4 comments about Introducing Barthes (Beginners).

1. This book is an extremely superficial review of Barthes' theories. The illustrations are disgusting and totally not appropriate for this book. Roland Barthes was one of the greatest mid-20th century critics and philosophers and this is not the type of book he deserves. Whoever is interested in Roland Barthes is definitely not looking for this type of book. It is a total disgrace to his books and his persona.



2. I have now read several of the books from this series and, I think it is safe to say that the usefulness and quality of the books varies greatly. I like the idea of using cartoons to assist the reader in understanding difficult ideas. Unfortunately, the illustrations in some of the books add nothing to them but confusion. In addition, the writing can be flat and thick, the writer having failed to take the playfulness of the series into account. Introducing Kant is a perfect example. That having been said, Introducing Barthes is without a doubt the best of the 10 or so books of the Introducing series I have read so far. The writer shows a deep sensitivity when discussing Barthes both as a thinker and as a person, and he illustates a great deal of personal reflection regarding Barthes' ideas--this is not stuff straight off the shelf. This book was written by someone who has a deep appreciation of Barthes, and it shows. This is what most impressed me. Clearly, this text reflects the intentions of the series in its attempt to bring a difficult subject down to earth. If you want to get a foothold into Barthes, this is an excellent place to begin.



3. I decided to pick this book up because I liked some other books of this serie. I have no prior knowledge of Barthes's theories, so I can't say whether the book itself is accurate. Overall the book is easy to follow, and the author seems very knowledgeable on the subject.
   My biggest problems are the illustrations. I don't like the drawing style itself, but the content of the pictures perplex me. The drawings are somewhat crude to say the least, and I couldn't understand the relationship between the picture and the text. I can understand there being a little cartoon of people in an orgy when the text is talking about Barthes' perception of Sade's literary work.pictures. But a lot of the other illustration had sexual content where I couldn't see its relevance to the text. I expect to see that kind of art in Indy comics, not in a book that talks about semiotics and the like.



4. As a student of literature, I am expected to know about critical/literary theory. I cannot speak for anyone else, but I often find the reading to be very difficult, and often times, I need a little help teasing out the ideas presented beneath a proverbial mountain of specialized jargon.
   I have always been partial to Barthes, he's a very interesting man to say the least. This book was the spark that got me more deeply involved in his writings. I will have to disagree with the prudes who take issue with the book's illustrations. Yes, they can be perceived as a bit lewd or lascivious, but they're certainly enough to keep the pages turning. The fact is, Barthes, like Foucault, did not keep his homosexual life/appetites a secret, so the fact that there are some wild illustrations involved shouldn't make such a big stir. We are all presumably adults here. Thody , in my opinion, does a very good job of presenting difficult ideas in layman's terms.
   There is certainly no shame in owning/reading the "Introducing" books; sometimes we need a little help figuring out what the hell is going on in theoretical writing. These books are fantastic gateways into the otherwise closed world of theory and philosophy. Highly recommended.

5 comments about Autobiography of John Stuart Mill.

1. John Stuart Mill was raised by his father to be his intellectual heir, and a great genius. There is something moving about the care taken by the father to teach his wunderkind son all that he knew. The father was with Jeremy Bentham the guiding spirit of the philosophical movement Utilitarianism. Utilitarianism was a mechanical kind of philosophy which thought it possible to measure the goodness of action by measuring the amount of pleasure against the amount of pain. Mill followed the path his father set out from him, adopted his father's values and social conscience and was already by the tender age of twenty a distinguished intellectual figure. But then he asked himself the question if the realization of all his social schemes and all the grand social ideals would bring him happiness. And he understood that it would not. He understood in other words that all this focus on outward good and action, on mechanical measures for human life was missing some vital component in life and in himself. Mill went into a great depression. What brought him out was the reading of the poetry of Wordsworth and the understanding that there is a dimension of feeling, a dimension of the inner life which is somehow more important than all the social thought. This did not mean that Mill abandoned the path of social reform but rather that he changed its direction. Part of this change had to do with his meeting his relationship with Harriet Taylor, his embracing in a certain sense of liberal ideas on the role of women in society. Mill found himself and continued on his intellectual path, a path which would lead him to produce one of the masterpieces of modern political thought, "On Liberty ".



