Gottlob Frege: Basic Laws of Arithmetic

This is the first complete English translation of Gottlob Frege's Grundgesetze der Arithmetik (originally published in two volumes, 1893 and 1903), with introduction and annotation. The importance of Frege's ideas within contemporary philosophy would be hard to exaggerate. He was, to all intents and purposes, the inventor of mathematical logic, and the influence exerted on modern philosophy of language and logic, and indeed on general epistemology, by the philosophical framework within which his technical contributions were conceived and developed has been so deep that he has a strong case to be regarded as the inventor of much of the agenda of modern analytical philosophy itself. Two of Frege's three principal books -- the Begriffsschrift (1879) and Grundlagen der Arithmetik (1884) -- have been available in English translation for many years, as have all the most important of his other, article-length writings. Grundgesetze was to have been the summit of Frege's life's work -- a rigorous demonstration of how the fundamental laws of the classical pure mathematics of the natural and real numbers could be derived from principles which, in his view, were purely logical. A letter received from Bertrand Russell shortly before the publication of the second volume made Frege realise that Axiom V of his system, governing identity for value-ranges, led to contradiction. But much of the main thrust of Frege's project can be salvaged. The continuing importance of the Grundgesetze lies not only in its bearing on issues in the foundations of mathematics but in its model of philosophical inquiry. Frege's ability to locate the essential questions, his integration of logical and philosophical analysis, and his rigorous approach to criticism and argument in general are vividly in evidence in this, his most ambitious work.

Table of Contents:
Introduction by Crispin Wright Translators' Introduction Frege: Basic Laws of Arithmetic, volumes I and II. Translators' Notes Bibliography Appendix by Roy T. Cook Index

About the Author :
Philip A. Ebert received his PhD from the University of St Andrews in 2006 and was a Post Doctoral Fellow at the Arché Centre from 2005-2007. Since 2007 he has worked at the University of Stirling. ; Marcus Rossberg received his PhD from the University of St Andrews in 2006 and was a Post Doctoral Fellow at the Arché Centre from 2005-2008. Since 2008 he has worked at the University of Connecticut.

Review :
`this beautifully designed and nicely manufactured book is a bargain. Everybody who is interested in Frege's logic and philosophy as well as in the philosophy of logic and mathematics in general should own it. Ebert's and Rossberg's truly reliable, precise and congenial translation of Frege's Grundgesetze is a masterpiece and a milestone in Frege scholarship. I have no doubt that this marvellous book will greatly stimulate current Frege research especially in the Anglosphere.' Matthias Schirn, Philosophical Quarterly `the new translation is of high quality and the accompanying editorial material very helpful . . . This version of BL looks terrific, is helpful in various scholarly respects, and will have a big impact, I am sure. I want to congratulate the translators and editors, especially Ebert and Rossberg, on a major achievement.' Erich H. Reck, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews `There is no doubt that this English edition will become a basicwork in international Frege scholarship in general and the standard reference for neologicist programs in particular. The translation and editing were undertaken on the highest level.' Matthias Wille, University of Duisburg-Essen