{"title":"Books by Daniel C. Dennett","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"9780140167344","title":"Darwin's Dangerous Idea","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eDarwin's Dangerous Idea: Evolution and the Meanings of Life\u003c\/i\u003e Daniel C. Dennett argues that the theory of evolution can demystify the miracles of life without devaluing our most cherished beliefs.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  From the moment it first appeared, Charles Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection has been controversial: misrepresented, abused, denied and fiercely debated. In this powerful defence of Darwin, Daniel C. Dennett explores every aspect of evolutionary thinking to show why it is so fundamental to our existence, and why it affirms - not threatens - our convictions about the meaning of life.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'Essential and pleasurable for any thinking person'\u003cbr\u003eStephen Pinker\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'A surpassingly brilliant book. Where creative, it lifts the reader to new intellectual heights. Where critical, it is devastating'\u003cbr\u003eRichard Dawkins\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'A brilliant piece of persuasion, excitingly argued and compulsively readable'\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Times Higher Education Supplement\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'Superb ... This is the best single-author overview of all the implications of evolution by natural selection available ... deserves a place on the bookshelves of every thinking person'\u003cbr\u003eJohn Gribbin, \u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'Dennett's book brings together science and philosophy with wit, complex clarity and an infectious sense that these ideas matter, to us and the way we live now'\u003cbr\u003eA.S. Byatt, \u003ci\u003eSunday Times \u003c\/i\u003eBooks of the Year\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cb\u003eDaniel C. Dennett\u003c\/b\u003e is one of the most original and provocative thinkers in the world. A brilliant polemicist and philosopher, he is famous for challenging unexamined orthodoxies, and an outspoken supporter of the Brights movement. His books include \u003ci\u003eBrainstorms\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBrainchildren\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eElbow Room\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBreaking the Spell\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eDarwin's Dangerous Idea\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eConsciousness Explained\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eFreedom Evolves\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43201446150322,"sku":"9780140167344","price":16.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780140167344_45934ad6-5e7e-4cc9-a942-95f8efaef70c.jpg?v=1786011004"},{"product_id":"9780140128673","title":"Consciousness Explained","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eConsciousness Explained\u003c\/i\u003e, Daniel C. Dennett reveals the secrets of one of the last remaining mysteries of the universe: the human brain.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDaniel C. Dennett's now-classic book blends philosophy, psychology and neuroscience - with the aid of numerous examples and thought-experiments - to explore how consciousness has evolved, and how a modern understanding of the human mind is radically different from conventional explanations of consciousness.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhat people think of as the stream of consciousness is not a single, unified sequence, the author argues, but 'multiple drafts' of reality composed by a computer-like 'virtual machine'. Dennett explains how science has exploded the classic mysteries of consciousness: the nature of introspection, the self or ego and its relation to thoughts and sensations, the problems posed by qualia, and the level of consciousness of non-human creatures.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'Brilliant ... a torrent of stimulating thought' Richard Dawkins\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'Revolutionary ... one of the most mentally agile, intellectually resourceful books you are likely to read' \u003ci\u003eGuardian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'A masterful tapestry of deep insights ... Dennett has written a profound and important book that is also clear, exciting and witty' Douglas R. Hofstadter, author of \u003ci\u003eGödel, Escher, Bach\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56224088818037,"sku":"9780140128673","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780140128673_e0ecf74d-e54c-4b6a-bc8d-af86909ef0f2.jpg?v=1786011830"},{"product_id":"9780141017778","title":"Breaking the Spell","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eBreaking the Spell \u003c\/i\u003eDaniel C. Dennett explores how the great ideas of religion have enthralled us for thousands of years - and whether we could (or should) break free. