False Truths - The Error of Relying on Authority

Mendler contends that many of the beliefs, tenets, conclusions, and understandings that are widely accepted as "truths" are, in fact, not valid at all. He asserts that we should challenge them all - from Plato on to contemporary theorists in all of those fields - and analyze every element of their conclusions.

List of contents

List of Illustrations
Preface

CHAPTER ONE: RELIANCE ON AUTHORITY
Origins
Consequences

CHAPTER TWO: THE STORY OF BELIEFS
How the Ancient Greeks Misled Us
The Middle Ages Muddle
We Were Not Enlightened

CHAPTER THREE: THE PERSISTENCE OF OLD IDEAS
Old and New
Jacques Maritain
Pope John Paul II
John Polkinghorne

CHAPTER FOUR: THE ERROR OF DUALISM
Causation
Epistemology

CHAPTER FIVE: FAITH AND ANTI-FAITH
Faith
Antifaith - Fair and Foul

CHAPTER SIX: PHYSICS AND MYSTERY
Cosmology
Waves, Particles, Quanta

CHAPTER SEVEN: BIOLOGY AND MYSTERY
The Basics of Evolution
The Burgess Shale
Consciousness
Humans and Animals
The Origin of Life

CHAPTER EIGHT: MIND
The Awesome Brain
Free Will and Foolishness
Neuroscience - New Understandings

CHAPTER NINE: EQUALITY, DEMOCRACY AND FREEDOM
Equality
Democracy
Freedom

CHAPTER TEN: ENTERPRISE, PLANNING, FREEDOM AND WELFARE
The Basics of Economics
Enterprise and Planning
Welfare and Gridlock

CHAPTER ELEVEN: CONCLUSIONS

Index

About the author

By Edward C. Mendler

Summary

Mendler contends that many of the beliefs, tenets, conclusions, and understandings that are widely accepted as “truths” are, in fact, not valid at all. He asserts that we should challenge them all — from Plato on to contemporary theorists in all of those fields — and analyze every element of their conclusions.

Product details

• Authors: Edward C. Mendler
• Publisher: University Press Of America
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 18.03.2014
• EAN: 9780761862994
• ISBN: 978-0-7618-6299-4
• No. of pages: 180
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > Philosophy > General, dictionaries; Non-fiction book > Philosophy, religion > Philosophy: general, reference works; Social sciences, law, business > Business > Economics; PHILOSOPHY / Political, POLITICAL SCIENCE / Political Economy, PHILOSOPHY / Ethics & Moral Philosophy, PHILOSOPHY / Logic, Philosophy, PHILOSOPHY / Criticism, Social & political philosophy, Ethics & moral philosophy, Political Economy, History of philosophy, philosophical traditions, Philosophy: logic