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Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenonby: Daniel C. Dennett March 29, 2007 |
List Price: £10.99 Vegetarian Books Price: £7.69 You Save: £3.30 (30%)Prices subject to change. Used Price: £5.00 |
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I've been a Daniel Dennett fan ever since The Mind's Eye, a mind-opening book he co-authored/edited with Douglas Hofstadter. In similar vein, I was enthralled by Kinds of Minds; and Darwin's Dangerous Idea showed just how extensive and versatile a thinker Dennett is.
So I was surprised to be disappointed by Breaking the Spell. Maybe it's because I'm older and wiser, or maybe I was expecting this book to be something that it wasn't, but it just seemed to lack substance. The essential thesis of the book is that religious belief is no sacred cow, and should be open to the same level of scientific and philosophical investigation as any other sphere of human activity. This much could have been said in less than a page; and Dennett is ... Read More: >>More Details |
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Consciousness Explained (Penguin Science)by: Daniel C. Dennett June 24, 1993 |
List Price: £11.99 Vegetarian Books Price: £7.79 You Save: £4.20 (35%)Prices subject to change. Used Price: £5.66 |
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"Consciousness Explained" is the best place to start if you want to begin the venture into this perplexing area. Dennett's books is well organized, well thought out, and does a wonderful job of explaining difficult concepts in a way that is interesting and relatively easy to understand.
Another reviewer titles his review "Consciousness Denied." That is a fair comment. Many people think that Dennett explains away consciousness, rather than explaining it. In fact, I agree with that critism myself -- I think. I tend to agree with John Searle (again -- think). The one star rating, however, is grossly unfair. Consciousness is a very hard problem, to put it mildly, and Dennett's reasoning and opinions are crucial for two reasons. First, they are very ... Read More: >>More Details |
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Darwin's Dangerous Idea: Evolution and the Meanings of Life (Penguin Science)by: Daniel C. Dennett September 26, 1996 |
List Price: £11.99 Vegetarian Books Price: £7.79 You Save: £4.20 (35%)Prices subject to change. Used Price: £4.00 |
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I looked forward to reading this book, having seen all the reviews and the endorsement by Richard Dawkins himself, but I was sorely disappointed. To me it was an exercise in academic rambling, and did not really teach me anything that I could not have had from other books on evolution with more lucid language.
I got the feeling of the King's new clothes here, that maybe I'm some kind of ignoramus for not appreciating the man's logic and depth of argument. Sorry, but the king is naked. It was pretentious and uninspiring language, hard going in trying to follow what the author was trying to convey, and ending up none the wiser. Daniel Dennett may well be a respected academic, but I did not really learn anything from him. I'm sure there are ... Read More: >>More Details |
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Freedom Evolvesby: Daniel C. Dennett February 26, 2004 |
List Price: £9.99 Vegetarian Books Price: £6.99 You Save: £3.00 (30%)Prices subject to change. Used Price: £5.00 |
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This book left me with very mixed feelings. On the one hand I found it quite heavy going and that it didn't entirely live up to all the superlatives plastered over its covers. Not the cover with the goldfish which is shown here, incidentally. On the other hand there was one chapter which I found very useful indeed.
The chapter which I found useful included a discussion of Benjamin Libet's work. Libet describes how a 'readiness potential' can be detected prior to our getting the conscious intention that we are going to move. It starts to look as if our free will is under considerable threat from this finding. The only choice we are left with is a brief window of opportunity to veto the movement. As Ramachandran said, "... our conscious minds may not have ... Read More: >>More Details |
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The Mind's I: Fantasies and Reflections on Self and Soulfrom: Basic Books June 01, 2008 |
List Price: £15.50 Vegetarian Books Price: £10.23 You Save: £5.27 (34%)Prices subject to change. Used Price: £4.88 |
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I love this book. It is intensely thought provoking and at the same time highly entertaining. No small feat! This book deals with the philosophy of mind and consciousness through a series of short fictional and non-fiction works, each of which are a brilliant read whether or not you have studied philosophy. If you have ever wondered what the mind is or whether or not we have a soul then you must read this book. Just don't expect to find the answers. >>More Details |
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Freedom Evolvesby: Daniel C. Dennett February 06, 2003 |
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This book left me with very mixed feelings. On the one hand I found it quite heavy going and that it didn't entirely live up to all the superlatives plastered over its covers. Not the cover with the goldfish which is shown here, incidentally. On the other hand there was one chapter which I found very useful indeed.
The chapter which I found useful included a discussion of Benjamin Libet's work. Libet describes how a 'readiness potential' can be detected prior to our getting the conscious intention that we are going to move. It starts to look as if our free will is under considerable threat from this finding. The only choice we are left with is a brief window of opportunity to veto the movement. As Ramachandran said, "... our conscious minds may not have free will, ... Read More: >>More Details |
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Kinds of Minds: The Origins Of Consciousness (Science Masters)by: Daniel C. Dennett September 01, 1997 |
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In `Kinds of Minds', Daniel Dennett aims to explore the concept of mind; what is it and where does it come from? And also the ways in which humans are distinct from other animals in terms of the way we process information.
The book is an interesting introduction and aims to challenge preconceptions we may have (especially about the extent to which animals can actually `think'.) I found the arguments persuasive and sympathetic and there is a good reference and further reading section at the back of the book which gives you opportunities to study the subject further. My only criticism would be that whilst some of the areas of discussion are explained in simple and concrete terms, there are occasions when Dennett seems to forget that he might be writing an introduction to a complex ... Read More: >>More Details |
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Brainstorms: Philosophical Essays on Mind and Psychology (Penguin Science)by: Daniel C. Dennett April 24, 1997 |
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In `Kinds of Minds', Daniel Dennett aims to explore the concept of mind; what is it and where does it come from? And also the ways in which humans are distinct from other animals in terms of the way we process information.
The book is an interesting introduction and aims to challenge preconceptions we may have (especially about the extent to which animals can actually `think'.) I found the arguments persuasive and sympathetic and there is a good reference and further reading section at the back of the book which gives you opportunities to study the subject further. My only criticism would be that whilst some of the areas of discussion are explained in simple and concrete terms, there are occasions when Dennett seems to forget that he might be writing an introduction to a complex ... Read More: >>More Details |
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Elbow Room: The Varieties of Free Will Worth Wantingby: Daniel C. Dennett February 28, 1985 |
List Price: £19.99 Vegetarian Books Price: £17.99 You Save: £2.00 (10%)Prices subject to change. Used Price: £14.00 |
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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" ... Read More: >>More Details |
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Content and Consciousness (International Library of Philosophy)by: Daniel C. Dennett April 24, 1986 |
List Price: £19.99 Vegetarian Books Price: £18.99 You Save: £1.00 ( 5%)Prices subject to change. Used Price: £9.48 |
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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" ... Read More: >>More Details |
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