2. Ever wonder for which bipolar monomaniac the Sorcerer's Apprentice worked? Now you know. Drier than Dryden, boot-licking admirer of the thief of his childhood, humorless bookworm of a dusty aristocrat, protonerd ex machina in extremis. When Continent-lazing navel-gazers concern themselves with improving society, oil your firearms. I'd rather a deep belly laugh than Mill's musings, any day.



3. Mill's remarkable childhood education prepared him to be one of the leading intellectuals of his day (far surpassing his father, James Mill, who was no slouch, but not in his son's league) but while I admire his erudition and achievements, one has to wonder if the deep depression he fell into in his mid-20s had something to do with that.
   
   Mill's contributions are better remembered than many of the other famous British intellectuals of the period--such as Herbert Spencer--whose particularly invidious version of the theory of Social Darwinism is best left languishing in obscurity. Who today remembers the prolific Spencer, whose collected works run to over 20 large volumes?
   
   Mill is frank about his depression and how debilitating it was, and what a struggle it was to pull through it. But with the help of his best friend, he pulled out of it and went on to write many important works in philosophy, logic, political science, and economics.
   
   Mill's I.Q. was certainly very high (estimated by psychologist Katherine Cox using a modified ratio I.Q. method to be at least 200), but very likely his father's misguided efforts to produce a prodigy and homegrown, British Wunderkind (to compete with the legendary "Infant of Lubeck," no doubt :-)) were the cause of his long, serious depression.
   
   Mill's text on econonics, which was called Political Economy back in those days (also the title of his book, if I remember right), was the longest running and most successful college text of all time, being used for the next 50 years until the 1920s when the "New Economics" of the day, championed by the field of microeconomics and the theory of the firm, made a more modern, updated text necessary.
   
   For me the most interesting part of the book was Mill's theory of history, with positive periods of creative cultural development being followed by periods of negation and dissolution. Mill summarizes it as follows (I think I'm remembering the quote more or less accurately): "During the positive periods mankind adopts with conviction some positive creed, claiming jurisdiction for all their actions proceeding from it, and possessing more or less of the truth and adaptation to the needs of humanity; when a period follows of negation and dissolution, during which mankind loses its old beliefs, of a general and authoritative character, except the belief that the old are false." Mills theory has parallels to the earlier Hegel's historical dialectic and later to Oswald Spengler's theory, and to later 20th century historian Arnold Toynbee's idea of "challenge and response."
   
   For another more literary (and probably more interesting) take on depression by another British intellectual, you might try Richard Burton's The Anatomy of Melancholy (not to be confused with the African explorer by the same name). After all, anyone who says that "Giraffes live for love," not to mention palm trees, can't be all bad. :-)



4. This book is so wonderful on so many different levels that to give it a review at all would be a disservice. My recommendation is not on whether or not to read it but instead on how to read it. I suggest a quiet room, comfortable chair or couch, cup of coffee and a few hours of uninterrupted reading time. After completing the book, rest and repeat as desired.



5. I read this book for a graduate Mill seminar in Philosophy. Recommended reading for anyone interested in philosophy, political science, and history.
   
   John Stuart Mill, 1806-73, worked for the East India Co. helped run Colonial India from England. Minister of Parliament 1865-68 he served one term.
   
