The Dream of Enlightenment: The Rise of Modern Philosophy
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.47 (567 Votes) |
| Asin | : | B01MF5IFYG |
| Format Type | : | |
| Number of Pages | : | 526 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2016-02-21 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
"Enlightening book (couldn’t resist)" according to Jacques Liard. The author gives a concise history of philosophy from Descartes to Voltaire, by a circuitous route that includes Leibniz, Newton, Locke, Hume etc. He provides a good description of the periods these people lived in and the challenges they faced when trying to publish their work(s). The book is enjoyable to read and one wished that there was more to absorb from such an important period of history.. "More of a Primer than a Grand Synthesis" according to Richard B. Schwartz. Gottlieb’s new account of the enlightenment is a pleasant and easy read. The thought of major philosophers is balanced with their biographies and an overall sense of the enlightenment program (challenging the hegemony of the church and aristocracy by the advocacy of science and reason) comes through in a lucid fashion.The title is, however, somewhat misleading. The book principally concerns philosophy rather than science and the empirical method. The latter are discussed, of course, but the cha. "What a Terrific Read!" according to Richard A. Johnson. Unless you're studying for a advanced degree in philosophy, I'm afraid reading the stuff is much like panning for gold: a great deal of effort for a very occasional nugget of insight. But this book - wow! You really get inside the head of these revered icons via Gottlieb's narrative. He provides all the goodies: historical context, character description, incidental correspondence between philosophers, high praise or, sometimes, puerile criticism by one philosopher of another., etc., etc. It is refres
The Dream of Enlightenment tells their story, and that of the birth of modern philosophy. Yet it is because we still want to hear them that we can easily get these philosophers wrong. What does the advance of science entail for our understanding of ourselves and for our ideas of God? How should a government deal with religious diversity - and what, actually, is government for? Such questions remain our questions, which is why Descartes, Hobbes, and the others are still pondered today. They tried to fathom the implications of the new science and of religious upheaval, which led them to question traditional teachings and attitudes. It is tempting to think they speak our language and live in our world; but to understand them properly, we must step back into their shoes. Gottlieb puts listeners in the minds of these frequently misinterpreted figures, elucidating the history of their times and the development of scientific ideas, while engagingly explaining their arguments and assessing their legacy in lively prose. In his landmark survey of Western philosophy from the Greeks to the Renaissance, The Dream of Reason, Anthony Gottlieb documented the first burst, which came in the Athens of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. Western philosophy is now two-and-a-half millennia old, but much of it came in just two staccato bursts, each lastin