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On Bullshit
- Narrated by: George Wilson
- Length: 1 hr
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On Bullshit
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Publisher's Summary
Frankfurt, one of the world's most influential moral philosophers, attempts to build such a theory here. With his characteristic combination of philosophical acuity, psychological insight, and wry humor, Frankfurt proceeds by exploring how bulls**t and the related concept of humbug are distinct from lying. He argues that bulls**tters misrepresent themselves to their audience not as liars do, that is, by deliberately making false claims about what is true. In fact, bulls**t need not be untrue at all.
Rather, bulls**tters seek to convey a certain impression of themselves without being concerned about whether anything at all is true. They quietly change the rules governing their end of the conversation so that claims about truth and falsity are irrelevant. Frankfurt concludes that although bulls**t can take many innocent forms, excessive indulgence in it can eventually undermine the practitioner's capacity to tell the truth in a way that lying does not. Liars at least acknowledge that it matters what is true. By virtue of this, Frankfurt writes, bulls**t is a greater enemy of the truth than lies are.
What the critics say
"Frankfurt's deadpan tone gives a comic flavor to many of his observations." (San Francisco Chronicle)