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  What is religion and how did it evolve? Is it the product of blind evolutionary instinct or of rational choice? Is the only way to live a good life through religion?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  Few forces in the world are as potent as religion: it comforts people in their suffering and inspires them to both magnificent and terrible deeds. In this provocative and timely book, Daniel C. Dennett seeks to uncover the origins of religion and discusses how and why different faiths have shaped so many lives, whether religion is an addiction or a genuine human need, and even whether it is good for our health. Arguing passionately for the need to understand this multifaceted phenomenon, \u003ci\u003eBreaking the Spell\u003c\/i\u003e offers a truly original - and comprehensive - explanation for faith.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'Packed with a mass of intriguing detail and anecdote ... witty and clear prose'\u003cbr\u003e  \u003ci\u003eObserver\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'He's the \"good cop\" among religion's critics (Richard Dawkins is the \"bad cop\"), but he still makes people angry'\u003cbr\u003e  \u003ci\u003eNew Statesman\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'Dennett writes with brio and humour'\u003cbr\u003e  \u003ci\u003eTelegraph\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'Elegant, sharp-minded ... clear-eyed but courteous'\u003cbr\u003e  \u003ci\u003eEconomist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cb\u003eDaniel Dennett\u003c\/b\u003e is one of the most original and provocative thinkers in the world. A brilliant polemicist and philosopher, he is famous for challenging unexamined orthodoxies, and an outspoken supporter of the Brights movement. His books include \u003ci\u003eBrainstorms\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBrainchildren\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eElbow Room\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eConsciousness Explained\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eDarwin's Dangerous Idea\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eFreedom Evolves\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56224213401973,"sku":"9780141017778","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780141017778_5b427948-5736-4978-813b-d1bcb59a4ce5.jpg?v=1786011360"},{"product_id":"9780140283891","title":"Freedom Evolves","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eDaniel C. Dennett's \u003ci\u003eFreedom Evolves \u003c\/i\u003etackles the most important question of human existence - is there really such a thing as free will?\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  How can humans make genuinely independent choices if we are just a cluster of cells and genes in a world determined by scientific laws?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  Here, Daniel Dennett provides an impassioned defense of free will. But rather than freedom being an eternal, unchanging condition of our existence, in reality, he reveals, it has evolved: just like life on the planet and the air we breathe. Evolution is the key to resolving this greatest of philosophical questions - and to understanding our place in the world as uniquely free agents.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  Dennett shows that far from there being an incompatibility between contemporary science and the traditional vision of freedom and morality, it is only recently that science has advanced to the point where we can see how we came to have our unique kind of freedom.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'A serious book with a brilliant message'\u003cbr\u003e  Matt Ridley, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Red Queen\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'Powerful and ingenious ... The definitive argument that the human mind is a product of evolution'\u003cbr\u003e  John Gray, \u003ci\u003eIndependent\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  'A book of sparkling brio and seemingly effortless panache ... Dennett at his best is as good as it gets'\u003cbr\u003e  \u003ci\u003eSpectator\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cb\u003eDaniel C. Dennett\u003c\/b\u003e is one of the most original and provocative thinkers in the world. A brilliant polemicist and philosopher, he is famous for challenging unexamined orthodoxies, and an outspoken supporter of the Brights movement. His books include \u003ci\u003eBrainstorms\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBrainchildren\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eElbow Room\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBreaking the Spell\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eDarwin's Dangerous Idea\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eFreedom Evolves\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56224220545397,"sku":"9780140283891","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780140283891_41fb5d10-56bd-4433-acd3-3a3075a0a09c.jpg?v=1786011200"},{"product_id":"9780141997353","title":"I've Been Thinking","description":"'A generous book written by a figure who has made a significant impact on philosophy ... Anyone interested in philosophy should read it' Nigel Warburton, Times Literary Supplement'One of today's most readable, intellectually nimble and scientifically literate philosophers' Nature'Who would have guessed that a philosopher's life could be so full of adventures?'Daniel C. Dennett, philosopher and cognitive scientist, has spent his career considering consciousness. I've Been Thinking traces the development of Dennett's own intellect and instructs us how we too can become good thinkers.   