Books in the Philosophy and the Global Context series

Bina Gupta strives to obtain a harmonious balance between the traditions of Eastern and Western philosophy. Using ancient and modern sources from these traditions, Gupta introduces the sources' insights on questions such as: Who am I? What is the meaning of life? How ought I to act?

Philosophical Questions: East and West is an anthology of source material for use in comparative courses in philosophy, religion, and the humanities. The readings-derived from the great works of the Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Islamic, and Western intellectual traditions-are presented as answers to some of the most enduring questions in philosophy.

Tolerance-though seen to be necessary on a world divided by deep differences-often strikes us as grudgingly given and resentfully received. Conceived more widely, however, tolerance can be seen to occupy the difficult, and contested, terrain between merely putting up with and accepting others.

How can there be sensory qualities - all that which gives meaning and value to life - if this world is really more or less as modern science tells us it is? This text proposes that physics describes only a selected aspect of all that exists - that aspect which determines the way events unfold.

This text argues for pluralistic ethics, philosophical anthropology and epistemology in a cross-cultural context. It provides an account of what it means to be a genuine social and spiritual being - a person in the diverse worlds of which we are a part, and to which we contribute.

A philosophical reflection on the changes in Eastern Europe that began in 1989. It focuses on issues such as the role of ideology; "conversions" of intellectuals; the place of philosophers in politics; the relationship between democratic slogans and everyday realities; and women's concerns.

This title seeks to develop a discouse on different cultures, philosophies and religions. The author approaches the study fo philosophy from a cross-cultural perspective allowing for fundamental similarities and illuminating differences between cultures.

The author examines the range of Indian philosophy from the Sutra period through to Navya Nyaya. It is divided into three parts that cover epistemology, metaphysics and distinction between subject and object. It also includes a discussion of Indian ethics and social philosophy.

Universal Human Rights brings new clarity to the important and highly contested concept universal human rights. The Charter of the United Nations commits nearly all nations of the world to promote, to realize and take action to achieve human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, yet this formal consensus masks an underlying confusion about the philosophical basis and practical implications of rights in a world made up of radically different national communities. This collection of essays explores the foundations of universal human rights in four sections devoted to their nature, application, enforcement and limits, concluding that shared rights help to constitute a universal human community, which supports local customs and separate state sovereignty. Rights protect the benefits of cultural diversity, while recognizing the universal dignity that every human life deserves. The eleven contributors to this volume demonstrate from their very different perspectives how human rights can help to bring moral order to an otherwise divided world.

Globalization can be seen as a process of universal standardization under the auspices of market economics, technology and hegemonic power. Resisting this process without endorsing parochial self-enclosure, Dallmayr seeks alternative visions that are rooted in distinct vernacular traditions and facilitate cross-cultural learning in a global arena.

Deals with issues regarding democracy in theory and in practice in globalized world. This work contains essays that challenge and defend assumptions about the role of democracy as a viable political and legal institution in response to globalization, focusing on the role of rights at the normative foundations of democracy in a pluralistic world.

Deals with issues regarding democracy in theory and in practice in globalized world. This work contains essays that challenge and defend assumptions about the role of democracy as a viable political and legal institution in response to globalization, focusing on the role of rights at the normative foundations of democracy in a pluralistic world.

This collection of essays, by eminent scholars from such disciplines as philosophy, economics, demography, social psychology, history and theology, examine the causes, nature and consequences of consumption patterns in America and throughout the world.