The Blackwell Dictionary of Western Philosophy

An impressive work in spite of my reservations expressed in the review of a comparable book by Simon Blackburn. The layout is especially clear, with cross references indicated in bold rather than with asterisks. What distinguishes the book are direct quotations from philosophers writing about the topic at the end of each entry. This means that the dictionary has an extra and very useful dimension as the reader glimpses the often felicitous formulation of some leading philosophical thinkers. It would have been instructive to add quotations at the end of the biographies too, but this would have added to the already extensive labours of the assiduous editors. The price will mean that most potential readers will have to await the paperback.