   I have to say that I found Mill's Autobiography left me wanting to read a good biography of him in order to learn more about his personal life and interaction with family and friends. He certainly did not reveal himself in the way Jean Jacques Rousseau did in his much-ballyhooed autobiography The Confessions. I do understand that his wife Harriett edited the autobiography to the extent that there is no mention of Mill's mother in it. Other than his education and his reference to taking walks with his father to talk about books he had read, he says little about their relationship. In addition, there is only a passing reference to having to serve as schoolmaster to his siblings while he was an adolescent and he does not mention them again. Mill spent most of his adulthood working for the East India Company; however, he says little about that experience in his autobiography. It seems he had few friends as an adult, if you go by his autobiography. There is a brief reference about his friendship with George Grote, the eminent historian of Greek history. Thus, the impression that I got of Mill the man was one of an emotionally cold person socially except to his wife Harriett, who I believe was the only person in his life he truly loved. Most of his autobiography is dedicated to his education; such as, books he had read or written and philosophers he was influenced by, and this is a part of his life that I found most interesting.
   
   In Mill's autobiography, he tells readers how he benefited and suffered from having one of the most unique educational experiences known to humankind. His father was personally involved in both his education and that of his other siblings He was a brilliant student who read Greek by the age of three and Latin at eight years old. By the time he matured to adulthood, he was extremely well read. Thus, he received an academically rigorous education at home, and I find that his education really defined and shaped his character. Providing and improving education for all humans was a cornerstone of his philosophical belief in Utilitarianism. Education meant that people could develop their higher pleasures; a concept that Mill thought was of paramount importance to increase one's happiness. He invented this concept and differed with Jeremy Bentham, the progenitor of Utilitarianism, on this point. Bentham did not believe there was a qualitative property to happiness--Mill did. Thus, it is no mystery that in adulthood he developed very strong views on the advantages that universal education would have on improving people's characters. Mill believed universal education would lead to fostering social change for the betterment of all mankind. He stayed consistent on this belief throughout his life. He gave what I think was one of the great speeches on education and character formation in 1867 after accepting the position as Rector of the University of St. Andrews. In his Inaugural Address Delivered to the University of St. Andrews, one of the points that he made in his speech was the responsibility that universities had in building their students' characters. He also wrote about the importance of character formation had on the ability for people to enjoy freedom in society in his book On Liberty. However, he personally found that his education had come at a great price to his emotional well-being.
   
   During the winter of 1826 and into 1827 while in his early twenties, Mill recognized that he was suffering from a bout with depression. This is the only portion of his autobiography where Mill exposes his inner emotions to his readers. He believed his depression stemmed from an inadequacy in his education. He came to realize that although his father provided him a superior education on many intellectual levels, it was negligent in social contact with children of his own age, and did not prepare him emotionally for interaction with other members of society. His parents and visitors treated him as an adult from early childhood. Mill realized that his upbringing led up to his inability to feel a normal range of human emotions; thus, he felt detached from humanity. Mill found that reading poetry by Wordsworth in 1828 ultimately broke his depression. In poetry, Mill found that he could feel sorrow, and sympathize with others.
   
   I found this part of his autobiography of importance for three reasons. First, it is the only painful human emotional event in his life that he divulges to his readers. Secondly, it is an indication of the importance that the concept of sympathy played in his life and formed his philosophical views as well. Mill understood the need for humans to be sympathetic to one another. Sympathy is required for social interaction and is a useful character trait that we use in order to keep us from harming each other. Thirdly, without his awakening of this emotion in his life, I seriously doubt that he would have found the capacity to love his wife Harriett in the manner that he did. One does get the sense from his description of her that she was his true soul mate and only real long lasting friend in his life.
   
   Mill's friendship with Harriett while she was married to another man, caused them both to endure scandalous gossip, even though they both denied there relationship had any sexual component to it. When they eventually married each other about two years after she became a widow, Mill stayed true to his life long conviction in believing in equal rights for women. During Mill's time, married women's property automatically devolved to their husband and he correctly saw this as one more inequity against women placed on them by society. Therefore, on the day when he married Harriett Taylor in 1851, a financially secure widow, he wrote a formal renunciation to all of her property in protest against the current law. He was a life long feminist who wrote in his essay The Subjection of Women, about the scathing inequalities that women endured since the history of mankind had been chronicled. I have no doubt that his essay paved the way in changing marriage and divorce laws and fostered the improvement of relations between the sexes. He was also the first Member of Parliament to introduce a bill in the Commons to enfranchise women. He worked tirelessly at the end of his life, supporting women's rights with his pen and his purse. His stepdaughter Helen carried on his feminist work by becoming a leader in the suffragist movement in her own right.
   
