In Praise of Reason: Why Rationality Matters for Democracy

Lynch, Michael P.

ISBN 10: 0262017229 / ISBN 13: 9780262017220

Published by MIT Press, 2012

About this Item

A very respectable 1st Impression copy - all pencil notations or underlining by previous owner have been very carefully erased to leave the text clean (see image). The grey cloth boards and dust wrapper have a trace of edge-wear to spine ends else in very pleasing condition. Please see five pictures attached.

Seller Inventory # ABE-1759422584182

Bibliographic Details

• Title: In Praise of Reason: Why Rationality Matters for Democracy
• Publisher: MIT Press
• Publication Date: 2012
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0262017229
• ISBN 13: 9780262017220
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: Very Good
• Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good

About this title

Synopsis

Why does reason matter, if (as many people seem to think) in the end everything comes down to blind faith or gut instinct? Why not just go with what you believe even if it contradicts the evidence? Why bother with rational explanation when name-calling, manipulation, and force are so much more effective in our current cultural and political landscape? Michael Lynch's In Praise of Reason offers a spirited defense of reason and rationality in an era of widespread skepticism -- when, for example, people reject scientific evidence about such matters as evolution, climate change, and vaccines when it doesn't jibe with their beliefs and opinions.

In recent years, skepticism about the practical value of reason has emerged even within the scientific academy. Many philosophers and psychologists claim that the reasons we give for our most deeply held views are often little more than rationalizations of our prior convictions. In Praise of Reason gives us a counterargument. Although skeptical questions about reason have a deep and interesting history, they can be answered. In particular, appeals to scientific principles of rationality are part of the essential common currency of any civil democratic society. The idea that everything is arbitrary -- that reason has no more weight than blind faith -- undermines a key principle of a civil society: that we owe our fellow citizens explanations for what we do. Reason matters -- not just for the noble ideal of truth, but for the everyday world in which we live.

About the Author

Michael P. Lynch is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Connecticut and the author of Truth in Context: An Essay on Pluralism and Objectivity and True to Life: Why Truth Matters, both published by the MIT Press.