A Good Start with Minor Weaknesses

For those who want to take a quick look at some typical thinking errors, “Die Kunst des klaren Denkens” is recommended.

The book consists of 52 short chapters, each dealing with a specific thinking error. On the whole, I am satisfied with the book, but there are places where even the author did not think clearly.

For example, he writes (p. 178) that humanity is optimized for a hunter-gatherer environment. This is of course not true, because, for instance, predators like lions or herbivores like cows are much more specialized. Humans, for example, do not run fast enough to be truly good hunters. A few lines later, he writes very sweepingly: “Lightning-fast reaction was vital for survival in the past. Thinking could be fatal.” How does he know that? Was he there? And isn’t it still the same in today’s road traffic? Formulated so generally, it is obviously not true, because if hunting and gathering were optimal for humans, they would never have started with agriculture and animal husbandry, or they would have abandoned it very quickly.

On p. 216, he writes, “In the last 10,000 years, we have created a world that we no longer understand.” This is total nonsense. We understand much more about the world today than we did 10,000 years ago. Just think of medicine, physics, chemistry, etc. It’s true that the world is more complex overall because knowledge has grown, but in return, the world has also become more specialized through the division of labor. Overall, we have a standard of living today that even kings didn’t have 100 years ago.

The author’s biggest mistake in the afterword, however, is his belief that thinking errors have their cause in the complexity of today’s world. But people wouldn’t think correctly as hunter-gatherers in the bush either. The author forgets here that humans must acquire everything. We come into the world ignorant and have to learn and practice everything, even walking upright. Speaking, writing, arithmetic, cycling, swimming, hunting, and gathering also have to be learned as a human being. It’s not built-in. Why should it be any different with thinking?

And where do we learn clear thinking? Usually only implicitly on the side, and it’s no wonder that so many mistakes happen. Clear thinking should become a school subject; there should be a degree program for it, TV shows, etc.

So: Thinking or logical reasoning must be learned and practiced. This book is a nicely written appetizer for that.

Rolf Dobelli
Die Kunst des klaren Denkens: 52 Denkfehler, die Sie besser anderen überlassen
Hanser
2011