   In total, I would say that although the Autobiography provides scant information into Mill's daily life, when he does reveal himself, it appears he consistently lived up to his philosophical teachings and beliefs.

No comments about William and Henry James: Selected Letters.

5 comments about I Am Alive and You Are Dead: The Strange Life and Times of Philip K. Dick.

1. Overall, this is a nice work, but it seems to be an interpretive biography, with emphasis on interpretive.
   Some may love it, depending on what kind of biography one is looking for. I would describe Emmanuel Carrere's PKD bio as melodramatic.
   
   This is the first PKD bio I've read. Emmanuel Carrere uses PKD's books as the timeline, without much emphasis on years, which can be frustrating to some (like me). Also the author's style is somewhat flowery and heavyhanded. I almost stopped reading it in the beginning because I wanted something more straight forward.
   
   The kicker is, PKD's life is so interesting to me, I got caught up in it and eventually appreciated Emmanuel Carrere's style.
   The book is appropriately titled, A Journey into the Mind of Philip K. Dick. Emmanuel Carrere was looking for motivation, not just describing events.
   
   Fortunately there are other PKD bios, which I intend to read.



2. This book is not just a biography of Philip K. Dick, famous science fiction writer; the movies Blade Runner, Total Recall and Minority Report are based on his stories. It is also an attempt to find out what made him tick, to get inside his mind. And that is a strange place to be.
   
   Dick was born in 1928, near Berkeley, California, half of a set of twins. Evidently, his mother knew little or nothing about child rearing, because Jane, his twin, died at 6 weeks of age, possibly of starvation. Her death affected Dick for his entire life.
   
   He was a big lover of classical music, and a voracious reader, especially of psychology, philosophy, and later in his life, religion. Dick never achieved his dream of becoming a "serious" novelist, though not for lack of effort. Writing science fiction simply paid the bills, until he became successful at it.
   
   His first wife was a Communist sympathizer (having an FBI file in 1950s Berkeley was practically a badge of honor), he got his second wife sent to a mental hospital, and his third wife left him, and took their young daughter, when he objected to her getting a job outside the home. Dick had a fear of being alone. Dick was a paranoid agoraphobic who was subject to panic attacks. He was, shall we say, well acquainted with the world of prescription drugs, taking them for all sorts of physical and mental ailments. On speed, he could write a novel in two weeks, without sleeping, though he knew that he would physically pay for it later. In later years, he was perceived as some sort of LSD guru, even though he took it only once. There were a couple of stints in drug rehab.
   
   As a youngster, during one of his rare trips to a movie theater, Dick was suddenly convinced that nothing existed outside the theater. The four walls and the pictures on the screen were the sum total of reality. Another time, he wondered if he was really alive, or if he was simply an android who was programmed with false memories so that he would think that he was alive. In later years, Dick turned a couple of innocent fan letters from Eastern Europe into a plot to get him behind the Iron Curtain, and keep him there.
   
   Anyone who has ever read one of Dick's novels, or seen one of the movies based on his stories, needs to read this book. For those not familiar with Philip Dick, read this as a look into the mind of a very strange person.



3. I Am Alive and You are Dead by Emmanuel Carrere has been on my books to read list for awhile. I have a weakness for biographies and autobiographies of writers, and if it's a writer who I all but worship as a god, well, all the better.
   
   Philip K. Dick is one of those writers who, once I discovered all those years ago with Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, felt compelled to read every book I could get my hands on. There are a few here and there that I have missed, but I have read the vast majority of Dick's works, and perhaps none was more haunting than Valis, particularly the author's introduction to the novel. Not having any use for religion myself, I felt a bit betrayed that a writer I idolized could have written something so strangely spiritual. It seemed like it had to be all a joke. I know exactly how those French fans felt at that science fiction conference,Carrere describes in I Am Alive and You are Dead because I have been there. If anything, though, it was Valis that made me want to read more about the life of Philip K. Dick.
   
