1 option
The grasshopper : games, life, and utopia / Bernard Suits ; introduction by Thomas Hurka ; illustrations by Frank Newfeld.
- Format:
- Book
- Author/Creator:
- Suits, Bernard (Bernard Herbert), 1925- author.
- Language:
- English
- Subjects (All):
- Games--Philosophy.
- Games.
- Sports--Philosophy.
- Sports.
- Utopias.
- Genre:
- Games.
- Physical Description:
- xxiii, 235 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm
- Edition:
- Third edition.
- Place of Publication:
- Peterborough, Ontario : Broadview Press, [2014]
- Summary:
- In the mid-twentieth century, the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein famously asserted that games are indefinable; there are no common threads that link them all. "Nonsense," said the sensible Bernard Suits: "playing a game is a voluntary attempt to overcome unnecessary obstacles." The short book Suits wrote demonstrating precisely that is as playful as it is insightful, as stimulating as it is delightful. Through the jocular voice of Aesop's Grasshopper, a "shiftless but thoughtful practitioner of applied entomology," Suits not only argues that games can be meaningfully defined; he also suggests that playing games is a central part of the ideal of human existence, and so games belong at the heart of any vision of Utopia. This new edition of the Grasshopper includes illustrations from Frank Newfeld created for the book's original publication, as well as an introduction by Thomas Hurka, and a new appendix on the meaning of 'play.' Book jacket.
- Contents:
- Chapter 1 Death of the Grasshopper 5
- Chapter 2 Disciples 13
- Chapter 3 Construction of a definition 21
- Chapter 4 Triflers, cheats, and spoilsports 45
- Chapter 5 Taking the long way home 53
- Chapter 6 Ivan and Abdul 61
- Chapter 7 Games and paradox 75
- Chapter 8 Mountain climbing 87
- Chapter 9 Reverse English 93
- Chapter 10 The remarkable career of PorphyrySneak 105
- Chapter 11 The ease history of Bartholomew Drag 123
- Chapter 12 Open games 137
- Chapter 13 Amateurs, professionals, and Games People Play 151
- Chapter 14 Resurrection 167
- Chapter 15 Resolution 179.
- Notes:
- This new edition of The grasshopper includes illustrations from Frank Newfeld created for the book's original publication, as well as an introduction by Thomas Hurka and a new appendix on the meaning of play.
- Revision of: The grasshopper : games, life and utopia / Bernard Suits. -- Peterborough, Ont. : Broadview Press, c2005.
- ISBN:
- 9781554812158
- 1554812151
- OCLC:
- 867557666
The Penn Libraries is committed to describing library materials using current, accurate, and responsible language. If you discover outdated or inaccurate language, please fill out this feedback form to report it and suggest alternative language.