The Dream of Reason, New Edition Lib/E: A History of Western Philosophy from the Greeks to the Renaissance
Already a classic, this landmark study of early Western thought now appears in a new edition with expanded coverage of the Middle Ages. In The Dream of Reason , Anthony Gottlieb looks afresh at the writings of the great thinkers, questions much of conventional wisdom, and explains his findings with unbridled brilliance and clarity. From the pre-Socratic philosophers through the celebrated days of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, up to Renaissance visionaries like Erasmus and Bacon, philosophy emerges here as a phenomenon unconfined by any one discipline. Indeed, as Gottlieb explains, its most revolutionary breakthroughs in the natural and social sciences have repeatedly been co-opted by other branches of knowledge, leading to the illusion that philosophers never make any progress. From the physics of angels to Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose , Gottlieb builds through example and anecdote a vivid portrait of the human drive for understanding. After finishing The Dream of Reason , listeners will be graced with a fresh appreciation of the philosophical quest, its entertaining and bizarre byways, and its influence on every aspect of life.