
• Political Philosophy
• Moral Philosophy
• Philosophy of Religion
• Philosophy of Mind
• Free Will and Determinism
• The Value of Art
• Metaphysics
• Plato’s Republic
• Descartes’ Meditations
• Hume’s Enquiry
• Mill’s On Liberty
• Nietzsche’s Beyond Good and Evil

TEXTBOOKS

• Lacewing, M. Philosophy for AS, Routledge 2008
• Lacewing, M. Philosophy for A2: Unit 3, Routledge 2009
• Lacewing, M. Philosophy for A2: Unit 4, Routledge 2009
• Butler, M. AQA Philosophy for AS, Nelson Thornes 2008
• Cluett, C AQA Philosophy A2, Nelson Thornes 2009
• Hayward, J. AQA An Introduction to Philosophy for AS Level, Hodder 2008

GENERAL INTRODUCTIONS TO PHILOSOPHY

Short, accessible introductions

• Blackburn, S. Think, OUP 2001
• Craig, E. Philosophy: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2002
• Law, S. The Philosophy Files, Orion 2002; The Outer Limits, Orion 2003; The Philosophy Gym, Hodder Headline 2003: three collections of very accessible short pieces on a wide range of philosophical puzzles
• Nagel, T. What Does It All Mean?, OUP 1987 (reprinted 2004)
• Warburton, N. Philosophy: the Basics (5th ed.), Routledge 2012: the most popular and enduring introduction of them all

More in-depth introductions

• Grayling, A. (ed.) Philosophy: a Guide Through the Subject and Philosophy: Further Through the Subject, OUP 1998: specifically written for undergraduates at the University of London, the articles give clear and concise coverage of central philosophical issues
• Greetham, B. Philosophy, Palgrave Macmillan 2006
• Hollis, M. Invitation to Philosophy, Blackwell 1997
• Horner, C. & Westacott, E. Thinking Through Philosophy, CUP 2000
• Morton, A. Philosophy in Practice, Blackwell 1995
• Teichman, J. & Evans, K. Philosophy: a Beginner’s Guide, Blackwell 1991

Two reference works

• Blackburn, S. The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy, OUP 1996
• The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: an excellent and constantly growing resource; too detailed for students’ purposes, but teachers may find some of the articles useful, if challenging

Journals

• Think (www.royalinstitutephilosophy.org/think/index.php)
• The Philosopher’s Magazine (www.philosophersnet.com)
• Philosophy Now (www.philosophynow.org)
• Dialogue (www.dialogue.org.uk): for Philosophy of Religion and Ethics
• Philosophy Compass (http://philosophy-compass.com): more in-depth survey articles

 PHILOSOPHICAL SKILLS AND CRITICAL THINKING

Philosophical skills

• Baggini, J. & Fosl, P., The Philosopher’s Toolkit, Wiley-Blackwell, 2010: a very good compendium of clear explanations of concepts and arguments
• Martinich, A., Philosophical Writing (3^rd ed), Wiley-Blackwell, 2005: the Bible on approach and technique
• Saunders, C. et al, Doing Philosophy: a Practical Guide for Students, Continuum, 2008: designed for undergraduates, but with lots of very helpful information on skills
• Warburton, N. The Basics of Essay Writing, Routledge, 2007
• Warburton, Nigel Thinking A to Z, Routledge 2000
• Warburton, N. Philosophy: the Essential Study Guide, Routledge, 2004
• Weston, Anthony A Rulebook for Arguments, Hackett 2000

Critical Thinking

This is a collection of recommendations for undergraduates, but many are suitable for A level students as well. The first three books are perhaps the most popular, and also have on-line back-up. The McKay is particular recommended.

• Govier, Trudy 1992: Practical Study of Argument. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
• Hurley, Patrick 2000: A Concise Introduction to Logic. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.
• McKay, Thomas 2000: Reasons, Explanations, and Decisions: Guidelines for Critical Thinking. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.

