{"product_id":"on-bullshit-anniversary-edition-anniversary","title":"On Bullshit: Anniversary Edition (Anniversary)","description":"\n\u003ctable align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"2\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"100%\"\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd class=\"productDetailSmallElements\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Harry G. Frankfurt [was] the world's foremost authority on bullshit...In our current political climate, [his] words sound prescient to the point of redundancy.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Ron Charles, \u003ci\u003eWashington Post\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Immediately, I must say: read it. Beautifully written, lucid, ironic and profound, it is a model of what philosophy can and should do. It is a small and highly provocative masterpiece, and I really don't think I am bullshitting you here.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Bryan Appleyard, \u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\" \n\u003ci\u003eOn Bullshit\u003c\/i\u003e taxonomises an entire style of government.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Aditya Chakrabortty, \u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"[ \n\u003ci\u003eOn Bullshit\u003c\/i\u003e] remains unnervingly relevant. . . . Frankfurt described the bullshitter as 'he' rather than 'she' or 'they.' But now . . . we may have to refer to the bullshitter as 'it'--because a new generation of chatbots are poised to generate bullshit on an undreamt-of scale.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Tim Harford, \u003ci\u003eFinancial Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"A tightly focused, telling critique of a political and cultural climate that seems positively humid with mendacity, obfuscation, evasion and illusion.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Steven Winn, \u003ci\u003eSan Francisco Chronicle\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"The droll prose is a tasty treat.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Richard Pachter, \u003ci\u003eBoston Globe\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"A slim treatise on the pervasive, willful and devilish art of avoiding the truth.\"-- \"Washington Post\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"The scholar who answers the question, 'What is bullshit?' bids boldly to define the spirit of the present age. . . . Frankfurt's definition is one of those not-at-all-obvious insights that become blindingly obvious the moment they are expressed.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Timothy Noah, \u003ci\u003eSlate\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Frankfurt's sharp and delightful essay, republished after nearly 40 years. . . . is more resonant than ever.\"-- \"The Telegraph\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBiographical Note\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eHarry G. Frankfurt\u003c\/b\u003e (1929-2023) was one of the world's most influential moral philosophers and a professor of philosophy emeritus at Princeton University. His books included \n\u003ci\u003eOn Inequality\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eThe Reasons of Love\u003c\/i\u003e, and \n\u003ci\u003eDemons, Dreamers, and Madmen\u003c\/i\u003e (all Princeton).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eCommendation Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"A gem of psychological insight, social commentary, philosophical analysis, and good humor. This is the work of an extraordinarily acute, attentive, and versatile philosopher who has succeeded in addressing an audience comprised of both other philosophers and the general public on a topic of considerable human interest in a characteristically wry and engaging way. It is one of the most enjoyable and humanly illuminating short pieces of philosophy produced in the past fifty years.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Raymond Geuss, University of Cambridge\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"The most audacious of the ancient alchemists desired to transmute lead into gold. They never succeeded. Who would have known that they should have started not with a base metal, but with bullshit? Harry Frankfurt offers a philosophical analysis of bullshit that is golden. The prose by turns employs irony, broad humor, and tongue-in-cheek high seriousness while at the same time manages to have a rigorous logical coherence that is always impressive. One leaves the essay not merely thinking it was a delight. One leaves it realizing that one has engaged the accomplishment of a great analyst and thinker.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--William Chester Jordan, Princeton University\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Brilliant.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Fareed Zakaria, \u003ci\u003eWashington Post\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Seminal.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Roger Cohen, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Frankfurt's account of bullshit is doubly remarkable. Not only does he define it in a novel way that distinguishes it from lying; he also uses this definition to establish a powerful claim: 'Bullshit is a greater enemy of truth than lies are.'\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Jim Holt, \u003ci\u003eThe New Yorker\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Frankfurt famously argued that bullshit is speech that is typically persuasive but is detached from a concern with the truth. Large language models are the ultimate bullshitters because they are designed to be plausible (and therefore convincing) with no regard for the truth. . . . And bullshit is dangerous, warned Frankfurt.