Rules, Magic and Instrumental Reason: A Critical Interpretation of Peter Winch's Philosophy of the Social Sciences (Routledge Studies in Twentieth-Century Philosophy)

Berel Dov Lerner

ISBN 10: 0415253020 / ISBN 13: 9780415253024

Published by Routledge, 2001

About this Item

Seller Inventory # I-9780415253024

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Rules, Magic and Instrumental Reason: A Critical Interpretation of Peter Winch's Philosophy of the Social Sciences (Routledge Studies in Twentieth-Century Philosophy)
• Publisher: Routledge
• Publication Date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0415253020
• ISBN 13: 9780415253024
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

This book offers a systematic and critical discussion of Peter Winch's writings on the philosophy of the social sciences. The author points to Winch's tendency to over-emphasize the importance of language and communication, and his insufficient attention to the role of practical, technological activites in human life and society. It also offers an appendix devoted to the controversy between the anthropologists Marshall Sahlins and Gananath Obeyesekere regarding Captain James Cook's Hawaiian adventures. Essential reading for those studying the development of philosophy in the twentieth century, this book will also be of great interest to anthropologists, sociologists, scholars of religion, and all those with an interest in the relationship between philosophy and the social sciences.

About the Author

Berel Dov Lerner is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Western Galilee College, Israel.