Re: Why read philosophy?

GBurch1@aol.com
Tue, 5 Oct 1999 07:28:49 EDT

I may try to draft a more complete note on this thread if I have more time before it becomes stale, but for now a few disjointed thoughts:

Richard Tarnas, "Passion of the Western Mind". Max recommended this book to me last year and it is EXCELLENT. Very well written and provides a good overview of the history of the philosophical antecedents to modern science.

Will and Ariel Durant, "The Story of Philosophy". A very accessible classic.

Bertrand Russell, "History of Western Philosophy". The most technical (and largest) of the three books recommended here; gives a flavor for the turn-of-the-century positivist view of things.

BTW, I'm currently reading "The Postmodern Turn" by Best and Kellner, which is shaping up to be a very good history and analysis of the various flavors of postmodernism.

     Greg Burch     <GBurch1@aol.com>----<gburch@lockeliddell.com>
     Attorney  :::  Vice President, Extropy Institute  :::  Wilderness Guide
      http://users.aol.com/gburch1   -or-   http://members.aol.com/gburch1
                         "Civilization is protest against nature; 
                  progress requires us to take control of evolution."
                                           Thomas Huxley