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Carissa Véliz, \u003ci\u003eTime\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"[Frankfurt] tries, with the help of Wittgenstein, Pound, St. Augustine and the spy novelist Eric Ambler, among others, to ask some of the preliminary questions--to define the nature of a thing recognized by all but understood by none. . . . What is bullshit, after all? Mr. Frankfurt points out it is neither fish nor fowl. Those who produce it certainly aren't honest, but neither are they liars, given that the liar and the honest man are linked in their common, if not identical, regard for the truth.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Peter Edidin, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"[Frankfurt] attracted public attention on a scale unimaginable to most academic philosophers. The reason for his appearances on Jon Stewart's \n\u003ci\u003eDaily Show\u003c\/i\u003e, CBS's \n\u003ci\u003e60 Minutes\u003c\/i\u003e and other US network TV programmes was \n\u003ci\u003eOn Bullshit\u003c\/i\u003e, his brief but bestselling disquisition on what he described as 'one of the most salient features of our culture.'\"-- \"Financial Times\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Harry Frankfurt is gone. But before he left, he won half the battle against bullshit: He called it what it is.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Stephen Harrop, \u003ci\u003eBoston Globe\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Terrific. . . . Has anything truer ever been written?\" \n\u003cb\u003e---William Watson, \u003ci\u003eMontreal Gazette\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"This is what the world has long needed. . . . Bullshit is now such a dominant feature of our culture that most of us are confident we can recognize and rebuff it. But Frankfurt shows the reader just how insidious (and destructive) it can be. . . . This book will change your life.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Leopold Froehlich, \u003ci\u003ePlayboy\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Frankfurt is that rare thing, a secular thinker trained in analytical philosophy who has focused a lifetime's attention on moral issues, has insights of real value, and is able to express them in rational language to any intelligent and attentive reader. . . . He is what an intellectual should be: someone who cares deeply about truth, and follows where it leads, instead of trying to lead it.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---David Warren, \u003ci\u003eOttawa Citizen\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"While philosophers have considered [ \n\u003ci\u003eOn Bullshit\u003c\/i\u003e] seriously, political scientists generally have not. But they should, because BS is an integral part of political rhetoric.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Paul Babbitt, \u003ci\u003eChronicle of Higher Education\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"One of the most read works of public philosophy ever.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Nigel Warburton, \u003ci\u003eNew European\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Frankfurt's book should be required reading for anyone whose speech or writing are intended for public consumption. Despite his subject, he is definitely not full of it.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Kevin Wood, \u003ci\u003eJapan Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\" \n\u003ci\u003eOn Bullshit\u003c\/i\u003e grabbed the imagination of so many because it identified something that was obvious as soon as Frankfurt pointed it out. . . . Writing near the beginning of the digital age, Frankfurt never anticipated that the rivers of bullshit would soon become tsunamis, supercharged by the internet, social media and a 24\/7 media cycle.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Brett Evans, \u003ci\u003eInside Story (Australia)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Thanks to Harry G. Frankfurt, we now have the theoretical framework and tools for recognising and evaluating bullshit. \n\u003ci\u003eOn Bullshit\u003c\/i\u003e is essential reading for the sceptically inclined.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Gerry Burke, \u003ci\u003eDublin Opinion\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"it came to me as welcome news indeed that Princeton University Press is publishing a twentieth anniversary edition... \n\u003ci\u003eOn Bullshit\u003c\/i\u003e, copies of which I dearly hope will find their ways into the hands of those still keeping their heads above the steaming piles rising all around us in order to provide them an eloquent, concise, and effective explanation of what bullshit is and how it works.\"-- \"Well Read Naturalist\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"It seemed to me that it was such a great thing that Princeton University Press is putting it [On Bullshit] out again. . . . Everyone should get a copy.\"-- \"The Two Matts\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Based on an essay written in 1986 and published as a short book in 2005, this crisp classic by the late American philosopher Harry G Frankfurt has been deservedly republished by PUP to mark its 20th birthday. . . . Twenty years since its publication, it is alarming to reflect how consumingly topical this minor masterpiece now is.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Matthew D'Ancona, \u003ci\u003eThe New World\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Lies are not the greatest enemy of the truth, according to the philosopher Harry Frankfurt. Bullshit is worse. . . . As he explained in his classic essay On Bullshit (1986), a liar and a truth teller are playing the same game, just on opposite sides. . . . Reading his essay in the age of generative artificial intelligence provokes a queasy familiarity. In several respects, Frankfurt's essay neatly describes the output of AI-enabled large language models. They are not concerned with truth because they have no conception of it. They operate by statistical correlation not empirical observation.