The Dream of Reason: A History of Western Philosophy from the Greeks to the Renaissance (New Edition)

"His book...supplant[s] all others, even the immensely successful History of Western Philosophy by Bertrand Russell."—A. C. Grayling
Already a classic, Anthony Gottlieb's landmark study of early Western thought takes a fresh look at the writings of the great thinkers of classical philosophy. From the pre-Socratic philosophers to Renaissance visionaries like Erasmus, "philosophy" emerges here as a phenomenon unconfined by any one discipline. Indeed, as Gottlieb explains, its most revolutionary breakthroughs in the natural and social sciences were quickly co-opted by other branches of knowledge, leading to the illusion that philosophers never make any progress. From the physics of angels to Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose, Gottlieb builds through example and anecdote a vivid portrait of the human drive to understanding.
The Dream of Reason now appears in a new edition with expanded coverage of the Middle Ages, to coincide with the publication of its sequel, The Dream of Enlightenment: The Rise of Modern Philosophy.
The book invites comparison with Bertrand Russell's monumental History of Western Philosophy, "but Gottlieb's book is less idiosyncratic and based on more recent scholarship" (Colin McGinn, Los Angeles Times). A New York Times Notable Book, a Los Angeles Times Best Book, and a Times Literary Supplement Best Book of 2001.