Hilary Putnam deals in this book with some of the most fundamental persistent problems in philosophy: the nature of truth, knowledge and rationality. His aim is to break down the fixed categories of thought which have always appeared to define and constrain the permissible solutions to these problems.

Contents
Preface; 1. Brains in a vat; 2. A problem about reference; 3. Two philosophical perspectives; 4. Mind and body; 5. Two conceptions of rationality; 6. Fact and value; 7. Reason and history; 8. The impact of science on modern conceptions of rationality; 9. Values, facts and cognition; Appendix; Index.