The Philosophy of Karl Popper

Herbert Keuth's book is a systematic exposition of Popper's philosophy.

Herbert Keuth (Author)

9780521839464, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 27 December 2004

384 pages
23.7 x 15.8 x 2.5 cm, 0.63 kg

'This is the most comprehensive introduction to Karl Popper … This is a book that does him full justice.' Scientific and Medical Network Review

Karl Popper is one of the greatest and most influential philosophers of the twentieth century. Perhaps his greatest book, The Logic of Scientific Discovery, sets out his epistemology of critical rationalism, while his most famous book, The Open Society and Its Enemies, applies the principles of critical rationalism to social philosophy. Herbert Keuth's book (first published in German in 2000) is a systematic exposition of Popper's philosophy covering in part 1 the philosophy of science, in part 2 the social philosophy, and in part 3 the later metaphysics, in particular the theses to solve indeterminism/determinism and mind/body problems, and the famous idea of a third world of objective thought. This book's perspicuous structure and lucid exposition should ensure that it could be used in courses in both the philosophy of science and the philosophy of social science.

Part I. The Philosophy of Science: 1. The two fundamental problems in the theory of knowledge
2. The role of theories
3. On the problem of a theory of scientific method
4. The problem of the empirical basis
5. Corroboration
6. Realism and the concept of truth
7. Verisimilitude
8. Probability
Part II. The Social Philosophy: 9. Knowledge, decision, responsibility
10. The poverty of historicism
11. The open society
12. The 'positivist dispute'
Part III. Metaphysics: 13. Natural necessity
14. Determinism versus indeterminism
15. The body-mind problem and the third world.

Subject Areas: History of science [PDX], Sociology & anthropology [JH], History of ideas [JFCX], Social & political philosophy [HPS]