Spartan Kings and Statesmen in Montaigne's Essais

Spartan Kings and Statesmen in Montaigne's Essais PDF Author: Maria PAPADOPOULOS
Publisher: Méduse d'Or S.A.R.L.
ISBN: 2900409004
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 113

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Book Description
In his Essais, Michel Eyquem de Montaigne (1533-1592), father of modern scepticism and fervent supporter of the ‘philosophy of praxis’, seems to be the first modern thinker in the footsteps of Plato to recognize the existence of Spartan philosopher-kings and philosopher-statesmen. But Montaigne goes further: he sees Sparta as a city-state of philosopher-citizens, and he distinguishes between the Spartans’ philosophical virtue and their military valour: true courage is the work of prudence – a moral and an intellectual virtue -, and of wisdom, which is recognized and proved by its ‘practice’ through living examples, experiences in everyday religious, moral, social, and civic life, rational justification and moral standing of interlinked choices on virtue and evil, happiness and sadness, joy and pain, life and death. There is a dialectical relationship between theory and praxis, words and deeds, arts and arms. The same dialectical approach is taken by Montaigne whose ‘valiant philosophy’ has a particular purpose: to teach not to fear death. In these circumstances self-knowledge (or wisdom) takes the double significance of an intellectual investigation, and at the same time a training that brings victory not over enemies in the battlefield but over time and death.

Spartan Kings and Statesmen in Montaigne's Essais

Spartan Kings and Statesmen in Montaigne's Essais PDF Author: Maria PAPADOPOULOS
Publisher: Méduse d'Or S.A.R.L.
ISBN: 2900409004
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 113

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Book Description
In his Essais, Michel Eyquem de Montaigne (1533-1592), father of modern scepticism and fervent supporter of the ‘philosophy of praxis’, seems to be the first modern thinker in the footsteps of Plato to recognize the existence of Spartan philosopher-kings and philosopher-statesmen. But Montaigne goes further: he sees Sparta as a city-state of philosopher-citizens, and he distinguishes between the Spartans’ philosophical virtue and their military valour: true courage is the work of prudence – a moral and an intellectual virtue -, and of wisdom, which is recognized and proved by its ‘practice’ through living examples, experiences in everyday religious, moral, social, and civic life, rational justification and moral standing of interlinked choices on virtue and evil, happiness and sadness, joy and pain, life and death. There is a dialectical relationship between theory and praxis, words and deeds, arts and arms. The same dialectical approach is taken by Montaigne whose ‘valiant philosophy’ has a particular purpose: to teach not to fear death. In these circumstances self-knowledge (or wisdom) takes the double significance of an intellectual investigation, and at the same time a training that brings victory not over enemies in the battlefield but over time and death.

On Friendship

On Friendship PDF Author: Michel de Montaigne
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101651156
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 84

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Book Description
From the 100-part Penguin Great Ideas series comes a rumination on relationships, courtesy of one of the most influential French Renaissance philosophers. Michel de Montaigne was the originator of the modern essay form; in these diverse pieces he expresses his views on friendship, contemplates the idea that man is no different from any animal, argues that all cultures should be respected, and attempts, by an exploration of himself, to understand the nature of humanity. Penguin Great Ideas: Throughout history, some books have changed the world. They have transformed the way we see ourselves—and each other. They have inspired debate, dissent, war, and revolution. They have enlightened, outraged, provoked, and comforted. They have enriched lives—and destroyed them. Now Penguin Great Ideas brings you the works of the great thinkers, pioneers, radicals, and visionaries whose ideas shook civilization and helped make us who we are. Other titles in the series include Niccolò Machiavelli's The Prince, Thomas Paine's Common Sense, and Charles Darwin's On Natural Selection.

