The Grasshopper

The Grasshopper Games, Life and Utopia By Bernard Suits Introduced by Thomas Hurka

In the mid twentieth century the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein famously asserted that games are indefinable; there are no common threads that link them all. "Nonsense," says the sensible Bernard Suits: "playing a game is a voluntary attempt to overcome unnecessary obstacles." The short book Sui...

The Grasshopper Games, Life and Utopia By Bernard Suits Introduced by Thomas Hurka

In the mid twentieth century the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein famously asserted that games are indefinable; there are no common threads that link them all. "Nonsense," says the sensible Bernard Suits: "playing a game is a voluntary attempt to overcome unnecessary obstacles." The short book Suits wrote demonstrating precisely that is as playful as it is insightful, as stimulating as it is delightful. Suits not only argues that games can be meaningfully defined; he also suggests that playing games is a central part of the ideal of human existence, so games belong at the heart of any vision of Utopia.

Originally published in 1978, The Grasshopper is now re-issued with a new introduction by Thomas Hurka and with additional material (much of it previously unpublished) by the author, in which he expands on the ideas put forward in The Grasshopper and answers some questions that have been raised by critics.

About the Author

Bernard Suits is Distinguished Emeritus Professor of Philosophy, the University of Waterloo.

Thomas Hurka is Jackman Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, the University of Toronto; his works include Principles (a collection of his Globe and Mail columns), Perfectionism, and Virtue, Vice, and Value.