Demons, Dreamers, and Madmen: The Defense of Reason in Descartes's Meditations

Demons, Dreamers, and Madmen: The Defense of Reason in Descartes's Meditations

Harry G. Frankfurt, Rebecca Goldstein (Foreword by)
$39.95
Publication Date: November 18th, 2007
Publisher:
Princeton University Press
ISBN:
9780691134161
Pages:
288
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Description

From the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller On Bullshit, a landmark account of Descartes, reason, and truth

In this classic work, philosopher and bestselling author Harry Frankfurt provides a compelling analysis of the question that not only lies at the heart of Descartes's Meditations, but also constitutes the central preoccupation of modern philosophy: on what basis can reason claim to provide any justification for the truth of our beliefs? Demons, Dreamers, and Madmen provides an ingenious account of Descartes's defense of reason against his own famously skeptical doubts that he might be a madman, dreaming, or, worse yet, deceived by an evil demon into believing falsely.

Frankfurt's masterful and imaginative reading of Descartes's seminal work not only stands the test of time; one imagines Descartes himself nodding in agreement.

About the Author

Harry G. Frankfurt (1929-2023) was professor of philosophy emeritus at Princeton University. His books include the #1 New York Times bestseller On Bullshit, On Inequality, and The Reasons of Love (all Princeton).