<p>hey guys, i'm freaking out here. i'm hoping to do philosophy in college but here's the hitch--i have ZERO prior knowledge. college is in 2 weeks' time and i'm crapping my pants. could you guys introduce me some philo books to read? intro level stuff?</p>
<p>probably thinking of doing english too, but damn, the last time i did lit was WAYYYY back in 2000. was educated in a rigid system, so yeah. (okok, it's not the system's fault, i should have pursued that interest myself, yada yada yada)
what should i do that prep myself up for taking english in college?</p>
<p>Before taking any other philosophy courses, you should take an Introduction to Philosophy course in your first year. If you enjoy it, do well, really want to major in it afterward, etc., THEN focus on philosophy in your second, third, and fourth years. Studying philosophy can be quite a lot to wrap your head around, and the last thing you want to do as a first-year beginner is overload yourself with it. Again, an Intro course is more than sufficient for first year. </p>
<p>Anyway, the best written introduction to philosophy that I know of is still the old multi-volume A History of Philosophy series by Frederick Copleston, S.J. It is a massive work altogether, but you could start with volume one, Greece and Rome.</p>
<p>Also supremely helpful are Antony Flew's A Dictionary of Philosophy and Simon Blackburn's The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy. As a philosophy specialist, I don't know what I would do without at least Flew's classic.</p>
<p>I wouldn't worry about it too much. Most people coming into college have no prior experience with philosophy since it isn't usually taught in high school. I wouldn't do to much preparatory reading because you won't be able to understand the primary sources on your own without some prior training. I would just take the intro course and go from there.</p>