Rating: 
Summary: Riding the Seinfeld Wave
Review: This book is bad. It contains the same essay about the episode where George does the opposite over and over again. Then there are some meaningless essays like Is Elaine A Feminist? where the author spends several pages convincing readers that albeit being free spirited she is not a feminist, although I never claimed she was. Then there's George being a loser and his inability to succeed, as well as a comparison between Jerry and Socrates that proves once and for all that there are some similarities but mostly they are very different. That's actually the format that most of the essays use: did you ever think that, well I could see why you would think that, but you're wrong and here's why.
Unpleasant. Avoid like a punch to the mouth.
Rating: 
Summary: Highly entertaining!
Review: "Seinfeld and Philosophy" achieves an elusive balance. Philosophical topics are blended with material from the show to provoke thought and keep you interested the whole while. This book is highly approachable especially by those who are not familiar with much of philosophy. It's a fun book and a must read for those who are Seinfeld fans. I look forward to Bill Irwin's next book.Cheers
Rating: 
Summary: 90% Excellent--well worth the time and money
Review: I've been quite fond of Seinfeld through its entire run; even at the young age of 12 or 13 I would watch and enjoy first-run episodes. Now I am a philosophy major. Buying this book was, well, natural.
The high points of this book are high indeed. It's easy to tell which of these essays sparked the original concept for the book: they shine with sharp wit, understanding of the Seinfeld universe and real philosophical explorations. These best of the best essays offer philosophy truly relevant to the show. The essays on nothingness and on morals come to mind; after all, the writers intentionally made these topics central to the show. From that point, the works write themselves--and it shows.
A few of the more disappointing essays seem to be space fillers: they needed chapters on Kramer and Elaine, so they attempted to find philosophical significance in them. Not that what they came up with is bad, just not as in-your-face Seinfeldian as several of the other topics.
All in all, this is a very solid collection, providing a bridge between two subjects that everyone, in their heart of hearts, always knew were related :)
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining and Enlightening
Review: A must read for any Seinfeld Fan looking to expand his or her horizons. The book eases you into philosophical concepts by taking a trip down memory lane with Jerry, George, Kramer, Elaine, and the rest of the gang. I would have done much better in my college Philosphy classes if this book were around ten years ago. Kudos to William Irwin and the rest of the young philosophers!
Rating: 
Summary: Good, Not Great
Review: Any and every philosopher worth his or her salt recognizes the philosophical brilliance (be it intentional or not) that underlies the tremendously successful Seinfeld TV show. William Irwin has done a wonderful service to both philosophy and popular culture by editing this work. So many philosophical themes ran throughout the nine years Seinfeld was on the air, one can imagine writing an episode-by-episode treatise! In the meantime, however, this book will do.
Yet, being a collection of essays, the usual problems of continuity and coherence are a part of the package. Not all philosophers are created equal, and the variety of philosophical and literary quality varies. For example, Jennifer McMahon's essay ("Seinfeld, Subjectivity, and Sartre") is excellent. Sarah E. Worth's essay ("Elaine Benes: Feminist Icon or Just One of the Boys?") is embarrassing. Mark T. Conrad's essay ("Plato or Nietzsche?"), unfortunately, remindes me of a piece written by a freshman philosophy major. Kelly Dean Jolley's essay ("Wittgenstein and Seinfeld on the Commonplace") is courageous but weak (and short).
But the most disappointing feature of this book lay in its sheer lack of entertainment overall. Despite the seemingly bread-and-butter synthesis of Seinfeld and philosophy, this book was tedious whenever the contributing author was less than talented (there is some really bad writing in here). All in all, I thought it was a bit of a let-down given the quality of the subject-matter.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent mix of entertainment and education
Review: As a die hard fan of "Seinfeld" and a person without previous exposure to philosophical concepts, I found this book entertaining and educational. The book is a collection of essaies by different authors, using characthers and situations of "Seinfeld" for introducing us to Kierkegaard (using Kramer as an example of the aesthetic stage), Socrates (with a funny comparison to the dual role of Jerry as real person a TV show characther), the moral life and, of course, the meaning of "nothing", among other topics. Not all the chapters were equally interesting, but most of them are very enjoyable, as the style and language is never too elevated. The book includes a episode list, a chronology of philosophers (with a quote from each one, so you can rapidly get the idea of their thinking), and a brief, but funny, description of the authors. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: An interesting and enlightening read.
Review: As an English professor, I constantly search for ways to make the academic topical and relevant. Bill Irwin's book does just that. Through a series of essays, the reader begins to understand the philisophical underpinnings of the comedy program, and that a sometimes dry subject like philosopy is interesting and, yes, even fun. Yada yada yada this is not. Seinfeld and the Tao? Sure. Plato and Nietzsche, existentialism,Peterman and paradoxes, and more. The philosophy of Newman? Why not?Seinfeld and Philosophy [A Book about Everything and Nothing] is a lot of fun. Get it, read it, and examine both your own life and the often ludicrous trials of daily life. An excellent text. L. Ruiz - Chair, Dept. of English, Greenfield Community College
Rating:
Summary: Viva Los Seinfeld!!
Review: Concise, well thought-out and hilarious! This book is written in a way that the "average reader" can understand. Forget Cliff's Notes, this is a must have for students of Philosophy, television and everone in between!!
Rating:
Summary: Smart AND entertaining!!!
Review: Fantastic reading!! What a clever way to relate classic philosophical views to everyday life in the '90s! Compare them to everyone's favorite sitcom! It's fun, easy to read, and makes you think...without even trying! Philosophy teachers should use it as a tool. Seinfeld lovers should read it to see that all along their favorite show really WAS about something! The author and the subject were a perfect match. It's obvious through his writing that Bill Irwin is quite knowledgable about the subject and his sense of humor really shines through. This reader can't wait for the next Bill Irwin book!!
Rating:
Summary: Plato meets Popular Culture.
Review: Great reading. Invites philosophy down from its ivory academic towers to expose method behind Kramer's madness. One of the reasons the show and the humor were both so popular is because they covered just about anything and everything having to do with everyday life. People living their lives and disecting, anylizing and discussing the world around them. Philosophy's been doing that for centuries. Just never had Michael Richard's delivery.
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