   Carrere calls the biography he's written "a peculiar book," and says he has attempted to portrary Dick from the "inside." I can't say whether this is the result, but the book chronicles Dick's life with an empathy that seems born of a true fan, who wants to understand this writer and share his story with the world.
   
   He tells the story of Dick's decent into madness with honesty, and yet avoids passing judgment. It is a tragic story and a dark story, all the more disturbing because it is a true story and not a work of fiction.
   
   I have seen what madness can do to a person firsthand, and I'm always the last person to classify what others call crazy as insanity. Sure it sounds crazy that Jesus could appear in some girl's toilet bowl, but then millions of people go off to church each Sunday, many of them believing in things that look a whole hell of a lot like insanity - a virgin that gives birth to a semi-divine child, a person turning into a pillar of salt, a dead person disappearing from a tomb. When it comes right down to it, The Bible is full of as much weirdness as say, The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch. I appreciated the fact that Carrere never tried to paint a caricatureof Dick, but presented the man as he was, and showed the way he struggled to understand the seeming insanity taking over his life.
   
   Carrere also does his best to link the different epochs in Dick's life with the books he was writing at that time. He doesn't cover all his novels, but a fair number. The result is that the reader can see the inspirations behind some of the themes, and in some cases the outright autobiographical nature of the works.
   
   I have read no other biographies of Dick's life to date, and so, have nothing to compare this book with, but found it a solid and well-rounded effort. It may not be quite as page-turning as one of Dick's novels, but it is written in a way that is engaging and entertaining.



4. What's going on with these French novelists seeming to re-invent biography with their love letters to American weirdos? Michel Houellebecq wrote my favorite (non S.T. Joshi anyway) appreciation/bio of H.P. Lovecraft ever, and now here comes another in much the same vein, only more so. This is part biography, part literary criticism, and part attempt at doing just what the title suggests: inhabiting, for a short while, the mind and imagination of Philip K. Dick. I say it succeeds at all three, beautifully. Finishing it, I immediately wanted to start it again.



5. I don't know much about Philip K. Dick. I'm not a fan. But surfing the web, I came across some articles about him that intrigued me enough to want to learn more. I found myself spending about an hour on Amazon's Search Inside the Book, reading through as much of this book as I could (i.e., the first 3 or 4 pages of each chapter). Well, that wasn't enough to quench my thirst. So I bought it, and it was a book that I swallowed in one gulp -- I couldn't put it down. Fascinating stuff.
   
   Carrère is a very good writer, and this is a book that works on several levels. First, he brings to life the various phases of Dick's personality, from his nerdy adolescence, to his semi-straight 20s, to his drug-drenched 30s and 40s. The book is also very good at evoking the three distinctive eras of American culture Dick lived through: the 1950s, the 1960s, and the 1970s. Too, Carrère limns with great clarity the complex twists and turns of Dick's spiritual journey, and also offers thoughtful commentary on Dick's prolific body of writing (with some especially interesting observations on how the details of Dick's life were reflected and transformed in his fiction).
   
   All in all, a great introduction to Dick. He was a fascinating man, and this is a fascinating book. Carrère is clearly a fanboy, but he's also a very smart and talented writer, so this book far transcends typical fanboy biographies. Indeed, it's a first-rate work of literature.
   
   By way of a postscript, I liked this book so much I picked up Carrère's The Adversary -- which is a superb non-fiction thriller, another mind-blowing great read (that appears to be Carrère's specialty).

2 comments about Simone Weil: A Brief Introduction.

1. Stephen Plant does a service to this interesting, yet frequently overlooked Christian thinker of the 20th century. Plant covers the life and thought of Simone Weil in this brief introduction. He writes in a lucid manner that is accessible to both the theological veteran and novice alike. If you have any interest in Simone Weil, but do not know where to start, this book may be your answer.



