How to Think Like a Philosopher

Pay attention. As politics slides toward impulsivity, and outrage bests rationality, how can philosophy help us critically engage with real world problems? Question everything. Drawing on decades of work in philosophy including a huge range of interviews with contemporary philosophers, Julian Baggini sets out how philosophical thought can promote incisive thinking. Introducing everyday examples and contemporary political concerns - from climate change to implicit bias - How to Think Like a Philosopher is a revelatory exploration of the techniques, methods and principles that guide philosophy, and how they can be applied to our own lives. Seek clarity, not certainty. Covering canonical philosophers and focal movements, as well as introducing new voices in contemporary philosophy, this is both a short history of philosophy and an accessible, practical guide to good thinking. Through twelve key principles, Julian Baggini outlines a pathway to a more humane, balanced and rational approach to thinking, to politics, and to life.

JULIAN BAGGINI's books include the Sunday Times bestselling How the World Thinks; How to Think Like a Philosopher; The Virtues of the Table; and the bestselling The Pig That Wants to be Eaten, all published by Granta Books. He was the founding editor of The Philosophers' Magazine and has written for numerous newspapers and magazines, including the Guardian, the TLS, the Financial Times and Prospect, as well as for the think tanks The Institute of Public Policy Research, Demos and Counterpoint. He has served as Academic Director of the Royal Institute of Philosophy, is a Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Leeds and has been a member of the Food Ethics Council since 2016. His website is JulianBaggini.com.