Bryan Magee (1930–2019)

Born in 1930, Bryan Magee wrote Confessions of a Philosopher at age 67, after a lifetime spent wrestling with philosophical problems. In fact, his interest in philosophy began between the ages of five and nine when he began questioning the nature of consciousness and time. These questions, along with similar ones, would consume the rest of his educational and professional life.

And so, this book, part survey of western philosophy and part memoir, is the result of six decades of thinking show more deeply about philosophy on a very personal level. As such, the depth of content in this book is unparalleled, and I can easily say that it’s among the top five best books I’ve ever read.

Unlike most histories of philosophy, it does not start with Greek philosophy and proceed onward in chronological order. It presents philosophy as it was encountered by Magee, and so you not only learn about western philosophy but you learn about Magee’s own intellectual development as he encountered and grappled with each philosopher. This makes for a unique and interesting account of the subject that is truly one of a kind.

The account is also unique in that Magee developed personal relationships with two of the most influential thinkers of the twentieth century: Bertrand Russell and Karl Popper. This gives his account a personal touch absent in most other books.

Finally, Magee changed my thinking completely about the legitimacy of a whole approach to philosophy, namely that of logical positivism and linguistic analysis. He explains, in terms I can’t see how anyone could disagree with, how linguistic analysis confuses a tool for doing philosophy with the purpose of philosophy.

For example, when Socrates was asking questions about justice and virtue, he wasn’t asking for definitions, he was inquiring into the nature of human behavior, character, and morality. Similarly, the purpose of any branch of philosophy, even metaphysics, is to ask and answer questions about the world, and an analysis of language misses the point of the entire exercise.

In the same way that linguistic philosophers tried to reduce philosophy to linguistics, logical positivists tried to reduce philosophy to science. But in the process it was discovered that their own principle of verificationism could not itself be verified and was found to be metaphysical itself.

Philosophy has never fully escaped from these assaults, but Magee presents his case and his hope that the next great philosopher will renew the original purpose of philosophy, which is to explain the world rather than to analyze language or to remain in complete subservience to science. show less

I am a novice in this territory. I have listened to a bit of Wagner and read a few pages of Nietzsche, but that's it. This book did a wonderful job of sketching out this world for me and inviting me to explore further.

There are no bits of musical score here. I don't recall any mention of major and minor tonalities or time signatures. Magee does wax eloquent on the expressiveness of Wagner's music, how it evokes natural scenes or human emotions. But Magee takes as roughly axiomatic that show more Wagner's music is at the pinnacle of the European tradiion. He does bring out quotes from eminent modern composers in support of this notion. But the point of the book is not to argue this point.

The main thrust of the book is something like: Wagner was a quite competent student of philosophy and classics, particularly Schopenhauer and Greek drama. But Wagner's musical vision was far deeper. Much of Wagner's writing was his attempt to understand, justify, and structure his composition work. But his compositions went beyond his own philosophical understanding. In particular, his initial vision for the Ring was a kind of progressive notion, the idea that we can remake society in a much happier form. But the Ring he created didn't fulfill that vision. Then Wagner was introduced to Schopenhauer's writing and Wagner realized that Schopenhauer captured the actual vision expressed by the Ring better than e.g. the Feuerbach that he was previously enamoured by.

A remarkable tid-bit: Wagner kept a statue of the Buddha in his living room and envisioned writing a Buddhist opera, but decided that Parsifal was Buddhist enough. Wow!

Yeah I went out and bought some Wagner CDs... I have yet to pull the Schopenhauer volumes off my shelf, but I am motivated!

Magee goes into some length about the relationship of Nietzsche and Wagner. He's got a reasonable theory about a personal affront that split them deeply.

There is also a good appendix on Wagner's anti-semitism and the Nazis. Magee attempts to thread the needle, understanding Wagner's virulent anti-semitism without condoning it. Hitler was fond of much of Wagner's music but most of the Nazi leadership had no use for it. A remarkable tidbit is Magee relating a conversation he had with Winifred Wagner, Richard Wagner's daughter-in-law. After her husband, Richard's son Siegfried, died, Winifred asked Hitler to marry her. Winifred was evidently a totally unrepentant Nazi. Anyway, Magee's views on the Nazis and Wagner seem well grounded in direct evidence. show less

Excellent short study of some aspects of Wagner. In clear, opinionated and non-academic prose, it examines some of the key issues in dealing with Wagner and his legacy. The most noticeable section is the one on "Jews -- Not Least in Music", which looks at the roots of Wagner's undeniable anti-Semitism, and argues that among those most damaged by it was Wagner itself. It also considers Wagner's musical theory and its relationship to his music, Wagnerolatry, Wagner's pervasive influence, show more Wagner's music, and Wagner in performance. For someone interested in learning something about Wagner without committing to a massive biography, this is a terrific book. show less

Proved to be an absolute page-turner almost like a paperback thriller taking away your sleep. Magee simply skips the usual first class philosophical claptrap and takes you right into the heart of philosopher. His ability to see through the texts and patience to spend time with them in order to truly reach under their skin is amazing. The expositions of Kant, Schopenhauer and Popper are truly exceptional and the character sketches of Russell and Popper are a bonus.