gesang reviewed Thought and Reality by Michael Dummett (Lines of Thought)
One of the most moving works on metaphysics
5 stars
Dummett was probably the most profound philosopher of the 20th century, who worked mainly on those fundamental notions such as truth, meaning, etc., and exerted profound influence upon the intuitionistic strand of logic and mathematics. Per Martin-Lof was heavily influenced by him when he was drafting his intuitionistic type theory. Reading Dummett's books is always a spiritual exercise, and a test of will power. It's not for the faint of heart. His sentences are so tremendously tortured, and his thoughts are extremely hard to grasp. This is probably the easiest book Dummett had ever written, but it's still not easy. It requires patience and devotion. Slowly, the reader will be able to feel the magnificence of Dummett's terse but powerful writing style, there's a stable force, "a restraint, a logic", that permeates the sentences, a calm, steady, generative power that purifies the soul. It will be an unforgettable experience. There's …
Dummett was probably the most profound philosopher of the 20th century, who worked mainly on those fundamental notions such as truth, meaning, etc., and exerted profound influence upon the intuitionistic strand of logic and mathematics. Per Martin-Lof was heavily influenced by him when he was drafting his intuitionistic type theory. Reading Dummett's books is always a spiritual exercise, and a test of will power. It's not for the faint of heart. His sentences are so tremendously tortured, and his thoughts are extremely hard to grasp. This is probably the easiest book Dummett had ever written, but it's still not easy. It requires patience and devotion. Slowly, the reader will be able to feel the magnificence of Dummett's terse but powerful writing style, there's a stable force, "a restraint, a logic", that permeates the sentences, a calm, steady, generative power that purifies the soul. It will be an unforgettable experience. There's no sugarcoating, no clever rhetoric, only a grand, dignified, and, so to speak, raw architecture. The book summarizes Dummett's philosophy, and concludes with a rather scholastic chapter on God. The chapter, while devoid of flowery languages and passionate, sentimental expressions, is one of the most moving chapters about God, where Dummett's deep faith is rendered through rational, mountainous, quiet, dignified lenses. One can feel the presence of Thomas Aquinas there.