Philosophers have always enjoyed asking awkward but very important questions such as: What is the nature of reality? What are human beings really like? What is special about human minds and consciousness? To what extent are we free to choose who we are and what we do? Can we prove that God exists? Can we be certain about anything at all? What is truth? Does language provide us with a true picture of the world? How should we behave towards each other and how should we organize society? Do computers think? Introducing Philosophy is a comprehensive guide to all of the significant philosophers of the Western world from Heraclitus to Derrida.