Satisfying Reason

Leibniz said, with a mixture of admiration and inspiration, that the Duchess Sophie of Hanover always wanted to know the reason why behind the reason why. And that is just how rationality works: it wants to leave no loose ends to understanding, seeking to enable us to understand things through to the bitter end. In the 12 chapters of this book, Rescher develops and defends the perspective that rationality is a cardinal virtue in cognitive matters, and that this is not something simple and cut-and-dried; in the pursuit of truth through the development of knowledge we face obstacles - sometimes even insuperable ones; all that we can do is the best we can, realizing that even our very best may still be imperfect. The book is an explanation of the presuppositions and methods of rational enquiry, and an exercise in metaknowledge, developing a systematic body of knowledge about the scope and limits of knowledge itself.