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The Myth of Luck: Philosophy, Fate, and Fortune
Humanity has thrown everything we have at implacable luck-novel theologies, entire philosophical movements, fresh branches of mathematics-and yet we seem to have gained only the smallest edge on the power of fortune. The Myth of Luck tells us why we have been fighting an unconquerable foe.
Taking us on a guided tour of one of our oldest concepts, we begin in ancient Greece and Rome, considering how Plato, Plutarch, and the Stoics understood luck, before entering the theoretical world of probability and exploring how luck relates to theology, sports, ethics, gambling, knowledge, and present-day psychology. As we travel across traditions, times and cultures, we come to realize that it's not that as soon as we solve one philosophical problem with luck that two more appear, like heads on a hydra, but rather that the monster is altogether mythological. We cannot master luck because there is nothing to luck is no more than a persistent and troubling illusion.
By introducing us to compelling arguments and convincing reasons that explain why there is no such thing as luck, we finally see why in a very real sense we make our own luck, that luck is our own doing. The Myth of Luck helps us to regain our own agency in the world - telling the entertaining story of the philosophy and history of luck along the way.
Taking us on a guided tour of one of our oldest concepts, we begin in ancient Greece and Rome, considering how Plato, Plutarch, and the Stoics understood luck, before entering the theoretical world of probability and exploring how luck relates to theology, sports, ethics, gambling, knowledge, and present-day psychology. As we travel across traditions, times and cultures, we come to realize that it's not that as soon as we solve one philosophical problem with luck that two more appear, like heads on a hydra, but rather that the monster is altogether mythological. We cannot master luck because there is nothing to luck is no more than a persistent and troubling illusion.
By introducing us to compelling arguments and convincing reasons that explain why there is no such thing as luck, we finally see why in a very real sense we make our own luck, that luck is our own doing. The Myth of Luck helps us to regain our own agency in the world - telling the entertaining story of the philosophy and history of luck along the way.
240 pages, Paperback
Published August 20, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
December 17, 2021
The book is an exploratory-type that describes theories on luck and limitations for each of the theories. It's a good read
May 2, 2023
Luck is fake.
January 9, 2024
I'll start with my misgivings. Ironically, the author's thesis on luck doesn't come until the last couple of chapters -- which could be frustrating for the impatient. Next, there are plenty of examples that illustrate the different approaches to luck, but each of them could use a more specific definitional gloss to contrast with one another. Especially the error theory presented toward the end. It's still not exactly clear to me how Hales views luck.
My name is Chance. Naturally, the concept of chance has been in the back of my mind my whole life. This book is about as rich of philosophical exploration of chance, fortune, and luck as one could hope for. It's truly excellent work. I feel a little more at peace with contingency than I had prior to stumbling into it at a bookstore. Lucky me ;)
My name is Chance. Naturally, the concept of chance has been in the back of my mind my whole life. This book is about as rich of philosophical exploration of chance, fortune, and luck as one could hope for. It's truly excellent work. I feel a little more at peace with contingency than I had prior to stumbling into it at a bookstore. Lucky me ;)
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews