Download or read book The Value of the World and of Oneself written by Mor Segev and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2022 with total page 273 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This book examines the longstanding debate between philosophical optimism and pessimism in the history of philosophy, focusing on Aristotle, Maimonides, Spinoza, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Camus. Philosophical optimists maintain that the world is optimally arranged and is accordingly valuable, and that the existence of human beings is preferable over their nonexistence. Philosophical pessimists, by contrast, hold that the world is in a woeful condition and ultimately valueless, and that human nonexistence would have been preferable over our existence. Schopenhauer criticizes the optimism he locates in the Hebrew Bible and in Spinoza for being unable to square the presumed perfection of the world and its parts, including human life, with the suffering and misfortunes observable in them, and for leading to egoism and thereby to cruelty. Nietzsche, in turn, criticizes Schopenhauer's overtly pessimistic view, inter alia, for furtively positing a perfect state for one to aspire to, thus being latently optimistic. Similarly, Camus charges Nietzsche, who announces his rejection of both optimism and pessimism, with deifying the world and oneself, thereby reverting to optimism. Interestingly, Aristotle countenances an optimistic theory, later adopted and developed by Maimonides, that is arguably capable of facing Schopenhauer's challenge. Aristotelian optimism accounts for the perfection of the world in terms of a hierarchy of value between its parts, with human beings ranked relatively low, and recommends an attitude congruent with that ranking"--

Download or read book The Value of the World and of Oneself written by Mor Segev and published by . This book was released on 2022 with total page 259 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This book examines the longstanding debate between philosophical optimism and pessimism in the history of philosophy, focusing on Aristotle, Maimonides, Spinoza, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Camus. Philosophical optimists maintain that the world is optimally arranged and is accordingly valuable, and that the existence of human beings is preferable over their nonexistence. Philosophical pessimists, by contrast, hold that the world is in a woeful condition and ultimately valueless, and that human nonexistence would have been preferable over our existence. Schopenhauer criticizes the optimism he locates in the Hebrew Bible and in Spinoza for being unable to square the presumed perfection of the world and its parts, including human life, with the suffering and misfortunes observable in them, and for leading to egoism and thereby to cruelty. Nietzsche, in turn, criticizes Schopenhauer's overtly pessimistic view, inter alia, for furtively positing a perfect state for one to aspire to, thus being latently optimistic. Similarly, Camus charges Nietzsche, who announces his rejection of both optimism and pessimism, with deifying the world and oneself, thereby reverting to optimism. Interestingly, Aristotle countenances an optimistic theory, later adopted and developed by Maimonides, that is arguably capable of facing Schopenhauer's challenge. Aristotelian optimism accounts for the perfection of the world in terms of a hierarchy of value between its parts, with human beings ranked relatively low, and recommends an attitude congruent with that ranking"--

Download or read book The Value of the World and of Oneself written by Mor Segev and published by . This book was released on 2022 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This book examines the longstanding debate between philosophical optimism and pessimism in the history of philosophy, focusing on Aristotle, Maimonides, Spinoza, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Camus. Philosophical optimists maintain that the world is optimally arranged and is accordingly valuable, and that the existence of human beings is preferable over their nonexistence. Philosophical pessimists, by contrast, hold that the world is in a woeful condition and ultimately valueless, and that human nonexistence would have been preferable over our existence. Schopenhauer criticizes the optimism he locates in the Hebrew Bible and in Spinoza for being unable to square the presumed perfection of the world and its parts, including human life, with the suffering and misfortunes observable in them, and for leading to egoism and thereby to cruelty. Nietzsche, in turn, criticizes Schopenhauer's overtly pessimistic view, inter alia, for furtively positing a perfect state for one to aspire to, thus being latently optimistic. Similarly, Camus charges Nietzsche, who announces his rejection of both optimism and pessimism, with deifying the world and oneself, thereby reverting to optimism. Interestingly, Aristotle countenances an optimistic theory, later adopted and developed by Maimonides, that is arguably capable of facing Schopenhauer's challenge. Aristotelian optimism accounts for the perfection of the world in terms of a hierarchy of value between its parts, with human beings ranked relatively low, and recommends an attitude congruent with that ranking"--

Download or read book Finding Meaning in an Imperfect World written by Iddo Landau and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2017-07-01 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Does life have meaning? Is it possible for life to be meaningful when the world is filled with suffering and when so much depends merely upon chance? Even if there is meaning, is there enough to justify living? These questions are difficult to resolve. There are times in which we face the mundane, the illogically cruel, and the tragic, which leave us to question the value of our lives. However, Iddo Landau argues, our lives often are, or could be made, meaningfulwe've just been setting the bar too high for evaluating what meaning there is. When it comes to meaning in life, Landau explains, we have let perfect become the enemy of the good. We have failed to find life perfectly meaningful, and therefore have failed to see any meaning in our lives. We must attune ourselves to enhancing and appreciating the meaning in our lives, and Landau shows us how to do that. In this warmly written book, rich with examples from the author's life, film, literature, and history, Landau offers new theories and practical advice that awaken us to the meaning already present in our lives and demonstrates how we can enhance it. He confronts prevailing nihilist ideas that undermine our existence, and the questions that dog us no matter what we believe. While exposing the weaknesses of ideas that lead many to despair, he builds a strong case for maintaining more hope. Along the way, he faces provocative questions: Would we choose to live forever if we could? Does death render life meaningless? If we examine it in the context of the immensity of the whole universe, can we consider life meaningful? If we feel empty once we achieve our goals, and the pursuit of these goals is what gives us a sense of meaning, then what can we do? Finding Meaning in an Imperfect World is likely to alter the way you understand your life.

Download or read book Finding Oneself in the Other written by G. A. Cohen and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2013 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the second of three volumes of posthumously collected writings of G. A. Cohen, who was one of the leading, and most progressive, figures in contemporary political philosophy. This volume brings together some of Cohen's most personal philosophical and nonphilosophical essays, many of them previously unpublished. Rich in first-person narration, insight, and humor, these pieces vividly demonstrate why Thomas Nagel described Cohen as a "wonderful raconteur.? The nonphilosophical highlight of the book is Cohen's remarkable account of his first trip to India, which includes unforgettable vignettes of encounters with strangers and reflections on poverty and begging. Other biographical pieces include his valedictory lecture at Oxford, in which he describes his philosophical development and offers his impressions of other philosophers, and "Isaiah's Marx, and Mine," a tribute to his mentor Isaiah Berlin. Other essays address such topics as the truth in "small-c conservatism," who can and can't condemn terrorists, and the essence of bullshit. A recurring theme is finding completion in relation to the world of other human beings. Engaging, perceptive, and empathetic, these writings reveal a more personal side of one of the most influential philosophers of our time.

Download or read book Emotional Self Care for Black Women written by EasyTube Zen Studio and published by chasecheck ltd. This book was released on 2022-06-10 with total page 120 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: If you're a black woman trying to cultivate the motivation, confidence, and self-love you've always wanted, then keep reading! Are you a black woman who's struggling to find motivation and meaning in your life? Have you felt like your efforts are futile because nothing you do feels like it's making an impact? Do you wish you could just become the confident, self-assured woman you've always dreamed yourself to be? You're not alone in this struggle. Many black women like us are struggling with the same feelings of helplessness when it comes to our personal and professional lives. This lack of motivation often causes us to struggle with anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, self-doubt, and other mental and emotional issues. When we stop believing in our own power to make positive changes in our life, it's easy for negative thought patterns to take over. We may become apathetic toward everything around us. It's like we've forgotten how to feel. Black women are expected to keep their heads down and not cause a fuss, yet they're also expected to go above and beyond for everyone in our lives. This is the double bind that black women face every single day. But you don't have to make yourself suffer any longer. Becoming motivated, confident, and self-aware is a journey that starts with small steps. In

