Community:The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy: I Link Therefore I Am

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Non-Canon Information

The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy: I Link Therefore I Am
Writer(s)	Several (edited by Luke Cuddy)
Publisher(s)	Open Court
Release date	November 28, 2008
ISBN	ISBN-13: 978-0-8126-9654-7 ISBN-10: 0-8126-9654-9

The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy, fully known as The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy: I Link Therefore I Am is a collection of various papers written by many different authors, all compiled together and edited by Luke Cuddy. The book takes a look at philosophy and how it relates to The Legend of Zelda series (and video games as a whole).

Contents 1 Synopsis 2 Praise 3 Trivia 4 References

Synopsis

With both young and adult gamers as loyal fans, The Legend of Zelda is one of the most beloved video game series ever created. The contributors to this volume consider the following questions and more: What is the nature of the gamer’s connection to Link? Does Link have a will, or do gamers project their wills onto him? How does the gamer experience the game? Do the rules of logic apply in the game world? How is space created and distributed in Hyrule (the fictional land in which the game takes place)? How does time function? Is Zelda art? Can Hyrule be seen as an ideal society? Can the game be enjoyable without winning? The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy not only appeals to Zelda fans and philosophers but also puts videogames on the philosophical map as a serious area of study.

Praise

	A thinking adventure worthy of Link and gamers everywhere. Level up!
— David Gerding

	A landmark volume confirming that video games not only reshape our notions of space, time and authorial voice, but can also address deep philosophical questions
— Kurt Squire

	Like the Hylian hero who seeks to reunite the Triforce, readers of The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy will emerge from their quest of having fused criticism, philosophy, and culture into a single relic. This relic not only glows with virtues of Zelda as a work of human creativity, but also legitimates the ways videogames participate in the long history of philosophical inquiry.
— Ian Bogost

	In this passionate, well-argured, and intriguing book, philosophical thinkers who are also gamers find that the Zelda games have so much to teach us (besides where to find the hookshot). Millions of gamers experience the Zelda universe as both deep and believable, despite the games' d minimalist stories. Could this be because of their depth of phisophical meaning.
— Chris Kohler

Trivia

• The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy mentions Zelda Wiki and recommends visiting it on page xiii.^[1]

• The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy mentions Zelda Universe.^[2]

• The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy mentions LegendOfZelda.com.^[2]

• One author mistakenly calls Outset Island "Outcast Island" several times.^[3][4][5]

• Another author accidentally refers to Tingle as "Tinkle" once.^[6]

References

1. ↑ "Want to know anything about the Zelda franchise, anything at all? Just look it up on zeldawiki.org - an online Zelda encyclopedia." (The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy: I Link Therefore I Am (Open Court), pg. xiii)
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} "It would seem that, for example, people who give advice about Zelda gaming strategies at TheLegendofZelda.com or Zelda Universe websites likely would be more trustworthy than say, Joe Schmo at Wikipedia or Gary Gamer in his latest blog." (The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy: I Link Therefore I Am (Open Court), pg. 37)
3. ↑ "If you find the story compelling, you are very happy to see Link finaly plunge his sword into Ganondorf's head, and at the end of the game you feel a mix of sadness and satisfaction when Link leaves Outcast Island (for good?) and sails off with Tetra's pirate ship." (The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy: I Link Therefore I Am (Open Court), pg. 5)
4. ↑ "But you don't believe that there is or was a Deku Tree, you don't believe that a boy named Link leaves a real place called Outcast Island, and you don't believe the game is an account of actual events." (The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy: I Link Therefore I Am (Open Court), pg. 5)
5. ↑ "According to the thought theory, we're sad when Link leaves his grandmother on Outcast island because the idea of a young boy leaving his grandmother to engage in a dangerous and possibly deadly mission is sad." (The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy: I Link Therefore I Am (Open Court), pg. 7)
6. ↑ "Whether Link gets teased or congratulated—and although Navi may be the most insipid Zelda character next to Tinkle—the attainment of his fairy is something noticed by all the townspeople as a necessary stage in Link's maturity." (The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy: I Link Therefore I Am (Open Court), pg. 49)