For almost the entire twentieth century, the discipline of philosophy has been in a quandary in attempting to identify and define its poroper role in the contemporary world. During the past twenty-five years, it has fallen on bad days in academe. often reduced to overly technical ramblings or postmodernist rants. Its demise has been predicted, if not reported, for years. Finally in this provocative and controversial book, Robert Greene does the dirty deed and puts philosophy out of its misery, issuing a 'coup de grace' to the current ill-conceived, skeptical discipline. But then he breathes life into the great interdisciplinary traditon of philosophers, freeing them from the straitjacket of the mind-body dualism and "the problem of knowledge." The Major seventeenth - and eighteenth-century writers from Descartes through Kant criticized Aristotle's ideas, but only replaced them with dualism and/or skepticism. Nevertheless, in light of their efforts, we can see his ability to solve the problems they raised. The heart of the book is a long chapter and appendix expounding the brilliance of Aristotle on language, the soul, and mind. This updating of him, much broader than the conventional, stereotyped view, can be incorporated into modern science. 'The Death and Life of Philosophy' not only presents the great thinkers of the past in a new light, but also satirizes the philosophy professors today, putting their work and even their aims into perspective in a highly readable and engaging manner.
Reviews
"In 'The Life and Death of Philosophy' Robert Greene manages to resuscitate the corpse of philosophy in the course of performing a brilliant autopsy. Writing with the clarity adn crispness of a Roger Scruton, Greene puts before his reader the plight to which philosophy has brought itself, identifies the pint at which things started to go off the rails, and then, in confirmation of Dante's judgment that Aristotle is the "master of those who know," relies on the Stagirite for guidance on how things can be made right again. This is not a matter of going backward in time so much as recovering -or uncovering-truths that have been right under our noses all along. This eloquent plea for the tradition provides a bluepring for the philosophy of the third millenium." - Ralph McInerny "Who, then should read this book? Everyone who studies philosophy, anyone who wishes to know more about the foundations and prospects for a secure science of human behaviour, everyone who seeks unity among intellectual disciplines and, of course, every American student who bridles at the requirement to master a foreign or classical language. In short, anyone who revels in the intellectual life ought to read 'The Death and Life of Philosophy'." - Bruce Silver, 'Modern Language Notes'



Book Information
ISBN 9781890318192
Author Robert Greene
Format Hardback
Page Count 318
Imprint St Augustine's Press
Publisher St Augustine's Press
Weight(grams) 536g
Dimensions(mm) 243mm * 161mm * 23mm