A.J. Ayer: A Life Contributor(s): Rogers, Ben (Author) |
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ISBN: 0802138691 ISBN-13: 9780802138699 Publisher: Grove Press OUR PRICE: $16.65 Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats Published: January 2002 Annotation: A. J. Ayer (1910-1989) was a man of startling complexity: an exceptionally rigorous and penetrating philosopher, he was also a dedicated hedonist and seducer. He traveled in the most glamorous social circles, yet his friends found him oddly remote. Internationally acclaimed author Ben Rogers brings the brilliant, strangely vulnerable author of the classic Language, Truth, and Logic to vivid life, along with the Oxford intellectual world where he met Isaiah Berlin, Ludwig Wittgenstein, and many other great thinkers and writers of the era. Colorful, intimate, and often poignant, this is a powerful biography of a provocative and unforgettable man whose ideas changed the landscape of Western thought. "Beautifully written, sympathetic, and sensitive ... [a] balanced and rounded picture of a very complicated man." -- Simon Blackburn, The New Republic "A readable and well-researched account of the life and career of a remarkable figure." -- Lynwood Abram, Houston Chronicle "A.J. Ayer lived a fascinating life and in Rogers he has found an ideal biographer....." -- Frank McLynn, The New Statesman "Rogers succeeds in capturing the spirit of a philosophical maverick who many loved to hate." -- Kirkus Reviews "Exceptionally good ... A.J. Ayer weaves the philosophical, public, and private strands of Ayer's life together most skillfully." -- The Economist |
Additional Information |
BISAC Categories: - Biography & Autobiography | Philosophers |
Dewey: B |
LCCN: 00030876 |
Physical Information: 1.14" H x 6.02" W x 9.01" (1.28 lbs) 416 pages |
Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
Publisher Description: A. J. Ayer (1910-1989) was a man of startling complexity: an exceptionally rigorous and penetrating philosopher, he was also a dedicated hedonist and seducer. He traveled in the most glamorous social circles, yet his friends found him oddly remote. Internationally acclaimed author Ben Rogers brings the brilliant, strangely vulnerable author of the classic Language, Truth, and Logic to vivid life, along with the Oxford intellectual world where he met Isaiah Berlin, Ludwig Wittgenstein, and many other great thinkers and writers of the era. Colorful, intimate, and often poignant, this is a powerful biography of a provocative and unforgettable man whose ideas changed the landscape of Western thought. Beautifully written, sympathetic, and sensitive ... a] balanced and rounded picture of a very complicated man. -- Simon Blackburn, The New Republic A readable and well-researched account of the life and career of a remarkable figure. -- Lynwood Abram, Houston Chronicle A.J. Ayer lived a fascinating life and in Rogers he has found an ideal biographer..... -- Frank McLynn, The New Statesman Rogers succeeds in capturing the spirit of a philosophical maverick who many loved to hate. -- Kirkus Reviews Exceptionally good ... A.J. Ayer weaves the philosophical, public, and private strands of Ayer's life together most skillfully. -- The Economist |