Paradoxes from A to Z

About this book

'This sentence is false'. Is it? If a hotel with an infinite number of rooms is fully occupied, can it still accommodate a new guest? How can we have emotional responses to fiction, when we know that the objects of our emotions do not exist?This essential guide to paradoxes takes the reader on a lively tour of puzzles that have taxed thinkers from Zeno to Galileo and Lewis Carroll to Bertrand Russell. Michael Clark uncovers an array of conundrums, such as Achilles and the Tortoise, Theseus' Ship, Hempel's Raven, and the Prisoners' Dilemma, taking in subjects as diverse as knowledge, ethics, science, art and politics.Clark discusses each paradox in non-technical terms, considering its significance and looking at likely solutions. He also includes a full glossary. A refreshing alternative to traditional philosophical introductions, Paradoxes from A to Z is guaranteed to stimulate and entertain.