The late 20th century saw a remarkable flourishing of philosophy in France. The work of French philosophers is wide ranging, historically informed, often reaching out beyond the boundaries of philosophy; they are public intellectuals, taken seriously as contributors to debates outside the academy. Gary Gutting tells the story of the development of a distinctively French philosophy in the last four decades of the 20th century.

His aim is to arrive at an account ofwhat it was to 'do philosophy'...

We live in a complex and dynamic world. Understanding how to monitor, manage and conserve species and habitats - the goal of applied ecology - is of ever-increasing importance. Applied Ecology shows students how an understanding of ecological theory can be used to address the most important issues facing ecologists today.

Its explicitly problem-solving approach reflects the reality of using ecological tools and approaches in applied contexts, while also highlighting the key ecological theorie...

Very Short Introductions: Brilliant, Sharp, Inspiring Law is at the heart of every society, protecting rights, imposing duties, and establishing a framework for the conduct of almost all social, political, and economic activity. Despite this, the law often seems a highly technical, perplexing mystery, with its antiquated and often impenetrable jargon, obsolete procedures, and endless stream of judgements and complex legislation. In this Very Short Introduction Raymond Wacks introduces the maj...

There have been two main traditions of writing on ethics in the Islamic tradition, one philosophical and related to the works of Aristotle and other Greek philosophers, represented by thinkers such as Avicenna, and one theological, represented by such figures as the famous theologian al-Qadi Abd al-Jabbar. Some later scholars attempted to combine those two traditions. For the most part, however, the views of the jurists have been ignored.

Abdulaziz Sachedina herecalls attention to this third ...

.Political Philosophy: The Essential Texts is ideal for survey courses in political philosophy. Offering unprecedented coverage from antiquity to the present, this historically organized collection presents the most significant works from nearly 2,500 years of political philosophy. The readings are substantial or complete texts, not fragments.

An especially valuable feature of this volume is that the works of each author are introduced with an engaging essay by aleading contemporary authority.

Harriet Jacobs's slave narrative is remarkable for its candid exposure of the sexual abuse suffered by slaves at the hands of their owners. Her sufferings, and eventual escape to the North, are described in vivid detail. This edition also includes her brother's short memoir, 'A True Tale of Slavery'.

China today is never out of the news: from international finance to human rights controversies, global coverage of its rising international presence, and the Chinese 'economic miracle'. It seems to be a country of contradictions: a peasant society with some of the world's most futuristic cities, heir to an ancient civilization that is still trying to find a modern identity. This Very Short Introduction offers the reader an entry to understanding the world's most populous nation, giving an int...

This extremely popular text is the complete introduction to doing business research and is the ideal guide for students embarking on a research project. The authors have extensively revised this sixth edition to make it the most engaging and relevant text available. New chapters on quantitative methods and visual research offer extensive coverage of these areas and even greater practical support in applying these techniques, while cutting-edge material on inclusivity and bias in research, fem...

Performed variously as escapist fantasy, celebratory fiction, and political allegory, The Tempest is one of the plays in which Shakespeare's genius as a poetic dramatist found its fullest expression. Significantly, it was placed first when published in the First Folio of 1623, and is now generally seen as the playwright's most penetrating statement about his art. Stephen Orgel's wide-ranging introduction examines changing attitudes to The Tempest, and reassesses the evidence behind the variou...