It has probably introduced more americans to philosophy than any other book. Now, i would like to write more about durant and why he is important. Schopenhauer, too, felt that hegel had prematurely proclaimed the finality of his own system, and, like schelling, he believed that lifes most important truths defied comprehension by reason. Having recently completed the story of civilization in four, he now comes back with a book which has no long a subtitle than a survey of human life and destiny. There is a pleasure in philosophy, and a lure even in the mirages of metaphysics, which every student feels until the coarse necessities of physical existence drag him from the heights of thought into the mart of economic strife and gain. Logic, aesthetics, ethics, politics, and finally, metaphysics are the five parts of philosophy, durant perceived that so dismembered philosophy loses its beauty and its joy. We should seek it not in its shriveled abstractness and formality, argued will durant, but. Humanities are essential they give us the material to create and sustain our. Pleasures of philosophy paperback december 31, 1999 by durant author 3. Buy a cheap copy of the story of philosophy book by will durant.
The book became a bestseller and freed durant from his teaching career and allowed him and his wife to travel and. Philosophy of mind and the problem of free will in the light of quantum mechanics. It is one of the first philosophy books i ever read and, thanks to a gift from my soninlaw, i own a signed copy. The story of philosophy by will durant in chm, doc, epub download ebook. There is a pleasure in philosophy, and a lure even in the mirages of metaphysics, which every student feels until the coarse necessities of physical. The product of eleven years of research, the story of philosophy is an endlessly inspiring and instructive chronicle of the worlds greatest thinkers, from socrates to santayana. In 1926, he published the story of philosophy, which had begun life as a series of pamphlets. Other articles where the story of philosophy is discussed. Pleasures of philosophy by will durant, 9780671581107, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide.
It is largely an autobiographical account of his own early social, religious, and political. William james durants text the story of philosophy 2nd ed. Durants book addressed the bitterest possibilities of painting a life without god. Durant attempts to show the interconnection of their ideas and how one philosophers ideas informed the next. The following year his only novel, transition, appeared. The pleasure of philosophy by will durant pdf internetrobot. Download now the pleasures of philosophy will durant on m. Schopenhauer idealism was the philosophy of will developed by arthur schopenhauer 17881860. Will durants the story of philosophy pages on william. Philosophy of mind and the problem of free will in the. Philosophy is a hypothetical interpretation of the unknown as in metaphysics, or of the inexactly known as in ethics or political philosophy. To be sure this is a revision of an earlier work, the mansions of philosophy published is chase into unity. Philosophy, philosophers, history, philosophie, philosophes.
Science is the captured territory, and behind it are those secure regions in which knowledge and art build our imperfect and marvelous world. Click to read more about the pleasures of philosophy by will durant. Author bio will durant 18851981 was awarded the pulitzer prize 1968 and the presidential medal of freedom 1977. A brilliant and concise account of the lives and ideas of the great philosophersplato, aristotle, bacon, spinoza, voltaire, kant, schopenhauer, spencer, nietzsche, bergson, croce, russell, santayana, james, and deweythe story of philosophy is one of the great books of our time. The product of 11 years of research, the story of philosophy is an endlessly inspiring and instructive chronicle of the worlds greatest thinkers, from.
He was earlier noted for his book, the story of philosophy, written in 1926, which was considered a groundbreaking work that helped to popularize philosophy. The pleasures of philosophy by will durant home facebook. Posts must be about philosophy proper, rather than only tangentially connected to philosophy. His second book, the story of philosophy 1926, sold more than two million copies in less than three decades and was translated into several languages. He is best known for the story of civilization, 11 volumes written in collaboration with his wife, ariel durant, and published between 1935 and 1975. He and his wife were awarded the pulitzer prize for general nonfiction in 1968 for rousseau and revolution, and he was a recipient of the presidential medal. By will durant the story of philosophy transition the pleasures of philosophy adventures in genius by. The story of philosophy the paul rosenfels community. He earlier book, the story of philosophy 1926, was described as a. Durant embodied the two qualities that he once declared no philosophy or philosopher was complete without. Designed to accompany the tenvolume set of the story of civilization, the lessons of history is, in its own right, a profound and original work of history and philosophy. It is a rare pleasure as it escorts one through minds and thoughts of profound thinkers.
