Thus, Russell's earliest passions were to discover hidden truths, with certainty, which drove his interest in logic. He spent roughly a decade collaborating with Alfred North Whitehead in developing a logical basis for arithmetic, with the goal of placing mathematics on a secure foundation. Although the methods they developed in their Principia Mathematica were highly influential, they never succeeded in their goal and Russell felt that this effort had been a failure. Eventually, as recounted in this book, Kurt Gödel relied heavily on the methods of Russell and Whitehead, to prove conclusively that the effort to axiomatize arithmetic is inherently flawed. John von Neumann was in the audience when Gödel presented this work, and famously said "It's all over".
Russell was also a passionate pacifist, and the human cost of the wars and revolutions of the 1900's is a second major theme of the story, serving to underscore the tension between rational versus emotional or ideological approaches to human interaction. The authors appear in the book as themselves, discussing the ideas and themes and, especially, how the book should end. So as not to spoil the ending, I will simply say that the authors and illustrators attend a performance of the Oresteia, and draw conclusions from the ending of the play, which is visually exciting and emotionally powerful. A very interesting and thoughtful book....and I am now reading the Oresteia!