2. Philosopher, mystic, activist - all terms discussing one Simone Weil. "Simone Weil: A Brief Introduction" is a look at this remarkable woman who, despite never being a member of the church, is widely considered one of the most interesting religious figures of the past one hundred years. Interestingly, the author views Weil's life from both a subjective and objective viewpoint. Finely composed and compiled, "Simone Weil: A Brief Introduction" is highly recommended for community library biography collections.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch

1 comments about Alvin Plantinga (Contemporary Philosophy in Focus).

1. One can really deepen their understanding of Plantinga's principles by reading what other comptemporary philosophers have to say about his work.
   I believe Plantinga has broken a lot of new ground, and it is fascinating to see how other leaders in the field are digesting his work. This work also contains Plantinga's notes on his speech regarding "A Dozen or So Arguments for God."
   My highest recommendation. As a non-trained neophyte in the world of philosophy, I found this book very rewarding in putting some context to Plantinga's work. I would not recommend reading this review, however, without first reading Plantinga himself. In particular, I would recommend "Warranted Christian Belief" and "God and Other Minds."
   A number of his essays are also online.

4 comments about Paul of Tarsus: A Visionary Life.

1. The author writes a brief resume of St. Paul:
   
   Born: AD 5, Tarsus, Asia Minor
   Educated: University of Tarsus and School of Gamaliel, Jerusalem Profession: Tentmaker
   Nationality: Jewish with Roman Citizenship
   Career: Persecutor of Christians
   Vision: Sees Christ arisen, AD 34
   Makes missionary journey to Cyprus and Galatia, AD 45-48
   Meets apostles in Jerusalem, AD 49
   Establishes first Christian Churches in Asia Minor and the Balkans, AD 49-56
   Imprisoned in Rome, AD 59
   Beheaded, late 60's
   Publications: 13 of the 27 books of the New Testament.
   
   Fine, except that every single fact listed here are open to dispute. Mr. Stourton has written not exactly a biography, but an investigation into Paul's life. He reports not only on the facts, and possible alternatives, but also on the impact that Paul had on the writers of the gospels (which came much later than Paul's writings) and on the subsequent effects on Jewish and Islamic thoughts.
   
   Mr. Stourton is an accomplished journalist and he has written this book in a style that makes it almost as impossible to put down as a good mystery. Then again, Paul's life has a lot of mystery.



2. Suppose you were a journalist and your boss called you in the office and said: "I've been hearing many things about this guy Paul; go find out who he is and write a story about him." This book might well be the result.
   
   The book assumes no previous knowledge by the reader, all Bible references are quoted and annotated. Who was Paul? What did he do? Why did he do it? Where did he go? What did he say? What were his thoughts? Who were his friends? Who were his enemies? What were accomplishments? What were his failures? What was his contribution to history? These are many questions to answer, and just as you would expect in a short book, the answers are not exhaustive.
   
   Paul's main ideas are discussed, foremost, perhaps, that faith lies in one's head and heart, not in the Law (something that was first said in Jeremiah 31:33, "I will place my law within them, and write it upon their hearts"), and compares it with the Hebrews' continuous application of their Law in the bedrooms, kitchens, pockets. Stourton considers Paul's instructions as ad-hoc rules for life until the second coming, something that was thought to be due soon. He contends that Paul was the first to start the gentiles vs. Jews arguments and that he destroyed the idea of Jewish identity by attacking their Law that made them different. His concept that the Church is the body of Christ affected the entire Christian thinking and theology.
   
   The book is not large enough for the author to cover all of Paul's ideas, but being a journalist he does spend particular attention to scriptural inconsistencies: Paul's vision on the road to Damascus and what exactly it might have been; The differing descriptions of the Jerusalem Council in the Acts and in Paul's letters (he goes along with the letters); The astonishing attack on Paul at the Temple after he and all the money he had brought had been warmly received by James (he thinks it was a setup by his enemies); he examines possible reasons why the Acts stopped short of Paul's death. Although he discusses Paul's writings about homosexuality and his attitude towards women, he ignores most of the detailed, mystical theology: Christ's divinity and pre-existence, his victory against sin and Satan, the believers' becoming one with Christ through the rite of baptism, the resurrection of the dead and the rapture of the living.
   