Download or read book Self in the World written by Keith Hart and published by Berghahn Books. This book was released on 2022-03-11 with total page 314 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Eminent anthropologist Keith Hart draws on the humanities, popular culture and his own experiences to help readers explore their own place in history. We each embark on two life journeys – one out into the world, the other inward to the self. With these journeys in mind, anthropologist, amateur economist and globetrotter Keith Hart reflects on a life of learning, sharing and remembering to offer readers the means of connecting life’s extremes – individual and society, local and global, personal and impersonal dimensions of existence and explores what it is that makes us fully human. “This is a work of great originality. Keith Hart has had an unorthodox academic career and it has liberated him in many ways from academic pieties. His background in African ethnography gives him a fascinating angle on all sorts of things, not least the possibility of a more African-influenced global future. The book is full of surprises and mind-shifting observations. I actually couldn't put it down.”—Sherry B. Ortner, UCLA From the introduction: People have many sides, but I will focus here on two. Each of us is a biological organism with a historical personality that together make us a unique individual. But we cannot live outside society which shapes us in unfathomable ways. Human beings must learn to be self-reliant (not self-interested) in small and large ways: no-one will brush your teeth for you or save you from being run over while crossing the street. We each must also learn to belong to others, merging personal identity in a plethora of social relations and categories. Modern ideology insists that being individual and mutual is problematic. The culture of capitalist societies anticipates a conflict between them. Yet they are inseparable aspects of human nature.

Download or read book Handbook of Experimental Existential Psychology written by Jeff Greenberg and published by Guilford Press. This book was released on 2004-05-26 with total page 550 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Social and personality psychologists traditionally have focused their attention on the most basic building blocks of human thought and behavior, while existential psychologists pursued broader, more abstract questions regarding the nature of existence and the meaning of life. This volume bridges this longstanding divide by demonstrating how rigorous experimental methods can be applied to understanding key existential concerns, including death, uncertainty, identity, meaning, morality, isolation, determinism, and freedom. Bringing together leading scholars and investigators, the Handbook presents the influential theories and research findings that collectively are helping to define the emerging field of experimental existential psychology.

Download or read book Anxiety and Self Focused Attention written by Ralf Schwarzer and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2015-09-25 with total page 190 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: First published in 1991, this book consists of 13 articles that were originally published in the journal Anxiety Research. They address the topic of anxiety and self-focused attention from a variety of perspectives, representing recent advances in social, clinical and personality psychology at the time. As a whole, the book poses a stimulating theoretical challenge to traditional anxiety research, which had been dominated by psychometric issues, clinical case studies and stable personality constructs. The contributors share the view that anxiety is an emotional state of distress dependent upon specific antecedent cognitive processes such as self-awareness, perceived role discrepancy or unfavourable expectancies.

Download or read book About Oneself written by Manuel García-Carpintero and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2016-01-07 with total page 376 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume addresses foundational issues concerning the nature of first-personal, or de se, thought and how such thoughts are communicated. One of the questions addressed is whether there is anything distinctive about first-person thought or whether it can be subsumed under broader phenomena. Many have held that first-person thought motivates a revision of traditional accounts of content or motivates positing special ways of accessing such contents. Gottlob Frege famously held that first-person thoughts involve a subject being 'presented to himself in a particular and primitive way, in which he is presented to no-one else.' However, as Frege also noted, this raises many puzzling questions when we consider how we are able to communicate such thoughts. Is there indeed something special about first-person thought such that it requires a primitive mode of presentation that cannot be grasped by others? If there really is something special about first-person thought, what happens when I communicate this thought to you? Do you come to believe the very thing that I believe? Or is my first-person belief only entertained by me? If it is only entertained by me, how does it relate to what you come to believe? It is these questions that the volume addresses and seeks to answer.

Download or read book The Immune Self written by Alfred I. Tauber and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1994 with total page 370 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Immune Self is the first extended philosophical critique of immunology.

