This accessible and comprehensive introductory text provides a solid foundation for understanding the core topics at the heart of philosophical inquiry. Each of the 20 chapters focuses on a single philosophical issue - ranging from truth, knowledge, perception, and free will to ethical choice, aesthetic value, the existence of God, and the nature of the state - and is written by a specialist on that topic. Contributors employ a carefully balanced, reader-friendly approach to these core issues, explaining the nature and parameters of the topic at hand in concise, non-technical language. Central Issues of Philosophy is an indispensable companion to study, familiarizing the beginning student with the full range of issues they are likely to encounter, and offering an excellent springboard for more advanced study.

John Shand is Associate Lecturer in Philosophy at The Open University. He is the author of Philosophy and Philosophers: An Introduction to Western Philosophy (1993, 1994, 2002) and Arguing Well (2000). He has also edited six books, including Fundamentals of Philosophy (2002) and the five-volume Central Works of Philosophy (2003-6).