The Modern Intellectual Tradition: From Descartes to Derrida

By: Lawrence Cahoone, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Lawrence Cahoone

What is reality? Ask yourself whether you can actually know the answer, much less be sure that you can know it, and you've begun to grapple with the metaphysical and epistemological quandaries that have occupied, teased, and tormented modern philosophy's greatest intellects since the dawn of modern science and a century before the Enlightenment.

These 36 lectures are the perfect introduction to the basics of modern and contemporary Western approaches to the philosophies of both reality (metaphysics) and knowledge (epistemology), right through the end of the 20th century. Led by Professor Cahoone, you'll partake in an engaging intellectual journey that encompasses prominent figures from all the major traditions of Western philosophy.

You'll explore the ideas behind modern philosophy's most important movements, including dualism, rationalism, empiricism, idealism, existentialism, and postmodernism. You'll plunge into the thought of some of philosophy's most important thinkers, including Descartes, Locke, Spinoza, Hume, Kant, Hegel, Peirce, Nietzsche, James, Wittgenstein, Heidegger, Rorty, and Derrida, learning how many of them were in fact considered radicals, their views appreciated far less in their own era than in later ones.

And you'll gain a clear sense of how each of these movements and thinkers fits into philosophy's broader progression, often pushing philosophy in dramatically new directions right up to the present day, as well as how philosophy is intimately related to a multitude of other disciplines.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2010 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2010 The Great Courses

Excellent Great Course!

While I have always enjoyed intellectual history, I have not always had the background or the ability to understand philosophical concepts, theories, philosophers or schools of philosophy in spite of my interest. In my undergraduate and graduate college years, I was exposed to many of the early modern philosophers such as John Locke, the Enlightenment philosophers, David Hume, John Stuart Mill (a favorite) then later Huserl and phenomenology, which was difficult for me to grasp. I tried Sartre and Camus and felt that I had a limited understanding of existentialism. However, I was in over my head with Bertram Russell, and much later, Derrida and Deconstruction mystified me. So, it was with some trepidation that I decided to listen to this extensive survey course on modern philosophy.

Professor Cahoone is excellent. He has an enormous understanding of and ability to communicate the subject matter. The course chapters were about 30 minutes in length, and I was amazed at how much information he was able to discuss in that time. Also, the organization of the material was excellent. The chapters flowed one into the next. There was continuity of information that linked the concepts of one philosopher or school of philosophy to the next in historical time and development. If I struggled with the material, and the material was often very challenging, I still connected with the philosopher and the context of the ideas enough to know that i would relisten to the material. I was not so overwhelmed that I wanted stop the course. In fact, I am beginning my second listen.

The ideas presented in this course are important. They have had or will have great impact on society, politics, and history. It is important to me to have a much better understanding of them. It isn't so much whether I agree or disagree with a philosopher or a concept. These ideas are impacting my life now and will impact future lives. I am grateful to have found a course that will help me continue my effort to understand them. It is well worth the investment of my time and energy.

Outstanding overview of modern philosophy

Prof. Cahoone’s mastery of the work of an incredible range of philosophers is amazing. He presents their work clearly, giving each the fairest, most complete airing the time constraints allow and connecting what comes next to what came before so the listener can follow the many lines of thought. A pro makes what’s difficult seem easy, and Prof. Cahoone by this measure is a real pro.

Interesting

The course is organized into 36 lectures that cover the most important developments of philosophy during the last few centuries. Each lecture focuses or a philosopher or a group of philosophers within the same "school of thought". The lectures are to the point and may be useful for both students of philosophy and the general public.

Brilliant

Cahoone covers the enormity of complex and conflicting ideas in modern philosophy, all the while ensuring that the listener understands what each philosopher was saying. He always takes the time to define the philosophical and scientific jargon before diving into deep waters. Then, once he have fully dived in, he emerges to unpack the intricacies of the argument. I wish I had him as a philosophy professor in my younger days as an undergraduate.

Effective summary of Philosophy throughout history

What did you love best about The Modern Intellectual Tradition: From Descartes to Derrida?

It was precisely the kind of overview I wanted to see in regards to the evolution of philosophy . I also thought Professor Cahoone's insight and commentaries were fair and objective. The material presented for each aspect of history is concise. I pretty much enjoyed every aspect of the presentation and delivery of the content.

What did you like best about this story?

This book really gave me a great feel and general understanding for each of the major philosophical movement. I love how the course was able to effectively fit a major philosophical figure and school of thought into "one" lecture. As you process each lecture you can get a macro feel of how each school of thought is evolving with the times.

Have you listened to any of Professor Lawrence Cahoone’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes, the author had a laser like quality in presenting relevant aspect of the material and philosophy to the reader. In addition, he presented fair commentaries near the end of each lecture that gave each lecture a personal touch.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I was a little bit worried that it was going to be a boring "lecture" based on some of the concerns from other people's review. However, from start to finish, I enjoyed everything Cahoone had to say. He does have a professorial tone, but I think it's appropriate for the material. Overall, I don't really have anything to bring in the form of a critique about the narrator's performance.

Any additional comments?

I love this book and highly recommend it. If you love philosophy and want to understand both the classical and modern thinkers/philosophers, then this is right up your alley. I have personally tried to tackle reading Aristotle, Descartes, Locke, Nietzsche, Rorty all on their own and found the summary and insight from this course extremely effective.