The Whys of a Philosophical Scrivener

Gardner is an especially clear and forceful writer. He writes with humor and solid knowledge about an amazing variety of philosophical topics. Like Sun Yat-Sen, Gardner says he is a democratic socialist and a theist. Even when I disagree with Gardner I still find that his arguments are well worth considering carefully.

This is yet another great collection in which Gardner sets about destroying the illogical and psychologically damaging views propounded by new age guru's, pseudo-science and religious fanatics. A great addition for anyone whoenjoys his work in Skeptical Inquiry magazine or is interested in freethinking, atheism and agnosticism. Gardner has made it his life work to expose the dogmatic foundations of illogical thought where ever it may be found and as this collection shows, shoddy logic is alive and well in the Western tradition.

Most philosophers nowadays dodge all the really important questions, or if they don't dodge the questions, they write in a terribly obtuse style. Not Gardner. He directly tackles all the philosophical questions that matter to people, thinking and writing with his usual exceptional clarity and vigor. He explains why he holds the political views that he does, why he does not believe in paranormal phenomena, and why he believes in God and the afterlife. The book is a true gem, a pleasure to read, and deserves to be much better known. Just as I would highly recommend Gardner's books on recreational math to kindle someone's interest in mathematics, I would highly recommend this book to kindle someone's interest in philosophy.Readers who are particularly interested in Gardner's religious views should also read his book "The Flight of Peter Fromm," a novel that describes the transformation of the title character from fundamentalist Christian to philosophical theist. Along the way, Gardner gives many penetrating criticisms of Christianity---whether liberal, neo-orthodox, or orthodox.

I read Gardner's "Whys of a Philosphical Scrivener" years ago when I was a freshman in college, and it was perfect reading for that point in my life. It's a rather odd book; basically it's a collection of essays on broad philosphical, religious, and political topics, with many interesting digressions. For me, one of its useful effects was to clue me in to other interesting books, magazines, and ideas, and I'm still benefitting from it. Evem without accepting all of Gardner's opinions, it's probably had, directly and indirectly, the most influence on my thinking of any book I've read. Gardner digresses- often in the extensive and entertaining footnotes collected at the back of the book- into mini-discussions of other writers, contemporary politics, odd historic events, religion, science, etc. It makes a good "what to read" guide. It's almost conversational at times. Read it yorself, especially if you don't know much about philosophy (it will get you interested), and buy it for any curious high school or college kid you know.

Gardner starts off with "This is a book of essays about what I believe and why." Gardner has a fantastically clear mind and is able to communicate apparently difficult ideas with great ease. He rejects various philosphical positions in the 1st few chapters, then proceeds to explain his positions on issues. He also explains why some things that can never be proven (including God). He inspires a sense of wonder. But I most recommend this book to those struggling with the issue of God. Gardner is a theist--he believes in a personal God who can be prayed to--and offers arguements as to why that belief is rational in this age of science where many people (properly he says) reject the stories of traditional religion as absurd. Gardner is one of the treasures of the 20th century and it is a shame he is not more widely read.