Naming the Elephant: Worldview as a Concept

What is a worldview? What lies behind your thoughts about almost everything? For more than thirty years, James W. Sire has grappled with this issue. In his widely used textbook The Universe Next Door, first published in 1976, Sire offered a succinct definition of a worldview and catalogued in summary fashion seven basic worldview alternatives. Students, critics, new literature and continued reflection have led him to reexamine and refine his definition of a worldview. This second edition companion volume to The Universe Next Door is the fruit of that effort, offering readers his most mature thought on the concept of a worldview, addressing such questions as

• What is the history of the concept itself?
• What is the first question you should ask in formulating a worldview?
• How are worldviews formed existentially as well as intellectually?
• Is a worldview primarily an intellectual system, a way of life or a story?
• What are the public and private dimensions of a worldview?
• What role can worldview thinking play in assessing your own worldview and those of others, especially in light of the pluralism in today’s world?

Naming the Elephant is an excellent resource for exploring more deeply how and why worldview thinking can aid you in navigating your pluralistic universe.

James W. Sire (PhD, University of Missouri), formerly a senior editor at InterVarsity Press, is the author of many books, including The Universe Next Door, Why Should Anyone Believe Anything at All? Habits of the Mind and Apologetics Beyond Reason.