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Why Godel Escher Bach Is My Favorite Book-A Book Review

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A Book Review of Godel, Esche,r Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid by Douglas R Hofstadter

I first discovered Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid by Douglas R Hofstadter in 1984. I was a high school student at the time, and I guess I was a bit of a nerd. But I was certainly into books! This is my book review of Godel, Escher, Bach.

I was browsing the science section at my local bookstore when I saw this book. A banner across the top proclaimed Winner of the Pulitzer Prize. That certainly got my attention!

This is what it looked like when I first saw it on the bookshelf...

“Achilles, The Tortoise, and Mr Crab. Such Interesting Dialogs, Containing Meanings Within Meanings!”

Clue #1 To The Intricacies of This Book

It's Right There on the Cover!

Godel Escher Bach An Eternal Golden Braid

Take a closer look at the image and the shadows...

You can see an object has been carved out of wood and illuminated from 3 directions.

In one direction the carving projects G E B for Godel Escher Bach.

In another direction the same carving projects E G B for An Eternal Golden Braid!

This sort of intertwining level upon level, meaning within meaning, is a central theme of the book, and, according to Hofstadter, evident throughout all existence.

It's a big part of why I love this book and why I find it so easy to pick back up from time to time. Each time I experience something different.

First Encounter...

I picked the book up and found that it was sprinkled throughout with little dialogs. These dialogs featured references to historical philosophers, mathematicians, and composers using characters somewhat out of Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass. Also featured throughout were drawings by M.C. Escher and commentary and samples of music composed by Johann Sebastian Bach.

Ascending and Descending



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“The Characters May Be Engaged In One Dialog, But Clearly Hofstadter Was Having Another One With Me!”

I'm Drawn In...

Sometimes (maybe all the time) the characters in the dialog illustrate perfectly what they are talking about without an awareness on their level of the part they are playing.

Drawing Hands



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This happens throughout the dialog entitled "Ant Fugue" which on one level is a discussion about Holism vs Reductionism and on another a discussion about Johann Sebastian Bach, the composer.

Ants



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Achilles is talking with the Anteater who on the one hand eats ants and on the other hand does so while engaged in thoughtful discussions with his delightful friend Aunt Hillary--the Ant Hill. (I suspect Aunt Hillary is delightful on more than one level!)

Meanwhile Mr Crab and Tortoise are listening to a Bach fugue and discussing music theory.

At one point during Anteater's story Achilles remarks several times "Gee!"

Meanwhile Crab, listening to the Bach fugue, says to Tortoise "What a lovely organ point!" (An organ point in a fugue is a single note sustained by one voice while the others continue). :p

“Who Would Have Thought That DNA Which Encodes Genes Could Perfectly Illustrate Bach's Crab Cannon?”

The Hook is Set

It seemed that no matter where I flipped in this book there was something fascinating, something new. I started to see where this part of the book moved seamlessly into the next, sometimes turning my perception of what is real upside down and inside out.

Relativity



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Then I started flipping back to where I was earlier and seeing a new order of meaning

No wonder Godel Escher Bach won the Pulitzer!

I HAD to have this book! I was hooked!

“Gotta Have It! Gotta Have It! Gotta Have It! Oh No...”

No Money :(

Being a high school student though, I probably had less than $5 in change in my pockets. I did have a little money back home though....

And I could probably get there in about 15 to 20 minutes...

Encounter



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“At The End of "Crab Cannon" I Realized What Hofstadter Had Done! I'm Not Telling-You'll Find Out. :p”

The Tension Builds...

It may seem funny, but I was actually nervous that someone may have bought it in my absence. They only had one copy. So I did what most people would do. I kind of "hid" it behind some other books in another section of the bookstore.

I hopped in my car for a quick drive home...

But on the way it occurs to me...might my hiding it draw even greater attention should the book be found?

I got to the house and quickly searched high and low for the little stashes of bills I had hidden about from mowing lawns. Then I was out the door again!

High and Low



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I Take a Risk!

Perhaps it was a mistake to do so! I pressed harder on the accelerator and edged just a bit over 35 mph. (Hey, I was a high school student and only had my learner's permit at the time--I was taking no chances at getting a ticket!)

Belvedere



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Relief!

I made it full circle and, to my great relief, the book was still there when I returned, and so I paid for it and left the store quite pleased with myself. I have no doubt there was a little extra bounce to my gait on exiting the mall that day.

Waterfall



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Consummation

I took Godel Escher Bach home and began reading right away.

There are a couple of things you should know about me. One is I read a lot.

The other is I tend to get engrossed in the books I am reading.

It's entirely likely I did not come out for dinner that night.

Yeah, I'm that kind of reader.

Hands with Sphere



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Epilogue

Some 30 plus years later, I still enjoy this book :p

It remains on my shelf of favorite books (along with a few others by Douglas R Hofstadter as well). Dog eared and well worn, every now and then Godel Escher Bach an Eternal Golden Braid makes the journey back to my bedside table.

Bond of Union



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“A Tapestry of Important Contributions to Music, Math, Philosophy, Computing, Science and Literature.”

Summary

Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid by Douglas R Hofstadter is an intellectual book, but it is also an accessible one. I recommend it.

Rind



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It is one of those interesting class of books that need not be read straight through, cover to cover. (In fact in at least one section I guarantee you'll stop and reread the whole section backwards)

Instead, feel free to skip around a bit. Really, the book reads just fine that way.

Only try to digest the whole when you are ready...

“Feel free to skip around in this book a bit. Only try to digest the whole when you are ready...”

Godel, Escher Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid

by Douglas R Hofstadter

Here it is!
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Godel Escher Bach

by Douglas R Hofstadter

I've Read This Book (or Tried to Read It) And I...

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Hated it! :/

Loved it! :p

resabi says:

I haven't read it yet but my husband has and he loves it. Now that I've read your excellent review, I'm going to go hunt it up. I'm already a big fan of Escher and of Bach, so I'm disposed to like it.

 

Are You Ready to Explore Godel, Escher, Bach?

I'd Absolutely Love to Hear About Your Favorite Book(s)!

  • LabKitty Dec 5, 2011 @ 2:12 pm | delete
    Had forgotten all about this wonderful book (Crab Canon rules!). Though at >800 pages, it's a bit overwhelming...
  • dotsonr Sep 20, 2011 @ 6:12 am | delete
    I remember hearing about this book a long time ago, but never picked it up. Now, I think I'm ready for it. Thanks for the reminder and the great story!
  • RenaissanceWoman2010 Sep 3, 2011 @ 8:18 am | delete
    This review certainly confirmed for me that I do need to check out this book. Very compelling description. I can appreciate your enthusiasm. Thanks for introducing me to what is sure to be a mind expanding reading experience.
  • GrowWear Aug 25, 2011 @ 4:06 pm | delete
    Yes I am. Can't imagine anyone that wouldn't be after such a great recommendation. :)
  • resabi Jul 19, 2011 @ 7:05 am | delete
    You've made me want to explore this book -- thank you. I also need to find my Escher book because I can't remember which shelf (in which room -- all of mine have bookshelves) it's on. Great work on this lens. I like the presentation with your interspersed comment balloons.
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Godel Escher Bach at MIT

The book was the subject of a course at MIT. I have a link to the series here.
Gödel, Escher, Bach - Lecture 1: Part 1 of 7
by Scottb179 | video info

382 ratings | 83,481 views
curated content from YouTube

Doug Hofstadter Presidential Lecture at Stanford

Analogy as the Core of Cognition
by StanfordUniversity | video info

391 ratings | 42,657 views
curated content from YouTube

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