One need only read a few pages of PHILOSOPHY: A TEXT WITH READINGS, 13th Edition, to appreciate Manuel Velasquez's gift for making complex philosophical concepts accessible to today's students while still exposing them to college-level writing. This book is a perfect choice for first-time philosophy students, as it covers a wide range of topics, including human nature, reality, truth, ethics, the meaning of life, diversity, and social/political philosophy, all supported by nontechnical primary sources. The thirteenth edition includes new features that help students engage with the topics and readings more than ever. Like the previous edition, this new edition includes critical-thinking and argument analysis activities carefully woven into the book's narrative. Whether you are teaching your course online or in the classroom, unmatched support is just a click away with MindTap for PHILOSOPHY: A TEXT WITH READINGS, a powerful course resource system.

1. THE NATURE OF PHILOSOPHY.
What Is Philosophy? The Traditional Divisions of Philosophy. A Philosopher in Action: Socrates. The Value of Philosophy. Chapter Summary. Reading: Voltaire, "Story of a Good Brahman" Historical Showcase: The First Philosophers.
2. HUMAN NATURE.
Why Does Your View of Human Nature Matter? What Is Human Nature? The Mind-Body Problem: How Do Mind and Body Relate? Is There an Enduring Self? Are We Independent and Self-Sufficient Individuals? Chapter Summary. Readings: Kate Chopin, "The Story of an Hour," Janice M. Steil, "Contemporary Marriage: Still an Unequal partnership," Jean Grimshaw, "Identity in Feminist Thinking." Historical Showcase: Plato, Aristotle, and Confucius.
3. REALITY AND BEING.
What Is Real? Reality: Material or Nonmaterial? Reality in Pragmatism. Reality and Logical Postivism. Antirealism: The Heir of Pragmatism and Idealism. Is Freedom Real? Is Time Real? Chapter Summary. Readings: Sophocles, "Oedipus the King" Robert Solomon, "Fate." Historical Showcase: Hobbes and Berkeley.
4. PHILOSOPHY, RELIGION, AND GOD.
The Significance of Religion. Defining Religion. Does God Exist? Atheism, Agnosticism, and the Problem of Evil. Traditional Religious Belief and Experience. Nontraditional Religious Experience. Chapter Summary. Readings: Fyodor Dostoevsky, excerpt from The Brothers Karamazov, William P. Alston, "The Inductive Argument from Evil and the Human Cognitive Condition." Historical Showcase: Aquinas, Descartes, and Conway.
5. THE SOURCES OF KNOWLEDGE.
Why Is Knowledge a Problem? Is Reason the Source of Our Knowledge? Can the Senses Account for All Our Knowledge? Kant: Does the Knowing Mind Shape the World? Does Science Give Us Knowledge? Chapter Summary. Readings: Bierce, "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge," Unger, "A Defense of Skepticism," Nagel, "How Do We Know Anything?" Historical Showcase: Hume.
6. TRUTH.
Knowledge and Truth. What Is Truth? Does Science Give Us Truth? Can Interpretations Be True? Chapter Summary. Readings: Akutagawa, "In a Grove," Tomlinson, "After Truth: Post-Modernism and the Rhetoric of Science," Searle, "Reality and Truth." Historical Showcase: Kant.
7. ETHICS.
What Is Ethics? Is Ethics Relative? Do Consequences Make an Action Right? Do Rules Define Morality? Is Ethics Based on Character? Can Ethics Resolve Moral Quandaries? Chapter Summary. Readings: Fyodor Dostoyevsky, "The Heavenly Christmas Tree," Peter Singer, "Famine, Affluence, and Morality." Historical Showcase: Nietzsche and Wollstonecraft.
8. SOCIAL AND POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY.
What Is Social and Political Philosophy? What Justifies the State? What Is Justice? Limits on the State. Chapter Summary. Readings: Remarque, from All Quiet on the Western Front, Bertrand Russell, "The Ethics of War." Historical Showcase: Marx and Rawls.
9. POSTSCRIPT: THE MEANING OF LIFE.
Does Life Have Meaning? The Theistic Response to Meaning. Meaning and Human Progress. The Nihilist Rejection of Meaning. Meaning as a Self-Chosen Commitment. Chapter Summary.
Glossary.
Suggestions for Further Reading.
Index.

One need only read a few pages of PHILOSOPHY: A TEXT WITH READINGS, 13th Edition, to appreciate Manuel Velasquez's gift for making complex philosophical concepts accessible to today's students while still exposing them to college-level writing. This book is a perfect choice for first-time philosophy students, as it covers a wide range of topics, including human nature, reality, truth, ethics, the meaning of life, diversity, and social/political philosophy, all supported by nontechnical primary sources. The thirteenth edition includes new features that help students engage with the topics and readings more than ever. Like the previous edition, this new edition includes critical-thinking and argument analysis activities carefully woven into the book's narrative. Whether you are teaching your course online or in the classroom, unmatched support is just a click away with MindTap for PHILOSOPHY: A TEXT WITH READINGS, a powerful course resource system. New "Analyzing the Reading" boxes appear alongside each primary source excerpt and contain questions designed to help students understand the source text and the arguments it advances. New "Thinking Like a Philosopher" boxes are also associated with each primary source excerpt and contain questions that apply the reading to the student’s personal life. An aesthetics section entitled "What Is Art?" is now available in MindTap. Many substantive content changes have been made to specific chapters, including expanding several of the primary source excerpts; new readings on female identity; expanded coverage in the Philosophy and Religion chapter; and a number of changes to the coverage of existentialism, including more readings by Kierkegaard and different selections from Sartre. Selected original texts by important philosophers provide students with an authentic "philosophy experience" without requiring the instructor to take time to design a reader. Coverage includes science, Eastern philosophy, social/political philosophy, and women philosophers. In addition, Velasquez includes comprehensive discussion of how Eastern philosophies address many of Western philosophers' perennial questions. A complete package of teaching and learning resources helps busy instructors easily create a complete course while requiring only one text. The supplements are also helpful for graduate teaching assistants and others who may be teaching the course for the first time. The "Historical Showcase" features provide summaries of the lives and thoughts of major philosophers, along with large selections from their works, while presenting an overview of the history of philosophy. Through these features, the development of philosophical ideas is placed in context so students can see the dialogue that has taken place between philosophers throughout history and modern times. Intriguing and relevant "Philosophy and Life" boxes relate philosophy to current issues such as medical dilemmas, sociobiology, psychology, and science. Found throughout the text, each box ends with a set of questions designed to spark further thought on the subject.