Mary Midgley

Science and Poetry

• Gebundenes Buch

Produktbeschreibung

A much needed and clear investigation of why and how science has so powerfully shaped the way we understand ourselves, our behaviour towards others and our place in the world. With her customary sharp insight and clear prose, renowned moral philosopher Mary Midgely criticises our 17th century inheritance of breaking the world up into small parts and observing them in isolation. This may work in science, but she points out how this kind of approach can be disastrous when turned towards understanding ourselves, our interaction with the environment and our relationships with other people. Drawing on examples from the Gaia hypothesis to the recent debate over memes, Mary Midgely spells out the unfortunate legacy of this situation: misguided attempts to reduce mind to body, political and moral individualism, and a needless backlash against science. With its forceful argument that the arts and poetry can help us reconcile some of these problems, Science and Poetry is essential reading for all those interested in philosophy and the relation between science and the arts.

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Is science the only way to understand the world and are genes 'us'? Renowned moral philosopher Mary Midgley tackles these pressing questions and more in her powerful new book. She asks how can we bring together the depersonalized picture of ourselves which we draw from science with the personal attitudes by which we live -- how can we harmonize science and poetry? With her customary clear style and sharp prose, Midgley points out that the fields of science and poetry are not really hostile kingdoms. They are, instead, parts of our wider world-view -- snapshots taken from different angles. It is because we hold them apart that we go wrong on a host of problems, from the relation between mind and body to global warming and the debate about memes. Invoking the unity of the imagination to restore the wholeness of our lives, Science and Poetry is a tour de force of passionate but clear-headed thinking about science and ourselves.

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Produktdetails

• Verlag: Taylor & Francis
• Seitenzahl: 240
• Erscheinungstermin: 23. November 2000
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 245mm x 161mm x 24mm
• Gewicht: 513g
• ISBN-13: 9780415237321
• ISBN-10: 0415237327
• Artikelnr.: 21046712

Autorenporträt

Mary Midgley (1919-2018) was a moral philosopher and author of many books, including The Ethical Primate, Wisdom, Information and Wonder, Science as Salvation and Utopias, Dolphins and Computers.

Inhaltsangabe

Part 1: Visions of Rationality 1. The Sources of Thought 2. Knowledge
Considered as Weed-Killer 3. Rationality and Rainbows 4. The Origin of
Disillusion 5. Atomistic Dreams; The Quest for Permanence 6. Memes and
Other Unusual Life-FormsPart 2: Mind and Body; The End of Apartheid 7.
Putting Our Selves Together Again 8. Living in the World 9. The Strange
Persistence of Fatalism 10. Chess-Boards and Presidents of the Immortals
11. Doing Science on Purpose 12. One World but a Big One 13 A Plague on
both their Houses 14. Being Scientific about Our SelvesPart 3: In What Kind
of World? 15. Widening Responsibilities 16. The Problem of Humbug 17.
Individualism and the Concept of Gaia 18. Gods and Goddesses; The Role of
Wonder 19. Why There is Such a Thing as Society 20. Paradoxes of
Sociobiology and Social Darwinism 21. Mythology, Rhetoric and Religion

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Part 1: Visions of Rationality 1. The Sources of Thought 2. Knowledge Considered as Weed-Killer 3. Rationality and Rainbows 4. The Origin of Disillusion 5. Atomistic Dreams; The Quest for Permanence 6. Memes and Other Unusual Life-FormsPart 2: Mind and Body; The End of Apartheid 7. Putting Our Selves Together Again 8. Living in the World 9. The Strange Persistence of Fatalism 10. Chess-Boards and Presidents of the Immortals 11. Doing Science on Purpose 12. One World but a Big One 13 A Plague on both their Houses 14. Being Scientific about Our SelvesPart 3: In What Kind of World? 15. Widening Responsibilities 16. The Problem of Humbug 17. Individualism and the Concept of Gaia 18. Gods and Goddesses; The Role of Wonder 19. Why There is Such a Thing as Society 20. Paradoxes of Sociobiology and Social Darwinism 21. Mythology, Rhetoric and Religion

Rezensionen

'Clearly and forcefully argued ... no reflective person could disagree with Midgley's view. By bringing some of the more important detail of the arguments into focus and quoting so appositely from the poets whose visions of the world enrich our understanding of it, she performs a service.' - A C Grayling, Literary Review

'With this book Midgley establishes herself as the most cool, coherent and sane critic of contemporary superstition that we have.' - Brian Appleyard, The Sunday Times

'Clearly and forcefully argued ... no reflective person could disagree with Midgley's view. By bringing some of the more important detail of the arguments into focus and quoting so appositely from the poets whose visions of the world enrich our understanding of it, she performs a service.' - A. C. Grayling, Literary Review

'With this book Midgley establishes herself as the most cool, coherent and sane critic of contemporary superstition that we have.' - Brian Appleyard, The Sunday Times

'Midgley takes delight in torturing these scientistic propagandists with cool feline elegance.' - Bryan Appleyard, The Guardian

'There is much to commend about Science and Poetry, both in the character of Midgley's argument, and in the lucidity of her exposition.' - Kenan Malik, Times Literary Supplement

'One may already be convinced that science and poetry need not do battle, yet still read with fascination as Mary Midgley insightfully retraces some familiar lines Midgley writes perceptively - and beautifully - about many things But, in the end, it is the poetry, including the poetry of Midgley's prose, that makes the book worth reading.' - Philip Clayton, Nature

'She is one of the sharpest and most incisive philosophical minds writing today ... her readers will surely want more.' - Janet Martin Soskice, The Tablet, 31 March, 2001

'Midgley's books over the past 20 years have made a significant contribution to ending 'the contest of faculties' and to furthering the central philosophical mission of making sense of life. Science and Poetry is perhaps her most important book yet.' - Raymond Tallis, Times Higher April 6, 2001

'The range of argument and citation is enormous: one gets the feeling of being in the grip of an awesome erudition.' - John Peck, Third Way, April 2001

'[Science and Poetry] exemplifies the virtues of good writing, accessibility and compelling argument.' - Journal of Consciousness Studies

'The book's strength, charm and fascination lie ... in the endless richness of the suggestions Midgley makes on the sequence of important issues that she addresses. However familiar the topic, there is always an "edge", a Midgley-esque insight, a piece of mild or major iconoclasm that makes one stop and read again.' - Theology

'Most immediately impressive are the beauty of Midgley's prose and her skill in unveiling her argument. These bring to the reader pleasurable hours in the company of an engaging philosopher and gifted stylist ... The poetry of Midgley's romantic vision lingers in the mind after the event.' - Noel Heather, Royal Holloway, University of London, Journal of Contemporary Religion