Synopses & Reviews
Over the course of his life, W. V. Quine, one of the twentieth century's great philosophers, engaged and inspired, interviewed and critiqued countless scholars, critics, and students. The qualities that distinguished him in any discussion are on clear display in this volume, which features him in dialogue with his predecessors and peers, his critics and students.
The volume begins with a number of interviews Quine gave about his perspectives on twentieth-century logic, science and philosophy, the ideas of others, and philosophy generally. Also included are his most important articles, reviews, and comments on other philosophers, from Rudolf Carnap to P. F. Strawson. The book, which contains many previously unpublished manuscripts, concludes with a selection of small pieces, written for a broader public, that give a glimpse of the philosopher's wide interests, his sense of humor, and his warm relations to friends. The result is a wide-ranging, in-depth, and finely nuanced portrait of the humanity underlying this great twentieth-century thinker's philosophy.
Review
Føllesdal and D. Quine have edited a superb collection of W. V. Quine's interviews, important articles, reviews, and comments on other philosophers such as Rudolf Carnap, Bertrand Russell, Donald Davidson, and P. F. Strawson. The unique theme of this handy volume is Quine's manner of engaging peers, critics, and students. The editors have chosen the pieces that make new points or expand upon his other writings; some of these have been unearthed recently in the Quine archive and are previously unpublished. The chapters reveal Quine's characteristic genius, wit, clarity of thought, and succinct prose. L. B. McHenry
Synopsis
Quine was one of the twentieth century's great philosophers. This volume begins with a number of interviews Quine gave about his perspectives on twentieth-century logic, science and philosophy, the ideas of others, and philosophy generally. Also included are his most important articles, reviews, and comments on other philosophers, from Rudolf Carnap to P. F. Strawson.
About the Author
W. V. Quinewas Edgar Pierce Professor of Philosophy, <>Harvard University. He wrote twenty-one books, thirteen of them published by Harvard University Press.Dagfinn Føllesdalis C.I. Lewis Professor of Philosophy, <>Stanford University.Douglas B. Quinehas collected his father’s manuscripts and notes and organized the web site that gives access to this information: <>.
Table of Contents
I. Interviews
- The Ideas of Quine (1978)
- Willard Van Orman Quine (1985)
- Quine Speaks His Mind (1988)
- Philosophy (1993)
- W. V. Quine: Perspectives on Logic, Science and Philosophy (1994)
- Twentieth-Century Logic (1994)
- Interview with Quine (1994)
- There Is Always a Further Step (1998)
II. Quine on Other Philosophers
Correspondence
- Logical Correspondence with Russell (1937–1967)
Articles on Other Philosophers
- Thoughts on Reading Father Owens (1967)
- Carnap’s Positivistic Travail (1984)
- Events and Reification (1985)
- Carnap (1987)
- Charles Sanders Peirce (1989)
- Let Me Accentuate the Positive (1990)
- Exchange between Davidson and Quine (1994)
- Foreword in Kurt Gödel (1994)
- Where Do We Disagree? (1999)
Reviews
- Review of Rudolf Carnap’s Logische Syntax der Sprache (1935)
- Review of Jeffreys’ Scientific Inference (1937)
- Review of Goodman’s Structure of Appearance (1951)
- Review of Geach’s Reference and Generality (1964)
- Review of Lakatos’ Proofs and Refutations (1977)
- Review of Bickerton, Roots of Language (1983)
- Review of Parsons’ Mathematics in Philosophy (1984)
- Four Hot Questions in Philosophy: PF. Strawson. Skepticism & Naturalism (1985)
Responses
- Replies to Professor Riska’s Eight Questions (1992)
- Comment on “Carnap and Quine by Neil Tennant (1994)
- Responses (1994)
- Reactions (1995)
- Responses to seven essays (1997)
- Response to Leemon McHenry (1997)
- Quine’s responses (1999)
III. Popular Pieces
- Introducing Piaget (1960)
- Mind-Body Problem (1963)
- Magna Carta (1963)
- On the Map (1964)
- Charting the World (1965)
- Words Enough (1969)
- Skinner Retirement Party (1974)
- A Letter to Mr. Ostermann (1975)
- Farewell Thanks at Villa Serbelloni, Italy (1975)
- Introducing Church (1975)
- Introducing Dummett (1976)
- Introducing Campbell (1977)
- Knights and Knaves on: Smullyan. What is the Name of this Book? (1978)
- Gail Caldwell Stine Memorial Lecture (1980)
- What I Believe (1984)
- Sticks and Stones; or, the Ins and Outs of Existence (1984)
- Introducing Kripke (1984)
- Van Heijenort Memorial (1986)
- Books That Mattered to Me (1986)
- To a Graduate Student in Philosophy (1988)
- Life is agid (1988)
- Philosopher’s Concern with Language (Words Are All We Have to Go On) (1992)
- Hobbling the Hawkers (1992)
- Introducing Shepard (1994)
- In Memory of John Finley (1995)
- Willard Van Orman Quine in “Dictionary of Philosophy” (1996)
- Kyoto Acceptance Speech (1996)
- Tidy Parsimony (1996)
- Advice to the Next Generation (2002)
- Farewell to Me (1978)