A review by danielad
Irrationality by Lisa Bortolotti

3.0

This is a solid review of the current debates surrounding the irrationality/rationality distinction. The writing could use a little work but, in all, I'm glad I read it. Bortolotti divides the short book into four main chapters, one each on interpretation, mental health, freedom, and the world. The first deals largely with Davidson and Dennett, the second is a response to, in part, the criticisms of the anti-psychiatry movement while the other two chapters are on the difference between scientific knowledge and everyday action. Throughout, Bortolotti argues that clear distinctions between rationality and emotion, irrationality and mental health, as well as rationality and failure are too simplistic. Studies show that human beings don't consistently reason according to logical laws and often confabulate reasons or explanations after acting or making a decision.

Now, I know this probably wouldn't fit in a more scientifically minded overview but I would have liked a treatment, however sparse, of movements that endorse irrationality to some extent - dada or surrealism, for example.