Here's an accusation - Sherlock Holmes never deduced anything. When it comes to language, it all depends on what your definition of 'is' is. And one for the existentialists - you haven't lived until you think about death all the time. Daniel Klein and Thomas Cathcart take philosophy to task with flair and gusto in this wise and hilarious treasure of a book. Lively, original, and powerfully informative, Plato and a Platypus Walk Into a Bar... is an irreverent crash course through the great thinkers and traditions. It's philosophy for everyone, from the curious layperson to the professor who's seen it all. Klein and Cathcart have the knack of getting to the core of an issue in a crystal clear line, meaning there's more room for jokes - good jokes, clever jokes, jokes that'll have you laughing so hard the people nearby will shoot you strange looks. It's the philosophy class you wish you'd had and finally, it all makes sense!

What makes you think you know what you think you know?

What if your right is my wrong?

Is it now yet?

Like the best comedians, the best cartoonists address philosophy’s Big Questions. Covering topics as diverse as religion, gender, knowledge, morality and the meaning of life (or the lack thereof), I Think, Therefore I Draw is a joyous introduction to the major debates in philosophy through history and the present.

Wittgenstein once said that a serious and good philosophical work could be written that would consist entirely of jokes. Let’s put that to the test…

This New York Times bestseller is the hilarious philosophy course everyone wishes they'd had in school. Outrageously funny, Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar... has been a breakout bestseller ever since authors-and born vaudevillians-Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein did their schtick on NPR's Weekend Edition. Lively, original, and powerfully informative, Plato and a Platypus Walk Into a Bar... is a not-so-reverent crash course through the great philosophical thinkers and traditions, from Existentialism (What do Hegel and Bette Midler have in common?) to Logic (Sherlock Holmes never deduced anything). Philosophy 101 for those who like to take the heavy stuff lightly, this is a joy to read-and finally, it all makes sense! And now, you can read Daniel Klein's further musings on life and philosophy in Travels with Epicurus and Every Time I Find the Meaning of Life, They Change it.

From the authors of the bestselling "Plato and a Platypus Walk Into a Bar" comes an uproarious new book on the meaning of death--and life, too. Illustrations throughout.

A hilarious new exploration of philosophy through cartoons from the duo who brought you the New York Times bestselling Plato and a Platypus Walk Into A Bar... Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klien have been thinking deep thoughts and writing jokes for decades, and now they are here to help us understand Philosophy through cartoons, and cartoons through Philosophy. Covering topics as diverse as religion, gender, knowledge, morality, and the meaning of life (or the lack thereof), I Think, Therefore I Draw gives a thorough introduction to all of the major debates in philosophy through history and the present. And since they explain with the help of a selection of some of the smartest cartoonists working today, you'll breeze through these weighty topics as you guffaw and slap your knee. Cathcart and Klein's Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar... and Heidegger and a Hippo Walk Through Those Pearly Gates have been a favorite of philosophers and non-philosophers alike for years. Packed with dozens of witty cartoons and loaded with profound philosophical insight, I Think, Therefore I Draw will delight readers and leave them enlightened.

A runaway trolley is hurtling down the track, brakes gone, aiming directly at five track workers who won't be able to get out of the way. You happen to be standing next to a lever that would reroute the trolley onto a spur where one worker is in the trolley's path. Would you pull the lever and reroute the train so it kills one person instead of five? How about this scenario: same runaway trolley, same five people in its path but this time there's no spur. You're observing the action from a footbridge over the tracks. The only way to stop the tram is to put a heavy weight in its path. A very large man happens to be standing next to you - do you push him onto the track in order to save the five workers? The Trolley Problem is an ethical thought experiment dreamed up in 1967 by British philosopher Philippa Foot, and further developed by American thinker Judith Jarvis Thomson in the '70s (she added the big man on the bridge). Since then, philosophers and thinkers have devised a variety of iterations of the problem, each adding its own twist on the moral dilemma, and The Runaway Trolley explores these through the lens of a trial in the court of public opinion - readers are members of the jury. Cathcart presents two opposing philosophical takes on the problem through the lawyers closing statements, but also offers up several alternative outlooks on related conundrums through a variety of other media - newspaper editorials, blogs, a police report, a debate, and overheard conversations.