The Mystery of Things [Hardcover]

A. C. Grayling (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2004

In is new book, A. C. Grayling shows how much understanding people can gain about themselves and their world by reflecting on the lessons offered by science, the arts, and history. In the book's essays, Grayling illustrates what each area offers to thought, and in doing so, he covers subjects as wide-ranging as Jane Austen's Emma, The Rosetta Stone, Shakespeare, the Holocaust, and the brain.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Here, diverting and diverse as ever, is another platter of intellectual not so dim sum from a master chef... Grayling has three gifts. He roams far beyond his philosophical brief. He is wonderfully prolific. And he writes with a wry, crafted simplicity." -- PETER PRESTON, OBSERVER

"These essays on science, the arts and history examine what they offer to our understanding of ourselves and the world around us." -- NEW SCIENTIST

"This book is that rare bird, a volume of essays. We all love reading essays." -- THE TABLET

"This informative, witty collection of essays and reviews is loosely tied together by the idea that reflecting on the inner nature of things, the personal aspect of philosophy, happens most readily in the areas of the arts, history and science. As ever, Grayling, is worth reading, partly for the sheer weight of knowledge he brings to bear... Grayling's is clearly a more intelligent book than 99 per cent of others... A smashing bedside companion." -- TIMES EDUCATIONAL SUPPLEMENT

“Open–ended epistemological meditations.” -- Kirkus Reviews

You could do far worse than spend an evening or three in the company of this book. Like good conversation, it engages you in a flow of topics without ever pausing long enough to bore. The essays and reviews are succinct, informative and always reasonable... The order of essays parallels the order of evenings and guests - arts, history, science - and with a similar purpose in mind. That purpose is enlightenment. Ignorance must be banished... The aim is laudable." -- Lisa Appignanesi, THE INDEPENDENT

About the Author

Anthony Grayling teaches philosophy at Birkbeck College, London and is a Fellow of St Anne's, Oxford. He reviews frequently in the Financial Times and has a regular column in Prospect.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Orion Publishing (February 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0297645595
• ISBN-13: 978-0297645597
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #464,460 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Definitely succeeds in provoking thought., January 9, 2010

By 

Lisa Leardi - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Mystery of Things (Paperback)

The obvious and stated goal of AC Grayling's book was to provoke the intellect with aspects of history, the arts, science, philosophy, and other subjects. Grayling does a good job making the reader interested in often overlooked characters and stories in life, often creating more questions in his essays than answers. However, that itself is the beauty of the book, forcing the reader to dive into intellectual unknowns and piece together these memorandums to better comprehend life itself. Thomas Paine once said something in the respect "Mystery is the antagonist of truth," but mystery is an ally of the intellect, causing people an interest in learning and eliminating mystery ("yearn to learn" as I call it). To seek truth, one must at least be interested, and I indeed gained interest and respect in what I formerly viewed as bagatelles. A great example is my deepened respect for architecture, which Grayling enlightened me about the importance of its deep symbolism illustrating mankind's successes as the dominant animal of Earth, the golden crown of evolution. Other examples hold my deep appreciation, namely his views on science and literature. I recommend this book to anyone with an interest in philosophy, science, arts, history, or all of the above. Some slow parts, but I was nevertheless impressed and have positive feelings towards the book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Last Human Voice, March 16, 2010

By 

Kevin Fuller "Kev" (Evansville, IN USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Mystery of Things (Paperback)

'The Mystery of Things', a collection of essays, or more tellingly, vignettes by A.C. Grayling is an important little book, to say the least. In an age of texting, gaming and CGI, what is Real is rapidly becoming cliche' as the synthetic moves in to become the order of the day. Grayling, however, is one of the last voices of the human, a mind able to unflinchingly tackle such diverse subjects as the City of Ur and the heroin addiction of William S. Burroughs. Thankfully not a specialist, Mr. A.C. Grayling divides the pages of this powerful little nugget of a book into the Arts, the Sciences, and History. A Purist you may ask? Perhaps. But no snobbery is to be found here, where the author assumes one is interested and has therefore heard of the various subject matters contained within these pages.

In the Arts section, one of the fascinating topics is collecting, and Grayling has certainly turned a master's eye to the collection of these writings. Standing alongside the somewhat luddite-ish complaint of modern architecture in 'The Cities of Modern Culture', one finds a nice retelling and critique of 'A Winter's Tale' by Shakespeare (within a stone's throw at least) and without feeling seasick from the sea change.

As made manifest in the essay on Art and Nature, Grayling betrays a soul as sensitive and keen as a John Ruskin when extolling the golden age of European voyagers and their exploits where Captain Cooks were teamed with Naturalists and Artists who documented the New Worlds of the West Indies.

Do you, like me, feel we are missing something in our postmodern culture? A.C. Grayling expertly goes back and picks up the pieces, fitting them together in perhaps surprising ways, to form one Great Culture.

Highly recommended...

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Pleasantly engaging, November 4, 2009

By 

E. N Ritchie (Christchurch New Zealand) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Mystery of Things (Paperback)

I was a little mislead by this books title and Graylings day job. I was expecting a book on a school of philosophy.

It is instead a book of essays regarding various things, their historical context and ideas they evoked. Reading it is like having an pleasant conversation about several topics with an educated companion.

I read it on holiday on a tropical island and it was well suited to my ambitions for relaxation and quiet contemplation.