Rationality

This book aims to explain and defend the view that rationality consists in the intelligent pursuit of appropriate objectives, considering the mechanics of reason (what it is and how it works), the rationale of reason (why we should be rational) and rewards of reason (whether rational people are happier). The discussion seeks to clarify the workings of rationality and to provide a clear overview of this resource, whose possession differentiates "homo sapiens" from the remaining inhabitants of the earth. The central thesis is that only a "normative" theory of rationality can be adequate to the complexities of the subject. This means that the various social scientists - psychologists, economists and decision theorists who want on the one hand to present a theory of rationality while at the same time avoiding the vexing complexities of normative deliberations are engaged in a futile venture, being condemned from the outset to an inappropriate view of the rational enterprise.