Essays on Political Economy

Essays on Political Economy PDF Author: Frédéric Bastiat
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 58

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Montaigne and the Origins of Modern Philosophy

Montaigne and the Origins of Modern Philosophy PDF Author: Ann Hartle
Publisher: Northwestern University Press
ISBN: 9780810129658
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Montaigne’s Essays are rightfully studied as giving birth to the literary form of that name. Ann Hartle’s Montaigne and the Origins of Modern Philosophy argues that the essay is actually the perfect expression of Montaigne as what he called "a new figure: an unpremeditated and accidental philosopher." Unpremeditated philosophy is philosophy made sociable—brought down from the heavens to the street, where it might be engaged in by a wider audience. In the same philosophical act, Montaigne both transforms philosophy and invents "society," a distinctly modern form of association. Through this transformation, a new, modern character emerges: the individual, who is neither master nor slave and who possesses the new virtues of integrity and generosity. In Montaigne’s radically new philosophical project, Hartle finds intimations of both modern epistemology and modern political philosophy.

The Consolations of Philosophy

The Consolations of Philosophy PDF Author: Alain De Botton
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 030783350X
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 273

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Book Description
From the author of How Proust Can Change Your Life, a delightful, truly consoling work that proves that philosophy can be a supreme source of help for our most painful everyday problems. Perhaps only Alain de Botton could uncover practical wisdom in the writings of some of the greatest thinkers of all time. But uncover he does, and the result is an unexpected book of both solace and humor. Dividing his work into six sections -- each highlighting a different psychic ailment and the appropriate philosopher -- de Botton offers consolation for unpopularity from Socrates, for not having enough money from Epicurus, for frustration from Seneca, for inadequacy from Montaigne, and for a broken heart from Schopenhauer (the darkest of thinkers and yet, paradoxically, the most cheering). Consolation for envy -- and, of course, the final word on consolation -- comes from Nietzsche: "Not everything which makes us feel better is good for us." This wonderfully engaging book will, however, make us feel better in a good way, with equal measures of wit and wisdom.

Shakespeare's Montaigne

Shakespeare's Montaigne PDF Author: Michel de Montaigne
Publisher: New York Review of Books
ISBN: 1590177347
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 481

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Book Description
An NYRB Classics Original Shakespeare, Nietzsche wrote, was Montaigne’s best reader—a typically brilliant Nietzschean insight, capturing the intimate relationship between Montaigne’s ever-changing record of the self and Shakespeare’s kaleidoscopic register of human character. And there is no doubt that Shakespeare read Montaigne—though how extensively remains a matter of debate—and that the translation he read him in was that of John Florio, a fascinating polymath, man-about-town, and dazzlingly inventive writer himself. Florio’s Montaigne is in fact one of the masterpieces of English prose, with a stylistic range and felicity and passages of deep lingering music that make it comparable to Sir Robert Burton’s Anatomy of Melancholy and the works of Sir Thomas Browne. This new edition of this seminal work, edited by Stephen Greenblatt and Peter G. Platt, features an adroitly modernized text, an essay in which Greenblatt discusses both the resemblances and real tensions between Montaigne’s and Shakespeare’s visions of the world, and Platt’s introduction to the life and times of the extraordinary Florio. Altogether, this book provides a remarkable new experience of not just two but three great writers who ushered in the modern world.

The Idea of Progress

The Idea of Progress PDF Author: John Bagnell Bury
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 408

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On Revolution

On Revolution PDF Author: Hannah Arendt
Publisher: Penguin Group
ISBN:
Category : Revolutions
Languages : en
Pages : 40

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The Origin Of The Distinction Of Ranks; Or, An Inquiry Into The Circumstances Which Give Rise To Influence And Authority In The Different Members Of Society

The Origin Of The Distinction Of Ranks; Or, An Inquiry Into The Circumstances Which Give Rise To Influence And Authority In The Different Members Of Society PDF Author: John Millar
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 296

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Book Description


Virtues for the People

Virtues for the People PDF Author: Geert Roskam
Publisher: Universitaire Pers Leuven
ISBN: 905867858X
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 385

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Book Description
This collection of essays addresses Plutarch's writings on practical ethics from different perspectives, including regarding their overall structure, content, purpose, and underlying philosophical and social presuppositions.