{"product_id":"the-ashtray-errol-morris-9780226922683","title":"The Ashtray: (Or the Man Who Denied Reality)","description":"\u003cb\u003eFilmmaker Errol Morris\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003eoffers his perspective on the world and his powerful belief in the necessity of truth. \u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In 1972, philosopher of science Thomas Kuhn threw an ashtray at Errol Morris. This book is the result. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e At the time, Morris was a graduate student. Now we know him as one of the most celebrated and restlessly probing filmmakers of our time, the creator of such classics of documentary investigation as \u003ci\u003eThe Thin Blue Line\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Fog of War\u003c\/i\u003e. Kuhn, meanwhile, was--and, posthumously, remains--a star in his field, the author of \u003ci\u003eThe Structure of Scientific Revolutions\u003c\/i\u003e, a landmark book that has sold well over a million copies and introduced the concept of \"paradigm shifts\" to the larger culture. And Morris thought the idea was bunk. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Ashtray\u003c\/i\u003e tells why--and in doing so, it makes a powerful case for Morris's way of viewing the world, and the centrality to that view of a fundamental conception of the necessity of truth. \"For me,\" Morris writes, \"truth is about the relationship between language and the world: a correspondence idea of truth.\" He has no patience for philosophical systems that aim for internal coherence and disdain the world itself. Morris is after bigger game: he wants to establish as clearly as possible what we know and can say about the world, reality, history, our actions and interactions. It's the fundamental desire that animates his filmmaking, whether he's probing Robert McNamara about Vietnam or the oddball owner of a pet cemetery. Truth may be slippery, but that doesn't mean we have to grease its path of escape through philosophical evasions. Rather, Morris argues powerfully, it is our duty to do everything we can to establish and support it. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In a time when truth feels ever more embattled, under siege from political lies and virtual lives alike, \u003ci\u003eThe Ashtray\u003c\/i\u003e is a bracing reminder of its value, delivered by a figure who has, over decades, uniquely earned our trust through his commitment to truth. No Morris fan should miss it.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Errol Morris\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0226922685\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780226922683\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e University of Chicago Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 05\/16\/2018\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 192\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 2.25lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 10.20h x 8.20w x 0.80d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/15\/2018\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 03\/01\/2018","brand":"Errol Morris","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":43992898732287,"sku":"9780226922683","price":30.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_2936d37c-16e7-4de6-9bf5-c8c7a2238de4.jpg?v=1683321421","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-ashtray-errol-morris-9780226922683","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}