European Philosophers from Descartes to Nietzsche

"Between the earliest and the latest of the works included here, we have two hundred and fifty years of vigorous and adventurous philosophizing," Monroe Beardsley writes in his introduction to this collection. "If the modern period can be only vaguely or arbitrarily bounded, it can at least be studied, and we can ask whether any dominant themes, overall patterns of movement, or notable achievements can be found within it. This question is one that is best asked by the reader after he has read, or read around in, these works." Selections have been made from the writings of twelve European philosophers. These include: Descartes Discourse on Method Pascal Thoughts Spinoza "The Nature of Evil" Leibniz "The Relation Between Soul and Body" Rousseau The Social Contract Kant Critique of Pure Reason Fichte The Vocation of Man Hegel Introduction to the Philosophy of History Schopenhauer The World as Will and Idea Comte A General View of Positivism Mach The Analysis of Sensations and the Relation of the Physical to the Psychical Nietzsche Beyond Good and Evil

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