Over one million copies sold worldwide

The international and #1 New York Times bestseller

The anniversary edition of the acclaimed book that reveals why bulls--t is more dangerous than lying

One of the most prominent features of our world is that there is so much bulls--t. Yet we have no clear understanding of what bulls--t is, how it’s different from lying, what purposes it serves, and what it means. In his acclaimed bestseller On Bulls--t, which was featured on The Daily Show and 60 Minutes, Harry Frankfurt, who was one of the world’s most influential moral philosophers, explores one of the most serious problems of our politics and our world. This twentieth anniversary edition features a postscript in which Frankfurt emphasizes that “indifference to the truth is extremely dangerous.”

With his characteristic combination of philosophical acuity, psychological insight, and wry humor, Frankfurt argues that bulls--ters misrepresent themselves to their audience not as liars do—that is, by deliberately making false claims about what’s true. Rather, bulls--ters seek to convey a certain impression of themselves without being concerned about whether anything at all is true. They quietly change the rules governing the conversation so that claims about truth and falsity are irrelevant. Although bulls--t can take innocent forms, excessive indulgence in it can eventually undermine the bullshitter’s capacity to tell the truth in a way that lying doesn’t. Liars at least acknowledge that the truth matters. Because of this, Frankfurt says, “bulls--t is a greater enemy of the truth than lies are.”

Remarkably prescient and insightful, On Bulls--t is a small book that explains a great deal about our time.