This brief and engaging introductory text treats philosophy as a dramatic and continuous story-a conversation about humankind's deepest and most persistent concerns, in which students are encouraged to participate. Tracing the exchange of ideas between history's key philosophers, Philosophical Conversations: A Concise Historical Introduction demonstrates that while constructing an argument or making a claim, one philosopher almost always has others in mind.
The book addresses the fundamental questions of human life: Who are we? What can we know? How should we live? and What sort of reality do we inhabit? Throughout, author Norman Melchert provides a generous selection of excerpts from major philosophical works and makes them more easily understandable with his
lucid explanations. Extensive cross-references highlight the organizing themes and show students how philosophers have responded to each other's arguments.

A more concise edition of Norman Melchert's The Great Conversation: A Historical Introduction to Philosophy, Fifth Edition, Philosophical Conversations is designed to be especially accessible and visually attractive to first- and second-year college students in introduction to philosophy courses. Enhanced by numerous pedagogical features, it offers:

* Shorter and/or simplified presentations of much of the material
* A second color that enlivens the text and makes it more visually interesting
* An expanded art program featuring more than 100 photographs, illustrations, and cartoons
* Classic art at the opening of each chapter
* Numerous brief quotations from poets, politicians, and thinkers that underscore philosophical points and stimulate thought
* Explanatory footnotes and basic study questions throughout
* "Questions for Further Thought" at the end of each chapter
* Key terms, boldfaced at their first appearance and collected at the end of each chapter and in a detailed glossary at the back of the book
* "Sketches"-which provide glimpses of the ideas of various philosophers not already discussed in detail in the narrative-and "Profiles," which offer more in-depth looks at several thinkers, philosophical schools, and movements including Taoism, Zen, Jean-Paul Sartre, and Iris Murdoch
* An Instructor's Manual and Test Bank on CD that highlights essential points and offers numerous exam questions