Most of us have known some golden days in the june of life when philosophy was in fact what. Introduction to will durants, the story of philosophy. Will durant and the story of philosophy i concluded my last post on this website, defining philosophy and its uses, with a long quotation from will durant stating the importance of philosophy as a synthesis of knowledge and distiller of wisdom. The pleasures of philosophy the mansions of philosophy, will durant the pleasures of philosophy. The meaning of life, will durant, and new philosopher. Hover or tap each rule for full details posting rules. Durant, author of the bestselling elevenvolume series the story of civilization, wrote many other books as well that have long since become classics. A great find in 1999 was an old copy of will durants book on the meaning of life. Easily the most engaging writer of western intellectual history in the english language, will durant breathes life into philosophers and their ideas. Will durants instructive account of the lives and work of the worlds great thinkers from socrates to santayana is endlessly inspiring.
Will durant and the story of philosophy tigerpapers. Durant received his phd from columbia university in 1917. Buy the story of philosophy book online at low prices in. The book became a bestseller and freed durant from his teaching career and allowed him and his wife to travel and to begin work on his lifes labor, the story of civilization. They were william james durant was a prolific american writer, historian, and philosopher. After finishing the story of civilization to 1789, we reread the ten volumes with a view to issuing a revised edition that would correct many errors of omission, fact, or print. We eliminated all end of line hyphens from two word pairs and hyphenated words. To give this total perspective durant ranges over logic, epistemology, metaphysics. Durant has let down freud theory of the pleasure principle and nietzsche glorification of the instincts, associated with evil and perversion, based on their unsound antiepicurian tendencies.
To learn more about what is and is not considered philosophy for the purposes of this subreddit, see our faq. The project gutenberg ebook of philosophy and the social. Transition 1927, the mansions of philosophy 1929, adventures in genius. Stapp lawrence berkeley national laboratory university of california berkeley, california 94720 abstract arguments pertaining to the mindbrain connection and to the physical effectiveness of our conscious choices have been presented in two recent. The pleasures of philosophy by will durant 2 star ratings. The chapters of the book have already been uploaded. Durant will the lessons of history balder exlibris. Written with exacting and scrupulous scholarship, it was designed both to command the respect of educators and to capture the interest of the layman. There is a pleasure in philosophy, and a lure even in the.
The story of philosophy work by will and ariel durant. The story of philosophy gives not only the ideas and philosophical systems of such worldfamous monarchs of. Will durant there is a pleasure in philosophy, and a lure even in the mirages of metaphysics, which every student feels until the coarse necessities of physical existence drag him from the heights of thought into the mart of economic strife and gain. Story of philosophy isbn 9781476702605 pdf epub will. The lives and opinions of the greater philosophers is a 1926 book by will durant, in which he profiles several prominent western philosophers and their ideas, beginning with socrates and plato and on through friedrich nietzsche. All content included on our site, such as text, images, digital downloads and other, is the property of its content suppliers and protected by us and international laws. See all 3 formats and editions hide other formats and editions. He never once attempted to build his reputation at the expense of others.
Will durant conceived of philosophy as total perspective, or, seeing things sub specie all, a phrase inspired by spinozas sub specie eternity. Few write for the nonspecialist as well as will durant, and this book is a splendid example of his eminently. The story of philosophy chronicles the ideas of the great thinkers, the economic and intellectual environments which influenced them, and the personal traits and adventures out of which each philosophy grew. All about the pleasures of philosophy by will durant. The pleasures of philosophy by will durant librarything. Will durant 18851981 was an awardwinning american writer, historian, and philosopher. Readers of this blog know that will durant is one of my intellectual heroes. Pleasure inclusive usages, according to stanford encyclopedia of philosophy, are most important in moral psychology, ethical theory, and the studies of. Librarything is a cataloging and social networking site for booklovers. William james durant 1885 1981 was an american writer, historian, and philosopher. Open library is an initiative of the internet archive, a 501c3 nonprofit, building a digital library of internet sites and other cultural artifacts in digital form. I devoured the contents of the book, only to learn he said nothing except that which the greatest minds in the world have said before him.