Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar by Thomas Cathcart: Book Cover
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Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar: Understanding Philosophy Through Jokes by Thomas Cathcart, Daniel Klein

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(Hardcover)

Reader Rating: (17 ratings)

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  • Publisher: Abrams,Harry N Inc
  • Pub. Date: March 2007
  • ISBN-13: 9780810914933
  • Sales Rank: 11,562
  • 208pp
 
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Synopsis

This New York Times bestseller is the hilarious philosophy course everyone wishes they'd had in school

Outrageously funny, Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar . . . has been a breakout bestseller ever since authors-and born vaudevillians-Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein did their schtick on NPR's Weekend Edition. Lively, original, and powerfully informative, Plato and a Platypus Walk Into a Bar . . . is a not-so-reverent crash course through the great philosophical thinkers and traditions, from Existentialism (What do Hegel and Bette Midler have in common?) to Logic (Sherlock Holmes never deduced anything). Philosophy 101 for those who like to take the heavy stuff lightly, this is a joy to read-and finally, it all makes sense!

Roy Blount Jr.

I laughed, I learned, I loved it.

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Biography

Tom Cathcart and Daniel Klein pursued the usual careers after majoring in philosophy at Harvard. Tom worked with street gangs in Chicago and dropped in and out of various divinity schools. Dan wrote jokes for comedians, including Flip Wilson and Lily Tomlin, designed stunts for Candid Camera, and continues to pen thrillers. Each lives with his wife in New England

Customer Reviews

Good ideaby samu

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February 22, 2009: This was an amazing idea- use jokes to convey the ideas of great philosophers. I don't know how they compiled all of them, but the result is a brilliant collection of funnies that plunge the reader into concepts of metaphysics, religion, ethics, language- there's a great paraphrase in the language part about why the questions in philosophy are so confusing- it's because they use confusing language (interesting points elaborated on in "Everyone Agrees").

That really gets to the point- jokes are instant ways to conjoin two disperate ideas-just like philosophy. "Getting" a joke is much like "getting" philosophy and that's why this book is so brilliant and useful.

I Also Recommend: Blink, The Office and Philosophy, Everyone Agrees.


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