Hilary Putnam is the philosopher who initiated me into contemporary philosophy. My undergraduate thesis advisor had me read “The Meaning of ‘Meaning’” (1975), and I was drawn in by the issues Putnam raises in that challenging and entertaining essay. I went on to read the other essays in his collection Mind, Language, and Reality, then works by the philosophers he referred to (such as Quine and Kripke), and on and on to this day. This book is a collection of essays about his philosophy.
None of the authors writes with the clarity or verve of Putnam himself, but by adding their perspectives together I was able to clarify some of my confusion about how Putnam's ideas changed over the years and how his philosophy differs from other contemporary philosophers. More importantly, the book presented ideas that changed, or at least deepened, my own views on the nature of reality.
For a more complete assessment of the philosophical points, see my summary on the Philosophy page of our web site.
No comments:
Post a Comment