Hilary Whitehall Putnam was one of the leading philosophers of the second half of the 20th
century. As student of Rudolph Carnap's and Hans Reichenbach's he went on to become not only a
major figure in North American analytic philosophy who made significant contributions to the
philosophy of mind language mathematics and physics but also to the disciplines of logic
number theory and computer science. He passed away on March 13 2016. The present volume is a
memorial to his extraordinary intellectual contributions honoring his contributions as a
philosopher a thinker and a public intellectual. It features essays by an international team
of leading philosophers covering all aspects of Hilary Putnam's philosophy from his work in
ethics and the history of philosophy to his contributions to the philosophy of science logic
and mathematics. Each essay is an original contribution. Hilary Putnam is one of the most
distinguished philosophers of the modern era and just speaking personally one of the smartest
and most impressive thinkers I have ever been privileged to know-as a good friend for 70 years.
The fine essays collected here are a fitting tribute to a most remarkable figure. Noam Chomsky
Institute Professor Emeritus Massachusetts Institute of Technology In Engaging Putnam
excellent philosophers engage the writings and ideas of Hilary Putnam one of the most
productive and influential philosophers of the last century. Putnam stands out because of the
combination of brilliance and a firm grasp of reality he brought to a very broad range of
issues: the logic and the philosophy of mathematics free-will skepticism realism
internalism and externalism and a lot more. Along with this he offered penetrating insights
about other great philosophers from Aristotle to Wittgenstein. All great philosophers make us
think. With many we try to figure out the strange things they say. With Putnam we are made to
think about clearly explained examples and arguments that get to the heart of the issues he
confronts. This book is a wonderful contribution to the continuation of Putnam-inspired
thinking. John Perry Emeritus Professor of Philosophy Stanford University
