?[Madison] surveys a wide variety of anthropological, literary, and philosophical material, always focusing on those aspects of the subject matter that suggest the limitations of a scientistic world-view. ...one of the strongest points of the book is its determination to show that the theory of understanding which it develops can help to clarify a number of concrete questions, both contemporary and historical, about the limits and possibilities of our understanding of history, science, and creative language.?-Review of Metaphysics