• Bowell, Tracy and Kemp, Gary Critical Thinking: A Concise Guide, Routledge 2002
• Fisher, Alec Critical Thinking: An Introduction, Cambridge University Press 2001
• Fisher, Alec The Logic of Real Arguments, Cambridge University Press 2004
• Fogelin, Robert Understanding Arguments, Harcourt College Publishers 2001
• Hospers, John An Introduction to Philosophical Analysis, Routledge 1996
• Moore, N.B. and Parker, R. Critical Thinking: Evaluating Arguments in Everyday Life, Mayfield Publishing Company 1989
• Ruggiero, Vincent Beyond Feelngs: A Guide to Critical Thinking, Mayfield Publishing Company 1984
• Shand, John Arguing Well, Routledge. 2000
• Thomson, Anne Critical Reasoning: A Practical Introduction, Routledge 2002
• Thomson, Anne, Critical Reasoning in Ethics: A Practical Introduction, Routledge 1999
• Tymoczko, T. and Henle, J. Sweet Reason: A Field Guide to Modern Logic. Springer 1999

EPISTEMOLOGY

• Audi, R. Epistemology: A Contemporary Introduction to Theory of Knowledge, Routledge 1998: a very accessible, clear, introductory text
• Ayer, A. J. The Problem of Knowledge, various editions: a classic of 20th-century philosophical writing about many of the central problems of epistemology, written in a clear, engaging style
• Carruthers, P. Human Knowledge and Human Nature, OUP 1992: on the origin of concepts and nature of knowledge
• Cole, P. The Theory of Knowledge, Hodder & Stoughton 2002: very accessible, but a little thin
• Dancy, J. & Sosa, E. A Companion to Epistemology, Blackwell 1997: an excellent encyclopaedic reference work with an astonishing amount of useful material about different aspects of the subject in one volume
• Hetherington, S. Epistemology: The Key Thinkers, Continuum 2012: useful for a number of the anthology texts
• Lehrer, K. Theory of Knowledge, 2^nd edition, Perseus 2000: another good introduction, which should be accessible to readers who are less familiar with the theory of knowledge
• Martin, RM Epistemology: A Beginner’s Guide, Oneworld Publications 2010
• Nagel, J Knowledge: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press 2014
• O’Brien, D. An Introduction to the Theory of Knowledge, Polity 2006
• Pritchard, D What is this thing called Knowledge?, 3rd Edition, Routledge 2013: very engaging read
• Russell, B. The Problems of Philosophy, various editions, e.g. Opus 2001: as with Ayer
• Williams, M. Problems of Knowledge: A Critical Introduction to Epistemology, OUP 2001: an excellent introduction, if a bit less easy than Audi

ETHICS

The anthology includes two introductions to ethics:

• Rachels, J. The Elements of Moral Philosophy
• Warnock, G. Contemporary Moral Philosophy

Other helpful texts include:

• Blackburn, S. Being Good, OUP 2001: a lively, engaging, and quick introduction to the main issues of ethics, written in a very clear style.
• Singer, P. (ed.) A Companion to Ethics, Blackwell 1991: a great resource. Each essay, written for the beginner, is an excellent survey of a single topic.
• Benn, P. Ethics, UCL Press 1998: a careful and accurate introduction across the whole range of normative and metaethical issues.
• Norman, R. The Moral Philosophers, Clarendon Press 1983: one of the best introductions to the normative and metaethical theories of ethics via the great philosophers who held them. It also includes a good discussion of moral realism.
• Williams, B. Morality, CUP 1976: difficult, but excellent, discussions of subjectivism, relativism, the idea of ‘good’, and utilitarianism.
• Smart, J. & Williams, B. Utilitarianism: For and Against, CUP 1973: one of the most informative discussions of utilitarianism – its structure, its motives, and its problems.
• Baggini, J. Philosophy: Key Themes, Palgrave MacMillan 2002: written for the A level
• Crisp. R. Mill on Utilitarianism, Routledge 1997: a thorough, but clear, treatment of Bentham and Mill’s utilitarianism
• Blackburn, S. Ethics: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2003
• Jones, G. Exploring Ethics, John Murray 2000