Download or read book The Minimal Self written by Rupert Glasgow and published by BoD – Books on Demand. This book was released on 2017-06-13 with total page 394 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'Self' is a term that is much used but often poorly understood or over-hastily dismissed. In The Minimal Self R.D.V. Glasgow seeks to unearth the underlying nature of selfhood. Glasgow's approach is based upon the notion of 'intrinsic reflexivity', which manifests itself in three fundamental forms: self-maintenance, self-reproduction and self-containment. Through a conceptual analysis of selfhood, Glasgow aims to ascertain what distinguishes full forms of minimal selfhood from entities such as genes and viruses that are merely selfish or self-like. The idea is to establish the logical prerequisites for the transition from a world bereft of selfhood to one populated by selves like us. Minimal selfhood thus provides a bridge linking philosophy, biology and other disciplines that have previously failed to coincide in their understanding of what a self is.

Download or read book Maturity and Modernity written by David Owen and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-04-15 with total page 271 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Maturity and Modernity is the first book to analyze Nietzsche, Weber and Foucault as a tradition of theorising and to chart the development of genealogy as a mode of critique. It provides clear accounts of the main ideas of Nietzsche, Weber and Foucault (as well as a useful Glossary) and illustrates the relations between these thinkers at methodological, substantive and politcal levels.

Download or read book Psychosis written by Kenjiro Fukao and published by BoD – Books on Demand. This book was released on 2022-02-02 with total page 128 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Psychosis has been the central subject of psychiatric research for more than a century and yet it remains an intriguing enigma. This volume reviews the current status of research on psychosis in three different aspects, namely, phenomenology, which is the philosophical/conceptual basis of psychosis; psychopathology, which is the clinical manifestations of psychosis; and pathophysiology, which is the scientific pursuit for the mechanism of psychosis. Chapters focus on schizophrenia, covering such topics as clinical staging, negative symptoms, epigenetics, DNA methyltransferases, and more.

Download or read book Earliest Christianity within the Boundaries of Judaism written by Alan Avery-Peck and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2016-02-02 with total page 501 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Top scholars of early Christianity and Judaism consider methodological issues, earliest Christianity’s Judaic setting, Gospel studies, and the emergence of later Christianity. These essays honor Bruce Chilton, recognizing his seminal contribution to the study of earliest Christianity in its Judaic setting.

Download or read book Phenomenology 2010 Volume 5 Selected Essays from North America Part 1 Phenomenology within Philosophy written by Barber, Michael and published by Zeta Books. This book was released on 2010-01-01 with total page 447 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Foucault s Askesis written by Edward F. McGushin and published by Northwestern University Press. This book was released on 2007-04-03 with total page 380 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In his renowned courses at the Collège de France from 1982 to 1984, Michel Foucault devoted his lectures to meticulous readings and interpretations of the works of Plato, Epictetus, Seneca, and Marcus Aurelius, among others. In this his aim was not, Edward F. McGushin contends, to develop a new knowledge of the history of philosophy; rather, it was to let himself be transformed by the very activity of thinking. Thus, this work shows us Foucault in the last phase of his life in the act of becoming a philosopher. Here we see how his encounter with ancient philosophy allowed him to experience the practice of philosophy as, to paraphrase Nietzsche, a way of becoming who one is: the work of self-formation that the Greeks called askēsis. Through a detailed study of Foucault's last courses, McGushin demonstrates that this new way of practicing philosophical askēsis evokes Foucault's ethical resistance to modern relations of power and knowledge. In order to understand Foucault's later project, then, it is necessary to see it within the context of his earlier work. If his earlier projects represented an attempt to bring to light the relations of power and knowledge that narrowed and limited freedom, then this last project represents his effort to take back that freedom by redefining it in terms of care of the self. Foucault always stressed that modern power functions by producing individual subjects. This book shows how his excavation of ancient philosophical practices gave him the tools to counter this function-with a practice of self-formation, an askēsis.