Joseph Agassi is professor emeritus at Tel Aviv University and York University.

• Part 1: BackgroundChapter 1: Universalism: The Siblinghood of HumanityChapter 2: Universalism versus ParticularismChapter 3: Background to Radicalism Chapter 4: Gradualism and Pluralism Chapter 5: Magic and SciencePart 2: The Revolt against ReasonChapter 6: The Problem of RationalityChapter 7: Theories of RationalityChapter 8: The Flotsam and Jetsam of PhilosophyChapter 9: The Romantic Idea of Reason Part 3: The New EnlightenmentChapter 10: Minimal Standards in Ethics Chapter 11: Minimal Standards in Politics Chapter 12: Minimal Standards in Science Chapter 13: Optimism as an Imperative Chapter 14: Democracy as OptimismConclusion: Autonomous People in Free Society

Different in approach and style, Agassi follows Socrates in interrogating the borderline between academic philosophy and the “philosophy of life,” posing provocative assertions as invitations for readers of all backgrounds to critically engage, refute, and rethink. With a wide range of questions and the problems they address, we are reminded of the richness of the history of philosophical investigations still worthy of debate. Defending liberalism with erudition, Agassi does not shy away from controversial topics, exposing their fault lines and the potential ways of eliminating or resolving them.