Dennett's restless curiosity leads him from his childhood in Beirut to Harvard, and from Parisian jazz clubs to 'tillosophy' on his tractor in Maine. Along the way, he encounters and debates with a host of legendary thinkers, and reveals the breakthroughs and misjudgments that shaped his paradigm-shifting philosophies. Thinking, Dennett argues, is hard, and risky. In fact, all good philosophical thinking is inevitably accompanied by bafflement, frustration and self-doubt. It is only in getting it wrong that we, very occasionally, find a way to get it right.   This memoir by one of the greatest philosophers of our time will speak to anyone who seeks a life of the mind with adventure and creativity.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56224779010421,"sku":"9780141997353","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780141997353_4006e2a8-0acd-4b38-af2c-5cdbc0b2db45.jpg?v=1786011446"},{"product_id":"9780141978048","title":"From Bacteria to Bach and Back","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Required reading for anyone remotely curious about how they came to be remotely curious' \u003ci\u003eObserver\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Enthralling' \u003ci\u003eSpectator\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhat  is human consciousness and how is it possible? These questions  fascinate thinking people from poets and painters to physicists,  psychologists, and philosophers. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis is Daniel C. Dennett's  brilliant answer, extending perspectives from his earlier work in  surprising directions, exploring the deep interactions of evolution,  brains and human culture. Part philosophical whodunnit, part bold  scientific conjecture, this landmark work enlarges themes that have  sustained Dennett's career at the forefront of philosophical thought. In  his inimitable style, laced with wit and thought experiments, Dennett  shows how culture enables reflection by installing a profusion of  thinking tools, or memes, in our brains, and how language turbocharges  this process. The result: a mind that can comprehend the questions it  poses, has emerged from a process of cultural evolution. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAn  agenda-setting book for a new generation of philosophers and thinkers, \u003ci\u003e From Bacteria to Bach and Back\u003c\/i\u003e is essential for anyone who hopes to  understand human creativity in all its applications.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56225133166965,"sku":"9780141978048","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780141978048_ec97d0cf-b604-48c6-815e-3f25d3a93dd4.jpg?v=1786011732"},{"product_id":"9780241954621","title":"Intuition Pumps and Other Tools for Thinking","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eIntuition \u003c\/i\u003ePumps, Daniel Dennett, one of the world's leading philosophers, and author of \u003ci\u003eConsciousness Explained\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eFreedom Evolves\u003c\/i\u003e, offers aspiring thinkers his personal trove of mind-stretching thought experiments\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThinking is hard. A few of us may be natural geniuses; others are blessed with reserves of willpower. Then there's the rest of us: not prodigies and short on time, but still aspiring to understand the world. What can we do? Daniel Dennett, one of the world's most original thinkers, reveals a collection of his favourite thinking tools, or 'intuition pumps'. From Occam's Razor to the benefit of mistakes, the 90% rule to avoiding 'deepitites', this entertaining guide will enable you to tackle life's most fundamental questions - evolution, meaning, consciousness and free will - and teach you to think truly independently and creatively.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDaniel Dennett is one of the most original and provocative thinkers in the world. A brilliant polemicist and philosopher, he is famous for challenging unexamined orthodoxies. His books include \u003ci\u003eBrainstorms\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBrainchildren\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eElbow Room\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eConsciousness Explained\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eDarwin's Dangerous Idea\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eFreedom Evolves\u003c\/i\u003e. He lives in North Andover, Massachusetts.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'One of the world's most original and provocative thinkers' \u003ci\u003eDaily Telegraph\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A master class' \u003ci\u003eGuardian\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Intelligence, insight and flair ... 