Adventures of Ideas (Paperback)

by Alfred North Whitehead (Author) "In its widest possible extension the title of this book-Adventures of Ideas-might be taken as a synonym for The History of The Human Race, in..." (more)
Key Phrases: various prehensions, percipient occasion, sensationalist doctrine, Near East, Roman Empire, Western Europe (more...)

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Free Press; 1st Free Press Pbk. Ed edition (January 1, 1967)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0029351707
• ISBN-13: 978-0029351703
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #257,816 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

54 of 54 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Creative Platonist's Perspective on History and Civilization, June 5, 2001

By	Michael Strong (Palo Alto, CA) - See all my reviews

There are four parts to this text: "Sociological," "Cosmological," "Philosophical," and "Civilization." The first part is a history of how ideas, especially moral ideas, have influenced the progress of civilization. Whitehead is by training mathematician and by nature a philosopher, not a historian. As a consequence, he covers a great deal of historical ground at a high level of generality which, in Whitehead's case, I consider a virtue. He has a beautiful, long-term perspective; his account of the transition from a world in which slavery was taken for granted to one in which it is no longer legitimate, and the role that the ideas of Platonism and Christianity played in that 2500 year transition, makes me quite optimistic about the long-term possibility of humane progress in the world.

I describe the first section in depth because it is among the more accessible pieces of Whitehead's writing. The remainder of the book calls upon his unique metaphysical perspective to some extent, and is thus more of a struggle for the casual reader. It, too, is beautiful and valuable for those who are willing to learn how to read Whitehead, but it is not easy. Buy the book for the first part, then if you like Whitehead's highly idiosyncratic view of reality, train yourself to read the rest of the book.

Personally, although Whitehead has fallen out of favor of academic philosophers for most of this century, I think that his work is more likely to be read 200 years from now than are most other works written this century. Whitehead is definitely thinking of the big picture with a certain serene timelessness. Far more people should be exposed to his 20th century articulation of the eternal search for the True, the Good, and the Beautiful (and the Adventure).

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Ideas Are Still Adventurous, January 25, 2001

By	David E. Conner (Denver, CO USA) - See all my reviews

Whitehead was the foremost twentieth-century advocate of Process Philosophy--he called it "The Philosophy of Organism"--the conviction that reality is composed of processes rather than of substances or matter.

Students of process thought frequently focus on Whitehead's major work, _Process and Reality_, sometimes to the neglect of his other books. But Whitehead's thought was, fittingly, in continual flux; and _Adventures of Ideas_, written after _Process and Reality_, contains new themes which, some would say, provide needed correctives to some of the notions in Whitehead's earlier books. _Adventures of Ideas_ is also considerably more readable than _Process and Reality_. It should not be passed over.

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best, November 12, 2000

By	Jamal Nazir - See all my reviews

Excellently written. I was somewhat fan of Whitehead's philosophical ideas before I picked up this book. However, since I started reading this book I have become quite fascinated by his works. I recommend this book for all who seek knowledge or would like to further their command over making an inquiry into pre thought process.