New Humanist
Critchley's sketches of the lives and deaths of philosophers...are brilliant, entertaining, informative, and marked throughout by lightness and humour.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
The Sunday Herald
[The] book differs from more punitive tomes on popular philosophy not only in its accessibility but in its sprawling cast.
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Big Issue
Critchley's book will fascinate people curious about why we are here.
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The List
While Citchley asks some big questions he also grants us a pick'n'mix of the most noteworthy demises in philosophical history.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
The Telegraph
This is a rigorous, profound and frequently hilarious book... Critchley himself is an engaging, deadpan guide to the metaphysical necropolis
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Time Out
This ingenious primer collects potted biographies of 190 dead philosophers... It's packed with great stories
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Description
“To philosophize is to learn how to die.” —Cicero; assassinated by order of Mark Antony
“One who no longer is cannot suffer.” —Lucretius; suicide, allegedly driven mad by a love potion
“Life is solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.” —Hobbes; died in bed, age 91
In this collection of brief lives (and deaths) of nearly two hundred of the world's greatest thinkers, noted philosopher Simon Critchley creates a register of mortality that is tragic, amusing, absurd, and exemplary. From the self-mocking haikus of Zen masters on their deathbeds to the last words of Christian saints and modern-day sages, this irresistible book contains much to inspire both amusement and reflection.
Informed by Critchley's acute insight, scholarly intelligence, and sprightly wit, each entry tells its own tale, but collected together they add up to a profound and moving investigation of meaning and the possibility of happiness for us all.
“One who no longer is cannot suffer.” —Lucretius; suicide, allegedly driven mad by a love potion
“Life is solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.” —Hobbes; died in bed, age 91
In this collection of brief lives (and deaths) of nearly two hundred of the world's greatest thinkers, noted philosopher Simon Critchley creates a register of mortality that is tragic, amusing, absurd, and exemplary. From the self-mocking haikus of Zen masters on their deathbeds to the last words of Christian saints and modern-day sages, this irresistible book contains much to inspire both amusement and reflection.
Informed by Critchley's acute insight, scholarly intelligence, and sprightly wit, each entry tells its own tale, but collected together they add up to a profound and moving investigation of meaning and the possibility of happiness for us all.
