'Is there any knowledge in the world which is so certain that no reasonable man
could doubt it?' Philosophy is the attempt to answer such ultimate questions, no
t carelessly and dogmatically, as we might deal with them in ordinary life, but
critically, after analysing how and why the questions arise and clarifying the a
ssumptions and concepts on which they are based. This classic work, first publis
hed in 1912, has never been supplanted as an approachable introduction to the th
eory of philosophical enquiry. It gives Russell's views on such subjects as the
distinction between appearance and reality, the existence and nature of matter,
idealism, knowledge by acquaintance and by description, induction, and the limit
s and value of philosophical knowledge.
