Showing titles in Logic & Language

All effective debaters, whether they know it or not, employ Aristotle's 3 basic principles of effective argument that form the spine of Rhetoric. In Poetics, Aristotle draws a dramatic distinction between poetry and history. This collection also includes Aristotle's body of work that has come to be identified as Logic.

For all those sick of politicians and their slick spin, or bored of broadcasters who bombard and bully their hapless interviewees, Do They Think You’re Stupid? has the answers. Written by the author of the best-selling The Pig That Wants to Be Eaten, these short, stimulating capsules of philosophy cut through the woolliest of rhetoric to identify the faulty reasoning and argumentative strategies that are used around us every day.

It is widely accepted that political discourse in recent years has become more openly racist and more accepting of wildly implausible conspiracy theories. Dogwhistles and Figleaves explores ways in which such changes—both of which defied previously settled norms of political speech—have been brought about. Jennifer Saul shows that two linguistic devices, dogwhistles and figleaves, have played a crucial role.

Throughout history philosophers have sought to define, understand, and delineate concepts important to human well-being. One such concept is "knowledge." Many philosophers believed that absolute, certain knowledge, is possible—that the physical world and ideas formulated about it could be given solid foundation unaffected by the varieties of mere opinion.

Critical thinking can be defined as "finding out how to think better by enhancing one's thinking skills". People who are critical thinkers use the thinking procedure to evaluate, consider, reflect on, and piece together what they have learned or are currently learning. Unfortunately, much of everybody's thinking tends to be prejudiced, imprecise, uncertain, uninformed, or even sexist or racist. Since this ends up being significantly limiting, critical thinking is needed to improve its quality and value.

"Philosophy is not a theory," asserted Austro-British philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951), "but an activity." In this 1921 opus, his only philosophical work published during his lifetime, Wittgenstein defined the object of philosophy as the logical clarification of thoughts and proposed the solution to most philosophic problems by means of a critical method of linguistic analysis.

Despite 21st-century fears of an "epidemic" of loneliness, its history has been sorely neglected. A Biography of Loneliness offers a radically new interpretation of loneliness as an emotional language and experience. Using letters and diaries, philosophical tracts, political discussions, and medical literature from the 18th century to the present, historian of the emotions Fay Bound Alberti argues that loneliness is not a historical, universal phenomenon. It is, in fact, a modern emotion: before 1800, its language did not exist.

If you're into self-help and personal development, you've most likely come across the terms stoicism and stoic philosophy a lot these days. Unlike a fancy-sounding pop psychology trend or personal development quick fix, stoicism is a powerful ancient Greek philosophy concept.

As Douglas Adams points out, if there is no final answer to the question "what is the meaning of life?" 42 is as good or bad an answer as any other. Indeed, 42 quotes might be even better! Gary Cox guides us through 42 of the most misunderstood, misquoted, provocative, and significant quotes in the history of philosophy, providing witty and compelling commentary along the way.

Philosophy for busy people. Listen to this succinct account of the philosophy of Wittgenstein in just one hour. Ludwig Wittgenstein saw himself as ‘the last philosopher’. In his view, philosophy in the traditional sense was finished. A superb logician, Wittgenstein distrusted language and sought to solve the problems of philosophy by reducing them to the purest form of logic. Everything else - metaphysics, aesthetics, ethics, finally even philosophy itself - was excluded.

La característica más específica de nuestra especie, la que nos diferencia del resto de los animales, es la capacidad de aprender y usar lenguas, y para ello es necesario que cuente con un cerebro lleno de palabras. Desde que nos despertamos hasta que nos acostamos vivimos, convivimos y nos comunicamos a través de las palabras.

Drei philosophische Grundlagenwerke Nietzsches in einer Box: 1. "Über Wahrheit und Lüge im außenmoralischen Sinn": In diesem Essay behandelt Nietzsche die Entstehung und Bedeutung von Sprache. 2. "Die Geburt der Tragödie aus dem Geiste der Musik": Hier legt Nietzsche den Grundstein seiner kulturphilosophischen Gedankenwelt. 3. "Also sprach Zarathustra": Das dichterisch-philosophische Hauptwerk Nietzsches, in dem er die Ideen des "Übermenschen" und des "Willen zur Macht" zum ersten Mal ins Spiel bringt.

Eine starke Geschichte kann die Welt retten - oder sie zerstören. Sie kann Wahlen entscheiden, Menschenleben retten, aber auch Kriege auslösen und Ungerechtigkeit zementieren. Samira El Ouassil und Friedemann Karig verfolgen diese ambivalente Wirkungsmacht anhand wichtiger Narrative von der Antike bis zur Gegenwart. Und sie zeigen, welche Erzählungen uns heute gefährden und warum wir neue benötigen. Wie gelingt es, den Klimawandel so zu erzählen, dass er zum Handeln drängt? Aus welchen Überlegenheitsmythen entstehen Rassismus und Antisemitismus?

Each year,John Brockman, publisher of Edge.org, challenges some of the world's greatest scientists, artists, and philosophers to answer a provocative question crucial to our time. In 2014 he asked 175 brilliant minds to ponder: What scientific idea needs to be put aside in order to make room for new ideas to advance? The answers are as surprising as they are illuminating.

Why can’t you light a candle in a spaceship? What books are bad for you? Is nature natural? Every year Oxford and Cambridge’s learned professors pose such curious conundrums to potential students to separate the wheat from the chaff, and the clever from the both of them. Do You Think You’re Clever? provides dazzling answers to 60 of these infamously perplexing problems... How would you measure up against Oxbridge’s sharpest minds?

In the second edition of this witty and infectious book, Madsen Pirie builds upon his guide to using - and indeed abusing - logic in order to win arguments. By including new chapters on how to win arguments in writing, in the pub, with a friend, on Facebook and in 140 characters (on Twitter), Pirie provides the complete guide to triumphing in altercations ranging from the everyday to the downright serious.

Did you know that trees collaborate, communicate, and engage in chemical warfare? Or that humans are better at smelling rain than sharks are at smelling blood? Sometimes, life gets boring. Your sense of wonder often gets lost in a pile of chores, paperwork, and obligations. With tons of boredom-busting facts and mysteries about plants, animals, history, space travel, and everything in between, you have a set of fail-safe conversation starters up your sleeve.

Since ancient times, we have used our body language to communicate, conveying our emotions and thoughts to those around us. Each person out there has a different body language, encompassing not only facial expressions but also body postures and gestures. Even eye movement is considered as part of the non-verbal communication, being closely followed by touch and using one’s personal space. There is really no way around it: The most successful, influential individuals are masters not only of the spoken word but of body language.

Mittlerweile legendär ist Gottlob Freges Unterscheidung von Sinn und Bedeutung am Beispiel des Planeten Venus: "Es würde die Bedeutung von Abendstern und Morgenstern dieselbe sein, aber nicht der Sinn." Das vorliegende Hörbuch vereint vier wichtige Schriften Gottlob Freges: "Über Sinn und Bedeutung" - Hier differenziert und entfaltet Frege die zentralen Begriffe Sinn, Bedeutung, Gedanke und Vorstellung. "Über Begriff und Gegenstand" - Eine Ergänzung und Fortführung zu "Über Sinn und Bedeutung", hier werden entsprechend dem Titel die Begriffe Begriff und Gegenstand entfaltet.

Instead of always being the victim, turn yourself into the victor. All it takes is a shift in perspective, and that’s what Stoicism is all about. The timeless wisdom of the Stoics can help anyone find inner peace and joy and Stoicism - Understanding and Practicing the Philosophy of the Stoics is the perfect starting point.