Specifically on practical ethical issues:

• Singer, P. Practical Ethics (2nd ed.), CUP 1993: defending a utilitarian standpoint but discussing a wide range of arguments in practical ethics.
• Glover, J. Causing Death and Saving Lives, Penguin 1977: as with Singer, but more detailed
• DeGrazia, D. Animal Rights: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2002
• Hope, T. Medical Ethics: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2004

POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY

• Baggini, J. Philosophy: Key Themes, Palgrave MacMillan 2002: written for the A level
• Crick, B. Democracy: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2002
• Freeden, M. Ideology: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2003
• Harris, E. Nationalism, Edinburgh University Press 2005
• Heywood, A. Political Ideologies: an Introduction, Palgrave Macmillan 2003
• Heywood, A. Politics, Palgrave Macmillan 1997
• Heywood, A. Political Theory, Palgrave Macmillan 1999
• Heywood, A. Key Concepts in Politics, Palgrave Macmillan 2000: all introductory textbooks by the Chief Examiner in A Level Government and Politics
• Knowles, D. Political Philosophy, Routledge 2001
• Lee, S. Law and Morals: Warnock, Gillick and Beyond, OUP 1986: a short and readable survey of the relevant debates on questions of law
• Miller, D. Political Philosophy: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2003
• Minogue, K. Politics: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 1995: readable and very short
• Raphael, D. D. Problems of Political Philosophy, Palgrave 1990: readable, thematic approach
• Rosen & Wolff, Political Thought, OUP 1999
• Swift, A. Political Philosophy: a Beginner’s Guide for Students and Politicians (2nd ed.), Polity 2006: concentrates on the themes of social justice, liberty, equality and community, and manages to condense many wide-ranging debates in clear and succinct discussions
• Thomas, G. Introduction to Political Philosophy, Duckworth 2000: much lengthier than Wolff, but still very clear and readable
• Wolff, J. An Introduction to Political Philosophy, OUP 1996: a very readable introductory book
• Zwolinski, M. Arguing About Political Philosophy, Routledge 2009
• Specifically on tolerance: McKinnon, C. Toleration, Routledge 2005

MORAL PHILOSOPHY

• Baggini, J. Philosophy: Key Themes, Palgrave MacMillan 2002: written for the A Level
• Barrow, R. An Introduction to Moral Philosophy and Moral Education, Routledge 2007
• Benn, P. Ethics, UCL Press 1998: a careful and accurate introduction across the whole range of normative and metaethical issues.
• Blackburn, S. Being Good, OUP 2001: a lively, engaging, and quick introduction to the main issues of ethics, written in a very clear style.
• Blackburn, S. Ethics: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2003
• Crisp. R. Mill on Utilitarianism, Routledge 1997: a thorough, but clear, treatment of Bentham and Mill’s utilitarianism
• DeGrazia, D. Animal Rights: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2002
• Fisher & Kirchin, Arguing About Metaethics, Routledge 2006
• Glover, J. Causing Death and Saving Lives, Penguin 1977: as with Singer, but more detailed
• Hope, T. Medical Ethics: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2004
• Jones, G. Exploring Ethics, John Murray 2000
• Mackie, J. Ethics: Inventing Right and Wrong, Penguin 1977 (or Viking 1991): the first two chapters present a powerful attack on moral realism
• Mizzoni, J. Ethics:The Basics, Wiley-Blackwell 2009
• Norman, R. The Moral Philosophers, Clarendon Press 1983: one of the best introductions to the normative and metaethical theories of ethics via the great philosophers who held them. It also includes a good discussion of moral realism
• Rachels, J. Can Ethics Provide Answers?, Rowman & Littlefield 1996
• Rachels, J. The Elements of Moral Philosophy (5th ed.), McGraw-Hill 2006: one of the clearest, mid-length introductions to ethics there is. He considers normative theories in relation to practical issues.
• Singer, P. (ed.) A Companion to Ethics, Blackwell 1991: an irreplaceable resource. Each essay, written for the beginner, is an excellent survey of a single topic.
• Singer, P. Practical Ethics (2nd ed.), CUP 1993: defending a utilitarian standpoint but discussing a wide range of arguments in practical ethics.
• Smart, J. & Williams, B. Utilitarianism: For and Against, CUP 1973: one of the most informative discussions of utilitarianism – its structure, its motives, and its problems.
• Stewart, N. Ethics: An Introduction to Moral Philosophy, Polity Press 2008
• Williams, B. Morality, CUP 1976: difficult, but excellent, discussions of subjectivism, relativism, the idea of ‘good’, and utilitarianism.

PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION

General introductions

• Clack, B. & Clack, B. The Philosophy of Religion: A Critical Introduction (2nd ed), Polity Press 2008
• Davies, B. An Introduction to the Philosophy of Religion, 3^rd ed, OUP 2004
• Evans, C. S. Pocket Dictionary of Apologetics and Philosophy of Religion, InterVarsity Press 2002
• Hick, J. Philosophy of Religion, 4th ed., Prentice Hall 1990
• Jackson, R. The God of Philosophy, The Philosopher’s Magazine 2001
• Jones, G. et. al. Philosophy of Religion, John Murray 2005
• Peterson, M. et. al. Reason and Religious Belief, 4^th ed., OUP 2012
• Zagzebski, L. Philosophy of Religion: An Historical Introduction, Wiley-Blackwell, 2007

Collections

• Davies, B. (ed.) Philosophy of Religion: a Guide and Anthology, OUP 2000
• Davies, B. (ed.) Philosophy of Religion: a Guide to the Subject, Cassell 1998
• Mitchell, B. (ed.) The Philosophy of Religion, OUP 1971
• Palmer, M. The Philosophy of Religion: A Commentary and Sourcebook, Lutterworth 2008
• Quinn & Taliaferro (ed.) A Companion to Philosophy of Religion, Blackwell 1999

More focused topics or approach

• Baggini, J. Atheism: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2003
• Hughes, G. Is God to Blame? (on the problem of evil), Veritas 2007
• Swinburne, R. The Coherence of Theism, Clarendon Press 1993
• Timpe, K. Arguing About Religion, Routledge 2009
• Vardy, P. The Puzzle of God, 3rd ed., Fount 1999

PHILOSOPHY OF MIND

• Baggini, J. Philosophy: Key Themes, Palgrave MacMillan 2002: written for the A level
• Blackmore, S. Consciousness: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2005
• Churchland, P. (1988) Matter and Consciousness, rev. ed. (MIT Press): an accessible classic
• Crane, T. Elements of Mind, OUP 2002: an excellent, but occasionally challenging, introduction to intentionality, the mind-body problem, consciousness, propositional attitudes and perception
• Crane, T. The Mechanical Mind, Penguin 1995: an excellent introduction to topics on the border between philosophy of mind and philosophy of cognitive science
• Graham, G. Philosophy of Mind, Blackwell 1998: a very approachable and engaging introduction to many topics on the syllabus
• Guttenplan, S. (ed.) Companion to Philosophy of Mind, Blackwell 1994: an indispensable reference work with entries on many of the concepts and topics covered in the syllabus
• Heil, J. Philosophy of Mind: a Contemporary Introduction (3^rd ed.), Routledge 2014: a solid, detailed, and very up-to-date textbook written in a clear and well-organised way
• Kim, J. Philosophy of Mind (3^rd ed.), Westview 2011: as for Heil
• Maslin, K. An Introduction to Philosophy of Mind (2nd ed.), Polity Press 2007
• Maslin, K. An Introduction to Philosophy of Mind, Polity Press 2001: written for the A level
• Ravenscroft, I. Philosophy of Mind, OUP 2005: a very clear introduction, pitched for the complete beginner
• Searle, J. Mind: a Brief Introduction, OUP 2004: a different approach that introduces some of the difficult issues in Philosophy of Mind, and where we’ve gone wrong in thinking about them
• Smith & Jones Philosophy of Mind, CUP 1986: as for Heil