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In this formative work, Dennett sought to develop a theory of the human mind and consciousness based on new and challenging advances in the field that came to be known as cognitive science. This important and illuminating work is widely-regarded as the book from which all of Dennett's future ideas developed. It is his first explosive rebuttal of Cartesian dualism and one of the founding texts of philosophy of mind.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56289939259765,"sku":"9780415567862","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780415567862_583ac099-0fdc-49c7-b3f2-a0a2efe6cc71.jpg?v=1786014105"},{"product_id":"9780593080399","title":"The Four Horsemen","description":"\u003cp\u003eIncludes a foreword by STEPHEN FRY'A classic for our time...And all time.' - Michael Shermer'The words of Hitchens, Dawkins, Harris and Dennett are needed more than ever. These are the heirs to Voltaire.' - Matt RidleyKnown as the ‘four horsemen’ of New Atheism, these four big thinkers of the twenty-first century met only once. Their electrifying examination of ideas on this remarkable occasion was intense and wide-ranging. Everything that was said as they agreed and disagreed with one another, interrogated ideas and exchanged insights  – about religion and atheism, science and sense – speaks with urgency to our present age. Questions they asked of each other included: ‘Is it ever possible to win a war of ideas? Is spirituality the preserve of the religious? Are there any truths you would rather not know? Would you want to see the end of faith?’             The dialogue was recorded, and is now transcribed and presented here with new introductions from the surviving three horsemen. With a sparkling introduction from Stephen Fry, it makes essential reading for all their admirers and for anyone interested in exploring the tensions between faith and reason.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56293325963637,"sku":"9780593080399","price":16.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780593080399_89446e19-0f67-466d-8ec5-b16aab9237e0.jpg?v=1786015209"},{"product_id":"9781509545766","title":"Just Deserts – Debating Free Will","description":"The concept of free will is profoundly important to our self-understanding, our interpersonal relationships, and our moral and legal practices. If it turns out that no one is ever free and morally responsible, what would that mean for society, morality, meaning, and the law? Just Deserts brings together two philosophers – Daniel C. Dennett and Gregg D. Caruso – to debate their respective views on free will, moral responsibility, and legal punishment. In three extended conversations, Dennett and Caruso present their arguments for and against the existence of free will and debate their implications. Dennett argues that the kind of free will required for moral responsibility is compatible with determinism – for him, self-control is key; we are not responsible for becoming responsible, but are responsible for staying responsible, for keeping would-be puppeteers at bay. Caruso takes the opposite view, arguing that who we are and what we do is ultimately the result of factors beyond our control, and because of this we are never morally responsible for our actions in the sense that would make us truly deserving of blame and praise, punishment and reward.    Just Deserts introduces the concepts central to the debate about free will and moral responsibility by way of an entertaining, rigorous, and sometimes heated philosophical dialogue between two leading thinkers.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56312509825397,"sku":"9781509545766","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781509545766_fcf3dfa8-0a46-47af-a8f5-6d368769795f.jpg?v=1786021870"},{"product_id":"from-darwin-to-derrida","title":"From Darwin to Derrida","description":"\u003cb\u003eHow the meaningless process of natural selection produces purposeful beings who find meaning in the world.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eFrom Darwin to Derrida\u003c\/i\u003e, evolutionary biologist David Haig explains how a physical world of matter in motion gave rise to a living world of purpose and meaning. Natural selection, a process without purpose, gives rise to purposeful beings who find meaning in the world. The key to this, Haig proposes, is the origin of mutable “texts”—genes—that preserve a record of what has worked in the world. These texts become the specifications for the intricate mechanisms of living beings.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHaig draws on a wide range of sources—from Laurence Sterne's \u003ci\u003eTristram Shandy\u003c\/i\u003e to Immanuel Kant's \u003ci\u003eCritique of the Power of Judgment\u003c\/i\u003e to the work of Jacques Derrida to the latest findings on gene transmission, duplication, and expression—to make his argument. Genes and their effects, he explains, are like eggs and chickens. Eggs exist for the sake of becoming chickens and chickens for the sake of laying eggs. A gene's effects have a causal role in determining which genes are copied. 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