What Is Truth For?

Truth is for striving at, for the sake of good collective action.

With new media technologies, it seems that falsehoods can spread faster and further than ever. And with new norms of public discourse, while being caught in a lie would once end a politician’s career, today it is shrugged off, which has profound implications for democracy. Does the truth no longer matter?

This optimist’s guide to truth argues that the problem of truth is an ancient one. It contends that truth is the best device we have for coordinating collective decisions and actions, and that, while the truth itself is perpetually elusive, the concept of truth as a target ideal to strive for is supremely useful. If we do not strive for truth, our decisions will be risky at best, often foolish and sometimes disastrous. This long-standing problem will not be solved with modern technology or regulations, but with measures we must all apply: mindfulness, humility, cooperation and optimism.

“Everyone claims to care about truth – yet surprisingly few are really dedicated to pursuing it, which requires not just freedom but virtues like integrity, self-discipline, and humility. Nick Enfield explains how each of us can become a better truth-seeker – and, in doing so, become a better person, too.” Jonathan Rauch, Brookings Institution

"Truth needs its champions these days, and N. J. Enfield rises to the challenge. This punchy volume reveals what truth is, how best to go about finding it, and why it's okay if we never perfectly achieve it. A bracing corrective at a time when truth is being called into question more than ever." Sean Carroll, Johns Hopkins University

Preface

1. Is There Snow on Mount Everest?

2. True Statements are Good Reasons

3. The Two Realities

4. Collateral Effects

5. Always Striving, Never Arriving

6. The Ostrich Instruction

7Mindful Optimism