Descartes: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) [Paperback]

Tom Sorell (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0192854097 | ISBN-13: 978-0192854094 | Publication Date: January 18, 2001

Descartes is perhaps best known for his statement, "Cogito, ergo sum," the cornerstone of his metaphysics. But he did not intend the metaphysics to stand apart from his scientific work, which included important investigations into physics, mathematics, and optics. In this book, Sorell shows that Descarates was, above all, an advocate and practitioner of the new mathematical approach to physics, and that he developed his philosophies to support his discoveries in the sciences.

Editorial Reviews

Review

`Sorell's account well portrays the intensely personal character of Descartes's thought, and in doing so tells us much about the thinker himself. The pages ... devoted to the Meditations surely constitute the best available introductory sketch of Descartes's classic.' Times Higher Education Supplement

`concise and lucid ... it radiates authority' J. V. Field, Mathematical Reviews

About the Author

Tom Sorell is Lecturer in Philosophy at the Open University. His books include Knowledge and Descartes, both published by the Open University Press.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (January 18, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0192854097
• ISBN-13: 978-0192854094
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #505,570 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Useful for novices and advanced students alike., February 13, 2003

By 

Mark I. Vuletic (Phoenix, AZ) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Descartes: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) (Paperback)

Those who have not yet studied Descartes will enjoy this clearly written introduction to Descartes' life and thought. However, even seasoned philosophy students are also liable to find much of interest in Sorell's DESCARTES. For most philosophy students, Descartes is more or less synonymous with the DISCOURSE ON METHOD and the MEDITATIONS ON FIRST PHILOSOPHY, and Descartes' scientific and mathematical work tend to be regarded as almost irrelevant and disconnected afterthoughts. The brilliance of Sorell's book is to show how Descartes' work constitutes an integrated whole, where the DISCOURSE and the MEDITATIONS are more a preliminary step in Descartes' project than the endpoint of his philosophy that we often take it to be.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Clear, Informative Introduction to Descartes, August 17, 2007

By 

Ray "A Reader" - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Descartes: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) (Paperback)

This is an enjoyable and informative introduction to Descartes, his work, and his philosophy. Some may hesitate to delve into Descartes work because of its complexity and denseness of thought, but this "very short introduction" comes to the rescue, orienting us to Descartes' major ideas, their developmental history, and the context in which he developed them. The book is greatly interesting to read, and even the discourses on some of Descartes' more conceptual thought are treated with exceptional clarity. Although the book focuses on the developmental history of Descartes' investigation into the sciences (particularly in optics), the book also discusses his contributions to mathematical geometry, as well as some of his thoughts on faith and reason. If you are looking for an introduction to Descartes, it is hard to go wrong with this well-written and enjoyable pocket volume.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Ghost of Descartes is still with us, September 24, 2006

By 

Dr. Bojan Tunguz (Indiana, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Descartes: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) (Paperback)

Descartes is one of the most influential Western philosophers, and this book is a useful first introduction to his life and ideas. The strength of the book is in positioning Descartes' writing primarily within the political and ideological currents of his time, and showing how exactly he's been forced to edit and finesse his writings in order to please the censorship and his critics. This helps explain why some of his works were not as straightforwardly written as one might have liked. The other reason has probably to do with the sheer ambition of Descartes' chief enterprise, to discover one sure method of arriving at explanations and solutions of the most pressing scientific and philosophical problems of the time. The enormity of this scope meant that some of these methods would necessarily be to vague to be of any practical use in mathematics or physics, and within a generation after Descartes' death Newtonian gravitation completely prevailed. However, in the realm of philosophy, Descarts' thought managed to be of interest until the present day.

This book is very well written, and if you are interested in finding out more about Descartes, it would be a worthwhile first read.