Review by Choice Review
Honderich assembled for this project a team of scholars that includes Isaiah Berlin and W.V. Quine. They provide brief entries on a wide range of persons, ideas, and schools, including such entries as "Brain in a Vat" and "Law, Feminist Philosophy of." The entries are arranged alphabetically, and each is followed by one or more bibliographic citations and/or cross-references. Although the editor admits to a bias toward the English-speaking world, in this reviewer's own field, medieval and Renaissance thought, which is characterized by sources, topics, and key persons from many regions and languages, all entries searched for were found. Portraits of many famous philosophers and appendixes ("Logical Symbols," "Maps of Philosophy" and "A Chronological Table of Philosophy") are included. "Maps of Philosophy" provides schematic guidance to the relationships of topics and concepts in philosophy. The volume closes with an extensive index and a list of entries, the latter useful for relating individuals to their contributions. For example, Peirce is mentioned in a dozen places, including under "Sign and Symbol." General readers may find some entries difficult since they presume some knowledge of the particular topic, but informed readers will find this volume useful for almost any aspect of philosophical study. Highly recommended for all academic and research libraries. T. M. Izbicki; Johns Hopkins University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
