Wittgenstein in 90 Minutes

Rating:
Summary: Ninety minutes you'll never get back
Review: Glib and condescending. The writer seems unwilling or perhaps just unable to come to terms with Wittgenstein's thought, so the whole book is nothing more than a series of snipes and jabs at Wittgenstein and his philosophy. When the author cannot come to terms with Wittgenstein's post-Tractatus thought, he simply dismisses it as bad philosophy. This is second-rate journalism, and gives innocent readers nothing intellectual to feed upon. I am disgusted that someone with such an obvious axe to grind regarding this particular philosopher, should be given the job of providing an overview of Wittgenstein's thought and genius. Well, I guess it takes one to know one. As Albert Einstein once said: "Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds."
Get Monk's bio for a real depiction of the philosopher, one that actually comes to grip with his thought.
Don't waste your time on this book. Unless you need something to line the bottom of your birdcage.

Rating:
Summary: Ninety minutes you'll never get back
Review: I must have misunderstood the title -- I thought it meant that you could read the book in 90 minutes, not that it had been written in 90 minutes. The biographical sketch is fine, and a bit entertaining, though Strathern too often goes in for easy sarcasm and makes too many jokes at the expense of his subject. But his pretension to have dealt in any way whatsoever with Wittgenstein's thought is simply outrageous. There are in total about 7 pages devoted to Wittgenstein's work, which do not even provide the barest bones of the beginnings of the glimmerings of an understanding of this profound and difficult thinker. In this age, of course, the idea that one can attain a deep comprehension of a difficult topic with almost no effort is almost irresistible; but I fear greatly that this glib and shallow work will make people who might well have enjoyed reading Wittgenstein feel that they no longer need to. Of course, if all you are interested in is being able to drop the name of a famous philosopher at cocktail parties, this may be the book for you.

Rating:
Summary: appalling
Review: I must have misunderstood the title -- I thought it meant that you could read the book in 90 minutes, not that it had been written in 90 minutes. The biographical sketch is fine, and a bit entertaining, though Strathern too often goes in for easy sarcasm and makes too many jokes at the expense of his subject. But his pretension to have dealt in any way whatsoever with Wittgenstein's thought is simply outrageous. There are in total about 7 pages devoted to Wittgenstein's work, which do not even provide the barest bones of the beginnings of the glimmerings of an understanding of this profound and difficult thinker. In this age, of course, the idea that one can attain a deep comprehension of a difficult topic with almost no effort is almost irresistible; but I fear greatly that this glib and shallow work will make people who might well have enjoyed reading Wittgenstein feel that they no longer need to. Of course, if all you are interested in is being able to drop the name of a famous philosopher at cocktail parties, this may be the book for you.

Rating:
Summary: Much about Wittgenstein - Less About His Philosophy
Review: Ludwig Wittgenstein was arrogant and domineering, brilliant and creative, aggressively argumentative and dogmatic, and often unpleasant and offensive. He was also a major influence on twentieth century philosophy.

I had recently read Wittgenstein's Poker, a fascinating account of Wittgenstein's life. I gained a little understanding of his philosophy, but only a little. I picked up this little book, Wittgenstein in 90 Minutes, in a naïve hope of quickly developing some insight into Wittgenstein's philosophy. I was disappointed. Once again I learned about Wittgenstein the man, but only a little more about his philosophy. (I am not giving up. I just purchased Twentieth-Century Analytic Philosophy by Avrum Stroll.)

The back cover describes Wittgenstein in 90 Minutes as one of the first in a series of light-hearted and idiosyncratic books on the lives and works of the major philosophers. Idiosyncratic maybe, but not light-hearted. Wittgenstein - neurotic, suicidal, and intense - is hardly a topic to be handled light-heartedly. Paul Strathern, the author, does inject some humor, but for the most part Wittgenstein appears to have been an infuriating individual.

Paul Strathern attempts to introduce the key ideas of Wittgenstein and I did appreciate the brief outline of Wittgenstein's arguments in an appendix However, Wittgenstein's terse style does not lend itself to easy understanding and this 90 minute tutorial only marginally advanced my understanding.

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining Introduction
Review: Strathern has a real gift for "putting the cookies on the lowest shelf." Unfortunately, with a thinker of the complexity of Wittgenstein, that can often lead to shallowness. This book suffers more from its narrowness of scope, though. While its biographical aspects are complete, its description of Wittgenstein's philosophy focuses almost entirely on the Tractatus, only mentioning briefly his later developments of linguistic theory, which more than anything else he produced has influenced postmodernism. In fact, I don't recall ever seeing the term "language game" used in the book! Nevertheless, because the book requires such a minimal investment of time, it is probably a good place to start. Just don't end there.

Rating:
Summary: Strathern hits his mark
Review: Strathern is a master at this kind of work, which mixes biography, critical analysis, historical context and humor all in a concise, informative & entertaining package. He lists a time line for the philosopher, his place in world/philosophic history & a selection of works for furthur reading. This series of books by Strathern is a wonderful course in Philosophy 101 without ever having to go to college, all presented in plain, easy to understand English without being bogged down with philosophy's often confusing vernacular. If you are expecting an in-depth review or complete analysis of the philosopher's life & work, read another book. This is meant to be a quick, concise overview & that's just what it provides.

Rating:
Summary: Wittgenstein in 90 entertaining minutes
Review: Strathern proides the gist of both of Wittgenstein's philosophies along with biographical information and historical background. W. came of a prominent family (Brahms was a frequent dinner guest and, of course, provided after dinner music); he went to school with Hitler, though the two never met as Hitler was kept back a grade. W. knew nothing whatever about philosophy until he was in his twenties, and after writing the book that he claimed ended philosophy, he decided to become a monk. The monk at the gate of his chosen monastery was offensively rude, however, so he chose to become a village schoolteacher instead. Later he returned to philosophy and reworked his ideas. Having been converted to Christianity by reading a book of Tolstoy's, he was determined to live an austere life, and was considerably irritated when he inherited a fortune, which he gave to his family.

Strathern relates these anecdotes in an easy, conversational style, occasionally sticking in sarcastic little comments. The book is a model of clarity and great fun to read; its only drawback is that it is too short; it does exactly what it sets out to do--give a brief introduction to W. The reader is left wanting to know more about the man and especially about his ideas. And that, of course, is really no drawback.

Rating:
Summary: Wittgenstein in 90 entertaining minutes
Review: Strathern proides the gist of both of Wittgenstein's philosophies along with biographical information and historical background. W. came of a prominent family (Brahms was a frequent dinner guest and, of course, provided after dinner music); he went to school with Hitler, though the two never met as Hitler was kept back a grade. W. knew nothing whatever about philosophy until he was in his twenties, and after writing the book that he claimed ended philosophy, he decided to become a monk. The monk at the gate of his chosen monastery was offensively rude, however, so he chose to become a village schoolteacher instead. Later he returned to philosophy and reworked his ideas. Having been converted to Christianity by reading a book of Tolstoy's, he was determined to live an austere life, and was considerably irritated when he inherited a fortune, which he gave to his family.

Strathern relates these anecdotes in an easy, conversational style, occasionally sticking in sarcastic little comments. The book is a model of clarity and great fun to read; its only drawback is that it is too short; it does exactly what it sets out to do--give a brief introduction to W. The reader is left wanting to know more about the man and especially about his ideas. And that, of course, is really no drawback.