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Best introductory textbooks in different areas?

In our March "how can we help you?" thread, a reader writes:

Is there a thread or a place which recommends the best textbooks for introductory courses to the core areas: metaphysics, epistemology, etc.?—for very good students that have no background and want to learn the fundamentals. I am teaching such courses but my choice of readings has not been satisfactory. I am a faculty but have never taken undergrad courses in analytic philosophy. Thank you thank you!

This is a great query, and I'd love to hear some answers from readers, not just in "core" areas (metaphysics, mind, language, logic, epistemology), but also in other areas too! For example, I'd be curious to hear what people think the best introductory textbooks are in (but not limited to) the following:

  • Moral philosophy
  • Bioethics
  • Philosophy of law
  • Business Ethics
  • Environmental
  • Bioethics
  • Etc.

In my own case, I've often experimented with different texts, haven't always been happy with the ones that I've used, and I am always on the lookout for better options. So, what do you all think? What do you think are the best intro-level textbooks in various areas (and why)?

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9 responses to “Best introductory textbooks in different areas?”

  1. Tim O’Keefe

    My suggestion is that you gather together pdfs of the pieces you want to teach and post them to the site for your course on your university’s Course Management Software, so that students don’t have to pay for a textbook. Your students will appreciate it.
    You can browse through various textbooks to find promising pieces to use. Often, they’ll be reproductions of journal articles or chapters of books, where you can obtains the originals through your library holdings or ILL; if not, photocopy the couple of pages you need instead of having your students purchase a whole textbook with lots of lots of things they won’t be using. You’ll want to check what the standards are for fair use for education to make sure you’re not doing anything illegal. But as long as the material is password-protected on a University system so that only the relevant students can access it, instead of just putting it out on the internet for all to see, you should be able to put together a good set of readings without a problem.

    Reply
  2. JP Messina

    I agree with Tim O’Keefe. Also, for folks teaching logic (which might otherwise seem an exception to this rule), I’ve found Carnap.io to be an excellent resource. Graham Leach-Krouse is super helpful and, though there’s a learning curve, it’s a powerful system with its own open-source textbook. (It is also compatible with many of the major logic textbooks, in case you just want to save your students money on online software.)

    Reply
  3. anon

    You can also find entirely free copies of books using LibGen.
    Students already do that anyways, so might as well save them the trouble.
    I had a ballsy student who on the first day of class uploaded a pdf copy of the the book I was having student buy to the canvas site for our course.
    I don’t think its a big mystery where he got it.

    Reply
  4. Chris Stephens

    For epistemology, I like Jennifer Nagel’s book, Knowledge: a very short introduction. You can get a new paperback for $11 and used ones seem to go for about $6 or $7.
    In general, the “very short introduction” books are inexpensive, though perhaps a bit more introductory that is appropriate for some purposes. I also like Okasha’s Philosophy of Science: a very short introduction.
    For more on free on line logic texts, there is
    https://openlogicproject.org/

    Reply
  5. Tim

    For metaphysics, I recommend Loux & Crisp’s Metaphysics, which covers a range of traditional problems. For epistemology, Feldman’s Epistemology is easy and accessible, though a little dated. For philosophy of mind, Kim’s Philosophy of Mind is well-written and rigorous. For ethics, I liked Shafer-Landau’s Fundamental of Ethics for its range of topics. I haven’t found any textbooks in metaethics, philosophy of language, or philosophy of science I really liked.

    Reply
  6. Daniel Weltman

    Chrisman’s metaethics textbook is my favorite of all of the metaethics textbooks. A lot of the others are too long and complicated, or have too narrow a focus.

    Reply
  7. Greg Robson (Iowa State University)

    For technology ethics, Jon Tsou and I have a collection of new essays from top contributors under contract with Routledge. Should be very helpful for instructors.

    Reply
  8. Mike Titelbaum

    Since Greg broke the seal on self-promotion: My “Fundamentals of Bayesian Epistemology” should be in print in time for the fall semester. (Pre-orderable now!) The first volume covers all the basics, and OUP was kind enough to price it at $25. The second volume goes more in-depth, is longer, and is $35. (Sorry Marcus for taking advantage of the free ad space.)
    If my book is too advanced for what you’re doing, I can also recommend Darren Bradley’s book as a more intro welcome to Bayesianism.

    Reply
  9. Adam

    Metaethics: Miller-Introduction to Contemporary Metaethics
    Well-being: Fletcher-The Philosophy of Well-being
    Phenomenology: Moran-Introduction to Phenomenology

    Reply

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