Why should anybody take an interest in philosophy? Is it just another detailed study like metallurgy? Or is it similar to history, literature and even religion: a study meant to do some personal good and influence our lives?"Engaging and accessible, this vigorous swansong exemplifies many of Midgley's virtues, and revisits many of her favourite themes." - The Tablet In her last published work, Mary Midgley addresses provocative questions, interrogating the various forms of our current intellectual anxieties and confusions and how we might deal with them. In doing so, she provides a robust, yet not uncritical, defence of philosophy and the life of the mind.This defence is expertly placed in the context of contemporary debates about science, religion, and philosophy. It asks whether, in light of rampant scientific and technological developments, we still need philosophy to help us think about the big questions of meaning, knowledge, and value.

Part 1. The Search for SignpostsChapter 1. DirectionsChapter 2. Do Ideas Get Out Of Date?Chapter 3. What is Research? Chapter 4. Clashes of MethodChapter 5. What is Matter?Chapter 6. Quantum QueriesChapter 7. What is Progress?Chapter 8. Perspectives and Paradoxes: Rousseau And His Intellectual ExplosivesChapter 9. Mill And The Different Kinds Of FreedomChapter 10. Making Sense Of TolerationPART 2. Tempting Visions of Science Chapter 11. The Force of World-PicturesChapter 12. The Past Does Not DieChapter 13. Scientism; The New SedativePART 3. Mindlessness and Machine WorshipChapter 14. The Power-StruggleChapter 15. Missing PersonsChapter 16. Oracles PART 4. Singularities and the CosmosChapter 17. What Kind of Singularity?Chapter 18. Can Intelligence be Measured? Chapter 19. What is Materialism? Chapter 20. The Cult of ImpersonalityChapter 21. Matter and RealityChapter 22. The Mystique of ScientismChapter 23. The Strange World-Picture Conclusion: One World but Many Window