Showing titles in Logic & Language

"Philosophy is not a theory," asserted Austro-British philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951), "but an activity." In this 1921 opus, his only philosophical work published during his lifetime, Wittgenstein defined the object of philosophy as the logical clarification of thoughts and proposed the solution to most philosophic problems by means of a critical method of linguistic analysis.

The Problems of Philosophy is a 1912 book by Bertrand Russell, in which the author attempts to create a brief and accessible guide to the problems of philosophy. Focusing on problems he believes will provoke positive and constructive discussion, Russell concentrates on knowledge rather than metaphysics: If it is uncertain that external objects exist, how can we then have knowledge of them but by probability.

It is widely accepted that political discourse in recent years has become more openly racist and more accepting of wildly implausible conspiracy theories. Dogwhistles and Figleaves explores ways in which such changes—both of which defied previously settled norms of political speech—have been brought about. Jennifer Saul shows that two linguistic devices, dogwhistles and figleaves, have played a crucial role.

Mysticism and Logic. The first essay, which gives its title to the volume, endeavors to define the respective spheres of logic and mysticism. Bertrand Russell describes this and the four essays that follow as “entirely popular”.

This book offers what may with reservations be described as a theory of the mind. But it does not give new information about minds. We possess already a wealth of information about minds, information which is neither derived from, nor upset by, the arguments of philosophers. The philosophical arguments which constitute this book are intended not to increase what we know about minds, but to rectify the logical geography of the knowledge which we already possess.

Philosophy for busy people. Listen to this succinct account of the philosophy of Wittgenstein in just one hour. Ludwig Wittgenstein saw himself as ‘the last philosopher’. In his view, philosophy in the traditional sense was finished. A superb logician, Wittgenstein distrusted language and sought to solve the problems of philosophy by reducing them to the purest form of logic. Everything else - metaphysics, aesthetics, ethics, finally even philosophy itself - was excluded.

Tracing 25 centuries of human history, from the fourth century BC to the present day, Manguel dedicates each of his chapters to a single character - ranging from our best-known thinkers, scientists, and artists to seemingly minor figures of whom we know little more than one inspired utterance - in whom he identifies a particular way of asking the question "why?"

Despite 21st-century fears of an "epidemic" of loneliness, its history has been sorely neglected. A Biography of Loneliness offers a radically new interpretation of loneliness as an emotional language and experience. Using letters and diaries, philosophical tracts, political discussions, and medical literature from the 18th century to the present, historian of the emotions Fay Bound Alberti argues that loneliness is not a historical, universal phenomenon. It is, in fact, a modern emotion: before 1800, its language did not exist.

The history of Western thought contains hundreds of statements by philosophers testifying to the use of esoteric writing in their own work or others'. Despite this well-documented history, however, esotericism is often dismissed today as a rare occurrence. But by ignoring esotericism, we risk cutting ourselves off from a full understanding of Western philosophical thought. Arthur M. Melzer serves as our guide in this engaging history of philosophical esotericism. Walking listeners through both an ancient and a modern esoteric work, he explains what esotericism is - and is not.

Do you feel like your coaching sessions are just going in circles after trying your best to help your clients change but getting nowhere? Have you ever felt like there must be a more effective way to empower your clients to embrace change and achieve remarkable results? You’ve got the certifications, the right gear, and even the perfect ambiance in your coaching space. But something's missing… Your clients listen but don't seem to move forward. It's like watching a car stuck in the mud — lots of effort, but no progress.

Did you know that trees collaborate, communicate, and engage in chemical warfare? Or that humans are better at smelling rain than sharks are at smelling blood? Sometimes, life gets boring. Your sense of wonder often gets lost in a pile of chores, paperwork, and obligations. With tons of boredom-busting facts and mysteries about plants, animals, history, space travel, and everything in between, you have a set of fail-safe conversation starters up your sleeve.

Think Like Socrates doesn’t go into boring details and endless philosophical methodology. It provides you instead with lessons from one of the best philosophers in human history, Socrates, and keeps you hooked as you explore the fascinating techniques of the thinking genius. Socrates is often mentioned as the founder of Western philosophy. He encouraged his students to think for themselves instead of having someone provide the solution. He was an excellent communicator and questioner. He is a human worth examining.

All effective debaters, whether they know it or not, employ Aristotle's 3 basic principles of effective argument that form the spine of Rhetoric. In Poetics, Aristotle draws a dramatic distinction between poetry and history. This collection also includes Aristotle's body of work that has come to be identified as Logic.

In a letter of 1932, Karl Popper described Die beiden Grundprobleme der Erkenntnistheorie–The Two Fundamental Problems of the Theory of Knowledge–as ‘…a child of crises, above all of …the crisis of physics.' The two fundamental problems of knowledge that lie at the center of the book are the problem of induction, that although we are able to observe only a limited number of particular events, science nevertheless advances unrestricted universal statements; and the problem of demarcation, which asks for a separating line between empirical science and non-science.

As Douglas Adams points out, if there is no final answer to the question "what is the meaning of life?" 42 is as good or bad an answer as any other. Indeed, 42 quotes might be even better! Gary Cox guides us through 42 of the most misunderstood, misquoted, provocative, and significant quotes in the history of philosophy, providing witty and compelling commentary along the way.

A mind-expanding, deeply humane tour of language(s) - and those who speak, study and invent them - by the best-selling author of Born on a Blue Day and Thinking in Numbers. Is vocabulary destiny? Why do clocks 'talk' to the Nahua people of Mexico? Will AI researchers ever produce true human-machine dialogue? In this mesmerizing collection of essays, Daniel Tammet answers these and many other questions about the intricacy and profound power of language.

Fallacies are everywhere. Basically, people of so many different cultures, backgrounds, and upbringings reach the wrong conclusions because the way they reason is false. It makes sense. Life is complex. We all make mistakes. We all contribute certain consequences to the wrong causes, and we base our opinion on a myriad of assumptions, which are based on previous experiences.

This volume also includes a collection of essays entitled The Educational Frontier, Dewey's articles on logic, the outlawry of war, and philosophy for the Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences, and his reviews of Alfred North Whitehead's Adventures of Ideas, Martin Schutze's Academic Illusions in the Field of Letters and the Arts, and Rexford G. Tugwell's Industrial Discipline and the Governmental Arts.

Why do we love to swear so much? Why do we get so offended when others do it? In this lively and amusing exploration of the various puzzles that surround swearing, philosopher Rebecca Roache argues that what makes swearing offensive is not really the words at all: the offensiveness lies in what we don't say. The unspoken—and usually unconscious—inferences that speakers and listeners make about each other are key to explaining swearwords' capacity to shock.

Irony and sarcasm are two of the most misused, misapplied, and misunderstood words in our conversational lexicon. In this volume in the MIT Press Essential Knowledge series, psycholinguist Roger Kreuz offers an enlightening and concise overview of the life and times of these two terms, mapping their evolution from Greek philosophy and Roman rhetoric to modern literary criticism to emojis.