Explanation and Understanding

Wright, G. H. Von;Wright, Georg Henrik Von

ISBN 10: 0801406447 / ISBN 13: 9780801406447

Published by Ithaca, New York, U.S.A.: Cornell Univ Pr, 1971

About this Item

Hardback in good plus condition with very good dust jacket in a protective mylar sleeve. Writing inside.

Seller Inventory # 159386

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Explanation and Understanding
• Publisher: Ithaca, New York, U.S.A.: Cornell Univ Pr
• Publication Date: 1971
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0801406447
• ISBN 13: 9780801406447
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: Good
• Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good
• Seller catalogs:
  • Philosophy

About this title

Synopsis

"Explanation and Understanding, perhaps von Wright's best-known book, showed the influence of Wittgenstein, but marked a clean break with the positivism of his youth. He suggested that human action could not be explained causally by scientific or 'natural' laws, but had to be understood 'intentionally'―a concept connected with wants and beliefs developed in a social and cultural context."―Daily Telegraph

"This is a very good book packed with much original material; it also contains illuminating reinterpretations of some familiar theories and arguments. The range of topics treated includes causation, action, verification of gnomic statements, practical inference and its use in the explanation of action, and the structure of explanation in history."―Philosophical Review

About the Author

The late G. H. von Wright, who succeeded Wittgenstein in the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Cambridge and served as one of three executors of the Wittgenstein estate, was a visiting professor at Cornell University from 1965 to 1977 and finished his career at the University of Helsinki. His many books include The Varieties of Goodness, Norm and Action, The Logic of Preference, and Freedom and Determination.