Description
Book SynopsisRichard Tieszen presents an analysis, development, and defense of a number of central ideas in Kurt Gödel''s writings on the philosophy and foundations of mathematics and logic. Tieszen structures the argument around Gödel''s three philosophical heroes - Plato, Leibniz, and Husserl - and his engagement with Kant, and supplements close readings of Gödel''s texts on foundations with materials from Gödel''s Nachlass and from Hao Wang''s discussions with Gödel. As well as providing discussions of Gödel''s views on the philosophical significance of his technical results on completeness, incompleteness, undecidability, consistency proofs, speed-up theorems, and independence proofs, Tieszen furnishes a detailed analysis of Gödel''s critique of Hilbert and Carnap, and of his subsequent turn to Husserl''s transcendental philosophy in 1959. On this basis, a new type of platonic rationalism that requires rational intuition, called ''constituted platonism'', is developed and defended. Tieszen show
Trade ReviewTieszen has long been one of the bridge builders in contemporary philosophy, who is engaged by the philosophical issues and studies them with a broad background and an open mind. There is much to be learned by this, and I am eagerly looking forward to Tieszen's continuation of this interesting and very valuable work. * Dagfinn Follesda, Philosophia MathematicaJuliette Kennedy, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *
Table of ContentsPreface ; 1. Setting the Stage ; 2. Consistency, and the Ascent to Platonic Rationalism ; 3. Godel's Path From Hilbert and Carnap to Husserl ; 4. A New Kind of Platonism ; 5. Consciousness, Reason, and Intentionality ; 6. Constituted Platonism, Reason, and Mathematical Knowledge ; 7. Minds and Machines ; 8. Reason, Science, and Evidence ; Bibliography ; Index
