The essays in this book, drawn mainly from A. C. Grayling's columns in Prospect, the Dubliner and The Times, are in fact responses to questions set by editors and readers. If beauty existed only in the eye of the beholder, would that make it an unimportant quality? Are human rights political? Can ethics be derived from evolution by natural selection? If both sides in a conflict can passionately believe that theirs is the just cause, does this mean that the idea of justice is empty? Does being happy make us good? And does being good make us happy? Are human beings especially prone to self-deception? As in his previous books of popular philosophy, including the best-selling The Reason of Things and The Meaning of Things, rather than presenting a set of categorical answers Grayling offers instead suggestions for how to think about every aspect of a question, and arrive at one's own conclusions. As a result Thinking of Answers is both an enjoyable and inspirational collection.
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'A rollicking defence of Freedom and Enlightenment in the style of Tom Paine or William Godwin' Spectator (on Towards the Light) 'Grayling upholds some principles that should be tattooed inside the eyelids of any politician who claims to be a liberal democrat: that liberties are indivisible and universal; that free speech is "the fundamental civil liberty"' The Times (on Liberty in the Age of Terror)
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Thought-provoking short essays by Britain's leading public philosopher that show us how to discover our own answers to life's challenges
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24 of 24 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Much scholarly work can be dry and difficult (Kant, Heidegger). Many recent works of scholarship are much lighter without losing the quality of intent or seriousness of the work - Diarmaid MacCulloch's recent History of Christianity comes to mind, as beautiful to read as it is interesting despite my complete rejection of the faith. Professor Grayling's Thinking of Answers is not such a singly focused work. Reading it feels, for all intents and purposes, rather like listening to the poetically infused and erudite thoughts of a great scholar working through a set of interesting 'problems'. I found myself being entertained, seduced and enriched.
The quality of these 101 brief essays is difficult for me to capture in a review, so eloquently written are they. Furthermore, they are equally difficult to pick excerpts from to present examples. The aptness of a particular turn of phrase may fit perfectly within a given essay, but loses it's punctiliousness when removed from it's intended environment.
Grayling convincingly articulates his sense of delight in the acquisition of knowledge and the uses to which it can be put. In 'Thinking of Answers', he proposes, not answers as such, but gives the reader insight as to how he (Grayling) goes about the task of thinking about what sort of form a good answer might take. For those steeped in Karl Popper and his general outlook, which can be summarised using one of his book titles (Conjectures and Refutations), one becomes wary of arguments or conclusions that discount the possibility of more information coming to light that may require us to re-examine our hypotheses. Grayling never crosses this line.
The most startling article, for me, was about gender. It was a shock to learn that '...... Read more ›
The quality of these 101 brief essays is difficult for me to capture in a review, so eloquently written are they. Furthermore, they are equally difficult to pick excerpts from to present examples. The aptness of a particular turn of phrase may fit perfectly within a given essay, but loses it's punctiliousness when removed from it's intended environment.
Grayling convincingly articulates his sense of delight in the acquisition of knowledge and the uses to which it can be put. In 'Thinking of Answers', he proposes, not answers as such, but gives the reader insight as to how he (Grayling) goes about the task of thinking about what sort of form a good answer might take. For those steeped in Karl Popper and his general outlook, which can be summarised using one of his book titles (Conjectures and Refutations), one becomes wary of arguments or conclusions that discount the possibility of more information coming to light that may require us to re-examine our hypotheses. Grayling never crosses this line.
The most startling article, for me, was about gender. It was a shock to learn that '...... Read more ›
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
By Hande Z
TOP 1000 REVIEWER
Format:Hardcover
One might be tempted to recommend this book to the novice philosopher but on reflection, it seems to be a book to be recommended to all experts - in law, philosophy, or science. In this book, Grayling made his approach to philosophy even more accessible to the layman than any of his "Of Things" series of books such as "The Mystery of Things" and "The Meaning of Things". What is the point of any inquiry into philosophy, the meaning of life, or any other complex subject if only learned exponents can participate? Experts might take a cue from this book in de-mystifying their fields of knowledge. In this book Grayling introduced 111 questions that will stimulate deep and long discussions not only over the questions posed but also the answers that he provided. A few random samples of the questions may indicate whether one might be interested in this book: "Which is more important: knowing facts, or knowing method?" "Are altruism and self-interest irreconcilable opposites?" "If both sides in a conflict can passionately believe that theirs is a just cause, does this mean that the idea of justice is empty? If so, how can it have been such an inspiration for so many reform movements?" Each of the questions posed is accompanied by a subject heading, for instance, the last question comes under the title, "Justice as Inspiration". One might find it superfluous to have titles to such short chapters - each question is followed by an answer no longer than four pages; most are about two pages, however, I think that the titles usefully indicate the broader areas of their respective subjects that the reader might wish to study. Not every question concerns typical issues in philosophy. One such question was "Is `shock art' art?" Another, "'If one must speak, one must speak clearly': is that a genuine principle?... Read more ›
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By J. Grigg
Format:Paperback
We did this at my book group. It is a lot of short essays on questions. Some are hard going. hard work reading straight off but good to dip in and out of . Not as approachable as some of his others.
0 of 13 people found the following review helpful
By j0hn0
Format:Hardcover
i was full of hope for this book - but it hasn't imparted any blinding revelations yet!
that said it's a nice easy read and i like the small bite sized sections.
that said it's a nice easy read and i like the small bite sized sections.
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