Just Finished Reading: Russell – A Very Short Introduction by A C Grayling

Yes, yet another slim volume in the excellent Very Short Introduction series! This concerns the life and works of the great British philosopher Bertrand Russell. Graying makes a good case for Russell being treated like philosophical wallpaper – being so ubiquitous as to be hard to avoid but at the same time in the background of just about everything philosophical in the Anglo-American tradition. I read a bit of Russell in my late teens/early 20’s and was rather impressed by his down to earth style and well grounded common sense. Not the sort of thing you’d expect from a philosopher! I knew Russell for his left-wing leanings (he was a founder of CND) and his basic anti-war stance (put to one side during WW2). What I didn’t realise was his foundational work in logic and the philosophy of mathematics – not that reading any of his work on those subjects would have penetrated very far into my brain. That kind of stuff just shuts down my cerebral cortex in seconds!

Consequently as the first half of this book concentrated on Russell’s work in logic, mathematics and the nature of the mind and its relation to reality (which is actually quite interesting) this proved to be a bit of a slog – despite Graylings excellent prose and obvious love of the subject. I was on much firmer ground when Russell’s work in social philosophy was discussed. His ideas on morality, education and war largely gelled with my own and I found myself taking notes of a number of his books to read at a later date. Despite being born into an Edwardian class ridden society Russell was surprisingly classless and forward thinking. I’m glad I read this little volume as it has re-engaged me with a philosopher I dabbled with so many years ago. Watch out for books by this eclectic thinker in the future. Recommended.