Philosophical Analysis. Its Development between the two World Wars

by J.O. Urmson

1969 Oxford University Press; Paperback

Genres: Philosophy

Paperback

First published January 1, 1956

Reviews

[AC · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a gem. I've never run across any of Urmson's books on Aristotle, so assume that they're worthless. But this is a purely historical treatment of a philosophical movement (the origins and development of Analytical philosophy - really starting with the Tractatus - that itself is fundamentally ahistorical and is rarely treated historically. I *highly* recommend it.

[AC · Rating 5 out of 5]

Apparently out-of-print -- brilliant -- a short and nuanced history of the analytical movement, primarily Russell and the early Wittgenstein. Can't recommend highly enough.

The ISBN, btw, is 0-19-500277-6

[r0b · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘Metaphysicians may be muddled and may consistently use misleading language, but it’s no use simply to dismiss what they say as nonsense; one must patiently examine what they are doing, and perhaps it will not be wholly bad. The verification principle may be muddled and be bad in so far as it suggests that we should not examine what metaphysicians do; but it also, in however warped a manner, draws attention to the fundamental difference between science and metaphysics.’

This is excellent. Very interesting and most of it pretty accessible. Much improved my understanding of logical positivism and analytic philosophy. And, while I still would much prefer to read continental philosophy, it really gave me more respect for that area of philosophy and so to be less dismissive of it.

[Kenneth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Assigned reading for the course in modern (20th century) philosophy I took in my junior year of college, which concentrated on the British analytic tradition, (ignoring most Continental developments like Existentialism).