I don't think it's at all pretentious, it's just an exploration of a bunch of fun things that occurred to Hofstadter, some of which probably occurred to you too if you were musing on one or other of G, E and/or B. H. has the time to expand on them, so it's fun to read.
It's only pretentious if you consider, say, Neal Stephenson pretentious. I generally find that the people who say kind of thing that don't understand the topics, but are intimidated to say so.
And G, E & B are all dead, yet their work is still relevent, which makes them by definition timeless.
I remember when it came out: it swept through my high school like wildfire. I think every student had read it by the end of that year.
It's only pretentious if you consider, say, Neal Stephenson pretentious. I generally find that the people who say kind of thing that don't understand the topics, but are intimidated to say so.
And G, E & B are all dead, yet their work is still relevent, which makes them by definition timeless.
I remember when it came out: it swept through my high school like wildfire. I think every student had read it by the end of that year.