Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #68409 in Books
• Published on: 1980-09-12
• Released on: 1980-09-12
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 777 pages

Customer Reviews

One of the biggest influences in my life, and a classic.
Douglas Hofstadter uses the art of M.C. Escher, the music of J.S. Bach, and Kurt Goedel's mathematics as the centerpieces for a magnificent inquiry into the nature of the mind. Along the way you will encounter Bertrand Russel, Carroll Lewis, particle physics, molecular biology, Magritte's paintings, and Zen koans. These are all used to probe recursion and the mystery of how we form thoughts. But the list of topics alone is not what makes this book great, it's the playful, joyful sense that characterize's Hofstadter's treatment of this. This sense of wonder is critical, as without it this highly challenging book would be very frustrating. The book's style itself is based on Bach's canons, and the chapters are interspersed with dialogues between the Tortois and the Hare, in the style of Carroll's Alice in Wonderland. The result is an artistic as well as scientific or philisophical masterpiece. I am currently a triple-major in molecular biology, physics, and philosophy, and much of my curriculum has been influenced by the beauty of Hofstadter's book. This will go down as one of the 20th Century's bests books.

Everyone should own this book!
Hofstadter has done a superb job of presenting an intriguing melange of disciplines that are seemingly unrelated. The author manages to quickly show that Godel's theorems, Escher's art, and Bach's music have much more in common than most would think. In a lengthy but VERY worthwhile read, he manages to get the reader to analyze many of the assumptions commonly held about the nature of thought and why it is so devilishly difficult to formalize the thought process with rigid rules, among other topics.

That he manages to entertain as well (he writes with a wry sense of humor on what are typically handled as rather dry subjects) and manages to reach the layman is what sets this volume apart as the masterpiece that it is. Although it is accessable to the layman, the book does become progressively more challenging and I strongly recommend completing his suggested exercises before moving on, otherwise you will likely find yourself unable to grasp the point he's trying to make several pages later.

Challengingly Fun
Hofstadter has pulled off a miracle with this book. If you like ideas and like reading about how ideas fit together, then get this book. Definately not a one-sitting book (at least for me) but very interesting and worthwhile. It's like listending to your favorite comedian lecture as a highschool teacher on a subject you can't help but be amazed at. He melds art, music, math, computer science, Zen, and more into a beautiful tapestry of fascination. Highly highly recommended.