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---John Thornhill, \u003ci\u003eFinancial Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"What Frankfurt, who taught at Princeton, conveys well is that the bullshitter is a social menace. He argues that the bullshitter is in some respects a more malign figure than the liar. . . . Frankfurt also drew a political lesson: bullshit is a threat to democracy because believing a lot of bullshit is incompatible with the sort of knowledge that a well-informed electorate needs to have. In this, he obviously anticipated much of the progressive reaction, some of it justified, some of it faintly hysterical, to the arrival of \"post-truth\" politics in 2016.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---John Maier, \u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBrief Description\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"One of the most prominent features of our world is that there is so much bullshit. Yet we have no clear understanding of what bullshit is, how it's different from lying, what purposes it serves, and what it means. In his acclaimed bestseller On Bullshit, which was featured on The Daily Show and 60 Minutes, Harry Frankfurt, who was one of the world's most influential moral philosophers, explores one of the most serious problems of our politics and our world. This twentieth anniversary edition features a postscript in which Frankfurt emphasizes that 'indifference to the truth is extremely dangerous.' With his characteristic combination of philosophical acuity, psychological insight, and wry humor, Frankfurt argues that bullshitters misrepresent themselves to their audience not as liars do -- that is, by deliberately making false claims about what's true. Rather, bullshitters seek to convey a certain impression of themselves without being concerned about whether anything at all is true. They quietly change the rules governing the conversation so that claims about truth and falsity are irrelevant. Although bullshit can take innocent forms, excessive indulgence in it can eventually undermine the bullshitter's capacity to tell the truth in a way that lying doesn't. Liars at least acknowledge that the truth matters. Because of this, Frankfurt says, 'bullshit is a greater enemy of the truth than lies are.' Remarkably prescient and insightful, On Bullshit is a small book that explains a great deal about our time.\"--\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Indispensable for teaching writing...in the age of A.I.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Grant Ginder, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"[Frankfurt] whose book was published before the explosions of the internet, social platforms, AI, and Donald Trump descending the escalator at Trump Tower, had no idea just how much more bullshit could fill the world.\" \n\u003cb\u003e---Robert Zaretsky, \u003ci\u003eThe Forward\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher Marketing\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eOver one million copies sold worldwide\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe international and #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestseller\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe anniversary edition of the acclaimed book that reveals why bullshit is more dangerous than lying\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eOne of the most prominent features of our world is that there is so much bullshit. Yet we have no clear understanding of what bullshit is, how it's different from lying, what purposes it serves, and what it means. In his acclaimed bestseller \n\u003ci\u003eOn Bullshit\u003c\/i\u003e, which was featured on \n\u003ci\u003eThe Daily Show\u003c\/i\u003e and \n\u003ci\u003e60 Minutes\u003c\/i\u003e, Harry Frankfurt, who was one of the world's most influential moral philosophers, explores one of the most serious problems of our politics and our world. This twentieth anniversary edition features a postscript in which Frankfurt emphasizes that \"indifference to the truth is extremely dangerous.\" \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWith his characteristic combination of philosophical acuity, psychological insight, and wry humor, Frankfurt argues that bullshitters misrepresent themselves to their audience not as liars do--that is, by deliberately making false claims about what's true. Rather, bullshitters seek to convey a certain impression of themselves without being concerned about whether anything at all is true. They quietly change the rules governing the conversation so that claims about truth and falsity are irrelevant. Although bullshit can take innocent forms, excessive indulgence in it can eventually undermine the bullshitter's capacity to tell the truth in a way that lying doesn't. Liars at least acknowledge that the truth matters. Because of this, Frankfurt says, \"bullshit is a greater enemy of the truth than lies are.\" \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eRemarkably prescient and insightful, \n\u003ci\u003eOn Bullshit \u003c\/i\u003eis a small book that explains a great deal about our time. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n","brand":"Princeton University Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51496039219478,"sku":"9780691276786","price":15.54,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0857\/9910\/8886\/files\/9780691276786.jpg?v=1783051454","url":"https:\/\/lusper.myshopify.com\/products\/on-bullshit-anniversary-edition-anniversary","provider":"Lusperbooks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}