The Present Alone is Our Happiness, Second Edition - Conversations with Jeannie Carlier and Arnold I. Davidson (Paperback, 2nd edition)

One of the most influential historians of ancient philosophy of the past half-century, Pierre Hadot was adept at using ancient philosophers to illuminate the relevance of their ideas to contemporary life. This new edition of "The Present Alone is Our Happiness," which has been significantly revised and expanded to include two previously untranslated essays, is an ideal introduction to some of Hadot's more scholarly work. In it, we discover that to be an Epicurean is not merely to think like one; it is to adopt a way of living where limiting desires is the condition for happiness. Being an Aristotelian, similarly, is to choose a life that involves contemplation, and being a Cynic is to follow Diogenes in his refusal of quotidian convention and the mentality of ordinary people. If so many ancient philosophers founded schools, Hadot explains, it was precisely because they were proposing how to live life on a daily basis. We learn here that the history of philosophy has been something more than just that of a discourse. The founding texts of Greek philosophy, after all, were notes taken from oral exercises undertaken in concrete circumstances and contexts, most often a dialogue between students and specific interlocutors who meant to shed light on their students' real existence. The immense contribution of this book, which also traces Hadot's own personal itinerary in a touching manner, is to remind us, through direct language and numerous examples, what the theoretical aspect of philosophy often masks: its vital and existential dimensions.

General

Imprint:	Stanford University Press
Country of origin:	United States
Series:	Cultural Memory in the Present
Release date:	February 2011
First published:	2011
Authors:	Pierre Hadot
Translators:	Marc Djaballah • Michael Chase
Dimensions:	229 x 152 x 16mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Paperback
Pages:	207
Edition:	2nd edition
ISBN-13:	978-0-8047-7543-4
Categories:	Books > Humanities > Philosophy > Non-Western philosophy > General Books > Philosophy > Non-Western philosophy > General
LSN:	0-8047-7543-5
Barcode:	9780804775434

Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate? Let us know about it.

Does this product have an incorrect or missing image? Send us a new image.

Is this product missing categories? Add more categories.

Review This Product

No reviews yet - be the first to create one!