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The Enigma of Reason: A New Theory of Human Understanding by Hugo Mercier, Dan Sperber (Hardcover, 2017)

About this product

About this product

Product Information

Reason, we are told, is what makes us human, the source of our knowledge and wisdom. If reason is so useful, why didn't it also evolve in other animals? If reason is that reliable, why do we produce so much thoroughly reasoned nonsense? In their ground-breaking account of the evolution and workings of reason, Hugo Mercier and Dan Sperber set out to solve this double enigma. Reason, they argue with a compelling mix of real-life and experimental evidence, is not geared to solitary use, to arriving at better beliefs and decisions on our own. What reason does, rather, is help us justify our beliefs and actions to others, convince them through argumentation, and evaluate the justifications and arguments that others address to us. In other words, reason has evolved to help humans better exploit their uniquely rich social environment. This illuminating interpretation of reason makes sense of strengths and weaknesses that have long puzzled philosophers and psychologists - why reason is biased in favour of what we already believe, why it may lead to terrible ideas and yet is indispensable to spreading good ones. Ambitious, provocative, and entertaining, The Enigma of Reason will spark debate among psychologists and philosophers, and make many reasonable people rethink their own thinking.

Product Identifiers

Publisher
Penguin Books Ltd
ISBN-13
9781846145575
eBay Product ID (ePID)
233058004

Product Key Features

Subject Area
Artificial Intelligence, Developmental Psychology
Author
Hugo Mercier, Dan Sperber
Publication Name
The Enigma of Reason: a New Theory of Human Understanding
Format
Hardcover
Language
English
Subject
Science
Publication Year
2017
Type
Study Guide
Number of Pages
416 Pages

Dimensions

Item Height
240mm
Item Width
162mm
Item Weight
685g

Additional Product Features

Title_Author
Dan Sperber, Hugo Mercier
Topic
Mental Health
Country/Region of Manufacture
United Kingdom

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