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Description :
DESCRIPTION:
Philosophical investigation is the root of all human knowledge. Developing new concepts, reinterpreting old truths, and reconceptualizing fundamental questions, philosophy has progressed—and driven human progress—for more than two millennia. In short, we live in a world philosophy made. In this concise history of philosophy’s world-shaping impact, Scott Soames demonstrates that the modern world—including its science, technology, and politics—simply would not be possible without the accomplishments of philosophy.
Firmly rebutting the misconception of philosophy as ivory-tower thinking, Soames traces its essential contributions to fields as diverse as law and logic, psychology and economics, relativity and rational decision theory. Beginning with the giants of ancient Greek philosophy, The World Philosophy Made chronicles the achievements of the great thinkers, from the medieval and early modern eras to the present. It explores how philosophy has shaped our language, science, mathematics, religion, culture, morality, education, and politics, as well as our understanding of ourselves.
Philosophy’s idea of rational inquiry as the key to theoretical knowledge and practical wisdom has transformed the world in which we live. From the laws that govern society to the digital technology that permeates modern life, philosophy has opened up new possibilities and set us on more productive paths. The World Philosophy Made explains and illuminates as never before the inexhaustible richness of philosophy and its influence on our individual and collective lives.
Scott Soames is Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the University of Southern California and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. His many books include Philosophical Analysis in the Twentieth Century; The Analytic Tradition in Philosophy, volumes one and two; and Analytic Philosophy in America (all Princeton). He lives in Marina Del Rey, California.
Content :
CONTENTS
Introduction ix
Timeline xiv
1 The Dawn of Western Philosophy
1
2 A Truce between Faith and Reason
20
3 The Beginnings of Modern Science
40
4 Free Societies, Free Markets, and Free People
73
5 Modern Logic and the Foundations of Mathematics 92
6 Logic, Computation, and the Birth
of the Digital Age
113
7 The Science of Language 133
8 The Science of Rational Choice 157
9 Mind, Body, and Cognitive Science 188
10 Philosophy and Physics 220
11 Liberty, Justice, and the Good Society
250
12 Laws, Constitutions, and the State 303
13 The Objectivity of Morality 341
14 Virtue, Happiness, and Meaning in the
Face of Death
373
Appendix: The Noble Deaths of Socrates
and David Home
386
Bios of Leading Figures
397
Acknowledgements
Notes
405
407
References 425
Index 435
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