Murky musings…
Author: Noam Chomsky
Are there limits to what we can understand? How can the human brain generate incredible thoughts and concepts when each of its individual neurons doesn’t possess even the slightest iota of consciousness? How can the finite number of sounds used to create human language produce an infinite number of ideas? The world’s most famous linguist and political critic, Noam Chomsky tackles these kinds of questions in his 2015 work, What Kind of Creatures Are We? Unfortunately, despite my respect for the man’s indefatigable activism and his trademark clarity when it comes to political topics, I found this venture into science and philosophy difficult to wade through.
Chomsky – still going strong at age 87 – presents his thoughts in four loosely connected chapters. The first discusses the origins of human language, arguing that its use for communication may just be a side function. The second reveals the difficulty science has had defining consciousness, much less understanding it. He goes further afield in the third chapter, delving into political philosophy and efforts to define the society’s common good. To conclude, he tackles the intersection of science and philosophy in the fourth chapter, reviewing how science has consistently chosen to avoid some of toughest questions that it faces.
Chomsky in 2011
I have appreciated Chomsky’s famously penetrating and uncompromising political commentary many times in the past, but I’ve never read any of his science writing before. Disappointingly, my high expectations were laid low, as his overly dense and convoluted prose repeatedly left me stranded, confused and occasionally in pain. I am willing to admit that there may be many remarkable ideas lurking in the murky depths of this book and that Chomsky may be as equipped as anyone to explore them. However, I didn’t find much illumination.
Maybe I should have trusted my instincts when I couldn’t even finish the lengthy forward by Akeel Bilgrami. With the benefit of hindsight, I can suggest that if you don’t find the forward comprehensible, you should find something else to read. I wish I had.
On the long list of people I’ve never met, there may be no one that I admire more than Noam Chomsky, which makes it hard for me to be so critical. The man’s been accused of lacking concision in the past, but I’ve never thought he lacked clarity. Unfortunately, I think he’s found lacking on both counts this time around. I recommend taking a pass on What Kind of Creatures Are We?
— D. Driftless
author photo by Andrew Rusk (CC BY 2.0)
Check out some reviews of philosophy books that I did enjoy:
The Age of Atheists / Does Santa Exist? / Why Does the World Exist?
- Best Non-Fiction of 2016 - February 1, 2017
- Little Free Library Series — Savannah - May 22, 2015
- Little Free Library Series — Wyoming - November 30, 2014