On Bullshit

by Harry G. Frankfurt Narrated by George Wilson

Overview

Written by Harry G. Frankfurt, Professor of Philosophy Emeritus at Princeton University-one of the world's most influential moral philosophers-On Bullshit has to be heard to be believed! This best-seller describes the unique situation in our culture in which the truth is overwhelmed by wave after wave of nonsense and misrepresentation. Faced with no clearly articulated theory of this condition, what function it serves, or what it means to us, Frankfurt enters his own brilliant theory.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

"A #1 New York Times Bestseller"

"Harry G. Frankfurt, Charles Homer Haskins Prize Lecturer, American Council of Learned Societies"

"Winner of the Bestseller Award in Philosophy, The Book Standard"

Financial Times

"[Frankfurt] attracted public attention on a scale unimaginable to most academic philosophers. The reason for his appearances on Jon Stewart’s Daily Show, CBS’s 60 Minutes and other US network TV programmes was On Bullshit, his brief but bestselling disquisition on what he described as ‘one of the most salient features of our culture.'"

Washington Post

"A slim treatise on the pervasive, willful and devilish art of avoiding the truth."

Financial TImes

"[a] brief but bestselling disquisition on...'one of the most salient features of our culture"

Australian Doctor

"Professor Frankfurt concludes that bullshit is a process rather than an end product. . . . If you are fed up with hype, spin and bullshit this book will provide insight - and therapy."

British Army Review - Christopher Jary

If you want to read a succinct, stylish piece of argument that will make you think far beyond the points it makes, you could do no better than invest ten dollars on Professor Frankfurt's handsomely bound essay.

Montreal Gazette - William Watson

Terrific. . . . Has anything truer ever been written?

The Boston Globe - Richard Pachter

Harry Frankfurt, a Princeton philosophy professor, presents a scholarly and formal essay on inflated truth, purposeful obfuscation, and pretentious duplicity. . . . I'm sure he had a blast writing it, and the droll prose is a tasty treat.

The Michigan Review - Karen Boore

With its relevance to contemporary issues and culture, On Bullshit is well worth the read. . . . The analysis is strict and philosophical with the clear intention of seeking the truth.

Books in Canada - Gordon Phinn

[On Bullshit's] calm, clearheaded deconstruction of everyday deceit is without parallel.

Philosophy Now - Petter A. Naessan

There is an interesting problem sketched at the end of the book, wherein sincerity is described as an ideal for those who do not believe that there is any (objective) truth, thus departing from the ideal correctness. . . . Needless to say, there are numerous problems which may be expanded, looked into and analyzed concerning bullshit. And I dare say that Frankfurt's little book is a nice starting point.

San Francisco Chronicle - Steven Winn

On Bullshit offers a tightly focused, telling critique of a political and cultural climate that seems positively humid with mendacity, obfuscation, evasion and illusion.

The Daily Yomiuri - Kevin Wood

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.

Playboy - Leopold Froehlich

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.

The Sunday Times - Bryan Appleyard

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.

Slate - Timothy Noah

The scholar who answers the question, 'What is bullshit?' bids boldly to define the spirit of the present age. . . . Frankfurt's conclusion . . . is that bullshit is defined not so much by the end product as by the process by which it is created. Eureka! Frankfurt's definition is one of those not-at-all-obvious insights that become blindingly obvious the moment they are expressed.

New York Times - Peter Edidin

[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.

British Army Review

If you want to read a succinct, stylish piece of argument that will make you think far beyond the points it makes, you could do no better than invest ten dollars on Professor Frankfurt's handsomely bound essay.
— Christopher Jary

Montreal Gazette

Terrific. . . . Has anything truer ever been written?
— William Watson

The Boston Globe

Harry Frankfurt, a Princeton philosophy professor, presents a scholarly and formal essay on inflated truth, purposeful obfuscation, and pretentious duplicity. . . . I'm sure he had a blast writing it, and the droll prose is a tasty treat.
— Richard Pachter

The Michigan Review

With its relevance to contemporary issues and culture, On Bullshit is well worth the read. . . . The analysis is strict and philosophical with the clear intention of seeking the truth.
— Karen Boore

Books in Canada

[On Bullshit's] calm, clearheaded deconstruction of everyday deceit is without parallel.
— Gordon Phinn

Philosophy Now

There is an interesting problem sketched at the end of the book, wherein sincerity is described as an ideal for those who do not believe that there is any (objective) truth, thus departing from the ideal correctness. . . . Needless to say, there are numerous problems which may be expanded, looked into and analyzed concerning bullshit. And I dare say that Frankfurt's little book is a nice starting point.
— Petter A. Naessan

San Francisco Chronicle

On Bullshit offers a tightly focused, telling critique of a political and cultural climate that seems positively humid with mendacity, obfuscation, evasion and illusion.
— Steven Winn

The Daily Yomiuri

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.
— Kevin Wood

Playboy

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.
— Leopold Froehlich

The Sunday Times

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.
— Bryan Appleyard

Slate

The scholar who answers the question, 'What is bullshit?' bids boldly to define the spirit of the present age. . . . Frankfurt's conclusion . . . is that bullshit is defined not so much by the end product as by the process by which it is created. Eureka! Frankfurt's definition is one of those not-at-all-obvious insights that become blindingly obvious the moment they are expressed.
— Timothy Noah

New York Times

[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.
— Peter Edidin

Product Details

BN ID:	2940171284756
Publisher:	Recorded Books, LLC
Publication date:	03/10/2008
Edition description:	Unabridged

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