or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
 
More Buying Choices
8 used & new from £18.47
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
   
Elbow Room: The Varieties of Free Will Worth Wanting
 
 
Share your own customer images
Search inside another edition of this book

Elbow Room: The Varieties of Free Will Worth Wanting (Paperback)

by Daniel C. Dennett (Author) "The idea of Fate is older than philosophy itself, and since the dawn of the discipline philosophers have been trying to show what is wrong..." (more)
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
RRP: £19.99
Price: £18.47 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
You Save: £1.52 (8%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
Usually dispatched within 1 to 3 weeks.
Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk. Gift-wrap available.

5 new from £18.47 3 used from £35.88
Other Editions: RRP: Our Price: Other Offers:
Hardcover Order it used
Paperback 11 used & new from £11.18

Frequently Bought Together

Elbow Room: The Varieties of Free Will Worth Wanting + Freedom Evolves + Consciousness Explained (Penguin Science)
Price For All Three: £33.36

Some of these items ship sooner than the others. Show details

  • This item: Elbow Room: The Varieties of Free Will Worth Wanting by Daniel C. Dennett

    Usually dispatched within 1 to 3 weeks.
    Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk.
    This item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions

  • Freedom Evolves by Daniel C. Dennett

    In stock.
    Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk.
    This item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions

  • Consciousness Explained (Penguin Science) by Daniel C. Dennett

    In stock.
    Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk.
    This item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Freedom Evolves

Freedom Evolves

by Daniel C. Dennett
4.2 out of 5 stars (4)  £6.48
Consciousness Explained (Penguin Science)

Consciousness Explained (Penguin Science)

by Daniel C. Dennett
3.8 out of 5 stars (17)  £8.41
Sweet Dreams: Philosophical Obstacles to a Science of Consciousness (Jean Nicod Lectures)

Sweet Dreams: Philosophical Obstacles to a Science of Consciousness (Jean Nicod Lectures)

by DC Dennett
5.0 out of 5 stars (1)  £12.95
The Mind's I: Fantasies and Reflections on Self and Soul

The Mind's I: Fantasies and Reflections on Self and Soul

by Daniel C. Dennett
4.0 out of 5 stars (3)  £12.42
Darwin's Dangerous Idea: Evolution and the Meanings of Life (Penguin Science)

Darwin's Dangerous Idea: Evolution and the Meanings of Life (Penguin Science)

by Daniel C. Dennett
4.6 out of 5 stars (9)  £7.78
› Explore similar items

Product details

  • Paperback: 210 pages
  • Publisher: OUP Oxford (28 Feb 1985)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0198247907
  • ISBN-13: 978-0198247906
  • Product Dimensions: 21 x 13.8 x 2.2 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 266,852 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category:

    #14 in  Books > Society, Politics & Philosophy > Philosophy > Topics > Free Will & Determinism

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

Customers Viewing This Page May Be Interested in These Sponsored Links

  (What is this?)
   Listen to Elbow opens new browser window
www.Songs.Sky.com  -  Listen to Elbow Available Now with Sky Songs 
   elbow/pipe fittings China opens new browser window
www.htpipe-fittings.com  -  offer Butt-welded elbow /industrial pipe fittings Etc. contact us! 
   The Elbow Room Restaurant opens new browser window
toptable.com/The-Elbow-Room  -  View Sample Menus, Read Reviews & Book Your Table At The Elbow Room 
  
 

Product Description

Review

"Sir," harrumphed Dr. Johnson, "We know our will is free, and there's an end on't." Professor Dennett (Philosophy, Tufts) also knows the will is free, but in this witty, wide-ranging, steadily persuasive essay he transforms Johnson's (and most other people's) intuitive certitude into a series of rationally articulated probabilities. The "elbow room" he argues for is the sphere inhabited by "us sinners" (limited, conditioned, but responsible agents), as opposed to both the realms of absolute freedom imagined by Socrates, Kant, Sartre, Chisolm, et al., and the dungeons of determinism or fatalism. The latter, of course, are what really worry us; but Dennett shows that the specters of heteronomy are neither irrefutable axioms nor solid science, but "unfocused images" that break down under scrutiny. In one of his many illuminating metaphors, he contrasts body English (the determinist's view that all our thinking and straining and deciding affect the real world no more than a golfer's antics after hitting a putt help to sink it) with follow-through: the seemingly illogical but undeniable fact that "keeping one's head down" after striking the ball - doggedly assuming our deliberations and choices make a difference - makes for a better shot. But if Dennett assaults behavioristic and related models of mind, he's no kinder to "soft" ideas of free will, such as the belief that there can be no moral or criminal guilt unless a person in a given situation could have done otherwise: first of all, we can never say with authority whether alternate actions were possible or not (too many imponderables); second, even if we knew, our knowledge would have little value (all "microcircumstances" being unique); and third, the agent's lack of an alternative might have no importance (if he had made himself a hardened criminal). As readers of The Mind's I (1981) will remember, Dennett has a remarkable gift for constructing humanistic psychology out of materials garnered from physics, biology, and cybernetics. He's in even better form here - and with his sprightly style and exceptional clarity, he's a worthy descendant, if not a disciple, of his great forebear, William James. (Kirkus Reviews)
Inside This Book (Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
First Sentence
The idea of Fate is older than philosophy itself, and since the dawn of the discipline philosophers have been trying to show what is wrong with the idea that our fates are sealed before we are born. Read the first page
Explore More
Concordance
Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Search inside this book:

Suggested Tags from Similar Products

 (What's this?)
Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
 
(11)
(10)
(8)
(8)
(8)
(7)
(5)
(5)
(4)
(4)
(3)

Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Elbow Room: The Varieties of Free Will Worth Wanting
64% buy the item featured on this page:
Elbow Room: The Varieties of Free Will Worth Wanting 5.0 out of 5 stars (1)
£18.47
Freedom Evolves
17% buy
Freedom Evolves 4.2 out of 5 stars (4)
£6.48
Darwin's Dangerous Idea: Evolution and the Meanings of Life (Penguin Science)
9% buy
Darwin's Dangerous Idea: Evolution and the Meanings of Life (Penguin Science) 4.6 out of 5 stars (9)
£7.78
Consciousness Explained (Penguin Science)
5% buy
Consciousness Explained (Penguin Science) 3.8 out of 5 stars (17)
£8.41
Explore similar items
 

Customer Reviews

1 Review
5 star:
 (1)
4 star:    (0)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
5.0 out of 5 stars (1 customer review)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Stretching constraints, 25 Sep 2005
By Stephen A. Haines (Ottawa, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   
Dennett combines clarity of thought with clarity of expression to re-introduce the question of "free will." It's an age-old topic, but Dennett's knowledge of nature gives him fresh insight in grappling with the issue. He concedes at the outset that "free will" is usually considered a topic for academics to wrangle over. One of his special talents, however, is bringing such subjects out of the scholastic arena and into everyday life. He recognizes that all of us are plagued by outworn traditions and mind-blinding prejudices. He wants us to free our minds of these restraints. From there, he hopes we will enter a future based on more rational concepts. It's an ambitious programme, but one Dennett presents with outstanding conceptual ability and skillful prose.

Dennett's use of the "intuition pump" to expose the "bogeymen" that plague our reason makes him unique among philosophers. It's an analysis tool that more should emulate. More significantly it's a method we should all learn. Rigid thinking leads us down wrong paths and this work is a guidebook for avoiding that. One of the wrong paths is the idea that "free will" and "determinism" are absolutely separate - there is no way to reconcile the two concepts. Dennett shows that there are many forms of "determinism" in nature, and we are part of nature. Humans, however, have a decision-making capability the rest of nature lacks. We have "elbow room," based on our consciousness, which gives us the ability to make choices. The dividing line between what nature imposes and our mentality allows, is vague and indistinct, sometimes contradictory, but it's there. Dennett wants us to recognize, so far as we can, which is which.

Dennett concedes that there's an apparent paradox in this view. If we are the product of evolutionary forces, why isn't our behaviour preset in our genes? It is, according to Dennett, but exercises only limited influence. Our complex intellect allows us to modify those natural roots and give us what we see as unlimited choices. We call this condition "free will". Dennett reminds us, however, that free will is no more an absolute than determinism. Dennett's rejection of absolutes in any guise have led to many critical assaults on his work. Yet, as almost the sole philosopher to adopt natural selection as part of his thinking, he has shown his work to be the most rationally based of all. Far from "dodging" issues, he shows how this open approach can actually lead to a firmer grasp of issues. As he points out, the issue is not a "choice" of absolute options, but "control" over the conditions. It's not just choosing which path, but perhaps the building of a new one.

For Dennett, a topic such as "free will" is far from limited to academic discussion. A clear concept of what free will entails has ramifications in law, education and many social policies. He addresses many aspects of applying his definition of free will in the final chapter "Why Do We Want Free Will?". With a strong sense of the pragmatic, Dennett shows why our understanding of the concept has meaning for us all. With his witty style and practical approach to what otherwise might be an obscure topic, Dennett has given us a highly readable and realistic overview. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Only search this product's reviews


Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
   
Related forums

Listmania!

Create a Listmania! list

Look for similar items by category

Look for similar items by subject







i.e., each product must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...

Feedback

Ad

Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.