---
product_id: 19805353
title: "The Modern Mind: An Intellectual History of the 20th Century"
brand: "peter watson"
price: "9201 som"
currency: KGS
in_stock: true
reviews_count: 11
url: https://www.desertcart.kg/products/19805353-the-modern-mind-an-intellectual-history-of-the-20th-century
store_origin: KG
region: Kyrgyzstan
---

# The Modern Mind: An Intellectual History of the 20th Century

**Brand:** peter watson
**Price:** 9201 som
**Availability:** ✅ In Stock

## Quick Answers

- **What is this?** The Modern Mind: An Intellectual History of the 20th Century by peter watson
- **How much does it cost?** 9201 som with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship
- **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.kg](https://www.desertcart.kg/products/19805353-the-modern-mind-an-intellectual-history-of-the-20th-century)

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- peter watson enthusiasts

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## Description

The Modern Mind: An Intellectual History of the 20th Century

## Images

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## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 







  
  
    Very Impressive!
  

*by A***N on Reviewed in the United States on April 18, 2022*

This book is an extraordinary achievement. If you can lift it, you should read it. Obviously, it isn’t for everyone, but if you are interested in old fashioned, “high” culture, I think you will be impressed. The coverage of the “hard” sciences is particularly impressive. I will contribute two “palpable” errors.On page 68, the author says “Third, there was the philosophy of Immanuel Kant (1724—1804), who argued that there were limits to reason, that human observations of the world were ‘never neutral, never free of priorly imposed conceptual judgements’, and because of that one could never know that God exists.” Actually, Kant, in the Critique of Practical Reason, claimed that he had proved the existence of God.On page 634 the author says “Just as Kant said there is no pure reason”. Actually, in his famous Critique  of Pure Reason, Kant rejected most traditional metaphysics, but argued in favor of what he called “a priori synthetic judgments,” which were “pure”, that is, not empirical, but rational.Otherwise, the book was perfect.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 







  
  
    Fascinating tour through 20th century ideas
  

*by C***E on Reviewed in the United States on May 23, 2018*

Let's start with the positive- Peter Watson covers an amazing amount of material, spanning the entire 20th century. He focuses on different philosophical ideas and the different ways they are expressed throughout the western world. He highlights the integration between disciplines which reinforces and advances all the various fields of science discussed. The history and summaries are fascinating, and terrifying. Peter Watson is owed a great deal of gratitude for delivering such a breadth of knowledge.The negative is the focus on liberalism, and pessimism. I had never heard of Watson prior to a friend recommending the book, but I must assume he is liberal based on the exposure he gives to each side of the political aisle. There are at least 50 names the vast majority of readers will not recognize, yet he doesn't mention even once William F Buckley or Ayn Rand. Nor does he provide an intelligent summary of the conservative movement in the second half of the century.Another unfortunate aspect of the book is that most of the ideas discussed will travel the same path as Freud's, just as the author discloses in the conclusion- into the garbage and for the same reason. They are not based on reality and reason- they are rationalistic retrofitting explanations that try to fit the data into some harebrained, nonsensical theory. The pessimism and absurdism started to wear on me and I think some of the parts of the book could've been left out as the underlying themes did not change- that all is hopeless and man's mind is futile, which is of course nonsense. But all in all, even at this length, the book will keep you entertained and provide plenty of intriguing ideas that came and went over the last century. And everyone knows the horrific consequences that bad ideas can lead to, although it is still mind boggling how people can still support similar strains of thought, like milder versions of communism. Worth the read!

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 







  
  
    gift
  

*by H***A on Reviewed in the United States on January 19, 2010*

This book would make a great graduation gift for any high school student as he begins a liberal arts education. They would also be essential for business or engineering graduates who of necessity might have missed a humanities education altogether. Perhaps the book is too ambitious, but it is well written and a compelling read. My only criticism is that towards the end one senses his reliance on the great popular work in the sciences written in the 1990's.( Dawkins, Weinberg, Wilson, Pinker, Dyson et al - great stuff, but  more essential material has been added in the last 10 years particularly in astrophysics and the neurosciences.) But the core questions as Watson defines them still hold. This is the kind of book that needs to be rewritten every 10 years and is due for an update which I very much hope is coming soon. (Also check out his more recent book "Ideas" which is even more ambitious). These books follow in the tradition of  Tarnas or Jacob Bronowski and deserves to become even more admired. Few people are capable of writing,  or can be trusted to write.... these kind of intellectual Uber-histories.  Watson has done a wonderful job.

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*Product available on Desertcart Kyrgyzstan*
*Store origin: KG*
*Last updated: 2026-02-13*