FREE WILL AND DETERMINISM

• Honderich, T. How Free Are You?, OUP 2002
• McFee, G. Free Will, Acumen 2000
• Pink, T. Free Will: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2004
• Watson, G. (ed.) Free Will (2nd ed.), OUP 2003

VALUE OF ART

• Dickie, G. Introduction to Aesthetics, OUP 1997
• Lyas, C. Aesthetics, Routledge 1997
• Neill & Ridley, Arguing About Art, Routledge 2007
• Sheppard, A. Aesthetics, OUP 1987
• Warburton, N. The Art Question, Routledge 2003
• Wollheim, R. Art and Its Objects, CUP 1980

METAPHYSICS

• Loux, M. Metaphysics, Routledge 2006, Ch. 1, 2
• O’Hear, A. What Philosophy Is (esp. Ch. 1, pp. 11-86), Penguin 2002
• Rea, M. Arguing About Metaphysics, Routledge 2009
• Russell, B. Problems of Philosophy (various editions, e.g. Opus 2001)
• Van Inwagen, Metaphysics, Westview Press 2002

PLATO REPUBLIC

• Annas, J. Plato: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2002
• Daniel, D. Briefly: Plato’s Republic, SCM Press 2006
• Flew, A. Introduction to Western Philosophy, Thames & Hudson, 1989, Ch. 2
• Pappas, N. Plato and the Republic, Routledge 2003, esp. Ch. 3, 7
• Press, G. Plato: A Guide for the Perplexed, Continuum 2007
• Purshouse, L. Plato’s Republic, Continuum 2006
• Sheppard, D. Plato’s Republic, Edinburgh University Press 2009

DESCARTES MEDITATIONS

• Daniel, D. Briefly: Descartes’ Meditations, SCM Press 2006
• Francks, R. Descartes’ Meditations, Continuum 2008
• Hatfield, G. Descartes and the Meditations, Routledge 2003
• Jones, G. et. al. The Meditations: Rene Descartes, John Murray 2006
• Skirry, J Descartes: A Guide for the Perplexed, Continuum 2008
• Sorell, T. Descartes: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2000
• Southwell, G. A Beginner’s Guide to Descartes’ Meditations, Blackwell 2008
• Williams, B. Descartes: the Project of Pure Enquiry, Penguin 1985/Routledge 2005

HUME, D. AN ENQUIRY CONCERNING HUMAN UNDERSTANDING

• Ayer, A. J. Hume: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2000
• Baggini, J. Philosophy: Key Texts, Palgrave MacMillan 2002
• Bailey & O’Brien, Hume’s Enquiry concerning Human Understanding, Continuum 2006
• Coventry, A. Hume: A Guide for the Perplexed, Continuum 2007
• Daniels, D. Briefly: Hume’s Enquiry concerning Human Understanding, SCM Press 2007
• Noonan, H. Hume on Knowledge, Routledge 1999

MILL, J. S. ON LIBERTY

• Berger, F. Happiness, Justice and Freedom, University of California Press 1984
• Gray, J. J. S. Mill’s ‘On Liberty’ in Focus, Routledge 1991
• Gray, J. Mill On Liberty: a Defence, Routledge 1996 Myerson, G. Mill’s On Liberty, Hodder Arnold 2001
• Riley, J. Mill on Liberty, Routledge 1998
• Ryan, A. The Philosophy of John Stuart Mill, Palgrave Macmillan 1998
• Scarre, G. Mill’s On Liberty, Continuum 2007

NIETZSCHE, F. BEYOND GOOD AND EVIL

• Acampora & Pearson, Nietzsche’s Beyond Good and Evil, Continuum 2010
• Burnham, D. Reading Nietzsche, Acumen 2007
• Daniel, D. Briefly: Nietzsche’s Beyond Good and Evil, SCM Press 2007
• Hill, R K Nietzsche: A Guide for the Perplexed, Continuum 2007
• Southwell, G. A Beginner’s Guide to Nietzsche’s Beyond Good and Evil, Wiley Blackwell 2009
• Tanner, M. Nietzsche: a Very Short Introduction, OUP 2000