   All in all this is a very pleasant book to read, especially for those who don't know much about Christianity's beginnings. It would probably make an excellent book selection for discussions during the Lenten season. I would have preferred, however, if the author had given references for the non-Biblical quotes he includes. For instance, he quotes Shelby Spong as saying that Paul was probably gay. But where de he say it? Spong has probably written a dozen books.
   
   (The writer is the author of "Christianity without Fairy Tales: When Science and Religion Merge.)



3. Award-winning UK broadcast journalist Edward Stourton presents Paul of Tarsus: A Visionary Life, a heavily researched, in-depth, yet eminently readable biography of one of Christianity's most influential figures. Following in the footsteps of St. Paul from his murky depiction in the New Testament to a fleshed-out personality, Paul of Tarsus reasoning, theology, and narrative skills into a fascinating and dramatic examination. A thought-provoking experience for lay readers and experienced theologians alike.



4. Edward Stourton's take on Paul is from a somewhat unusual stance. A well-known BBC personality, Mr Stourton is also 'a very publically Roman Catholic Cristian'. It shows. He takes the reader through the places and experiences of this sometimes opaque figure and shows us why Paul matters and why he can be so infuriating at the same time. It seems as if Paul's listeners had the same problem with him! Stourton explains the complexity of the man with charm and clarity. This reader continually found himself smiling, and wishing to reach over and tough Stourton and ask him to tell another interesting anectotes. He most have dozens more!

2 comments about The Moral Imagination: From Edmund Burke to Lionel Trilling.

1. Gertrude Himmelfarb's THE MORAL IMAGINATION is a recommended pick, here linking the intellectual lives of modern thinker and literary giants with what she identifies as the 'moral imagination'. How these thinkers evolved their ideas, wrote in different traditions at different times, and shared a common moral passion which reflected in their literature makes for truly involving reading.



2. G. Himmelfarb has some very different insights into the authors she discusses and puts some of the characters in the novels in new lights. I have enjoyed reading this book and she has prodded me into reading further in the authors discussed. I would recommend this book to any persons interested in changing the 'moral tone' of American today.

2 comments about Young Ludwig: Wittgenstein's Life, 1889-1921.

1. It's good to see Brian McGuinness's biography of the first half of Ludwig Wittgenstein's life back in print. There are other worthwhile books on Wittgenstein's life and thought, but none is a substitute for this book.
   
   "Young Ludwig" is the result of years of McGuinness' own research. It draws on his personal discussions and correspondence with members of Wittgenstein's family and friends during which, he tells us in a new preface, he was "reconstructing Wittgenstein's life along with them." This biography shows that he also meticulously tracked down a wide variety of acquaintances and people who had crossed paths with Wittgenstein and Russell. He seems to have ferretted out an amazing variety of documents and other scattered scraps of evidence from unusual places as well as from the usual kinds of sources. The book is densely detailed; even people who know a lot about Wittgenstein from other sources will learn new things about him and his times from this book. (I know this because of the "Really -- I didn't know that!" reactions I often get when mentioning things I've learned from this book to fellow philosophers.)
   
   The book also benefits from McGuinness' role as a philosopher. He has authored many papers on Wittgenstein's philosophy (some recently collected in Approaches to Wittgenstein (Routledge 2002)) and edited anthologies related to it. Young Ludwig exhibits McGuinness' intimate acquaintance with Wittgenstein's intellectual interests and philosophical endeavors during his early years. Along with another Oxford philosopher (David Pears), McGuinness produced a new translation of the Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus. In that related project, his philosophical work was accompanied by substantial historical research: he located, scrutinized, and tried to date and order such manuscripts as could be discovered of Wittgenstein's previous attempts at the work. He dug up and edited and/or translated many works related to Wittgenstein's life and work previously unavailable in English: essays on political economy by Karl Wittgenstein (Ludwig's father), popular scientific essays by Ludwig Boltzmann (whom Ludwig admired and wanted to study physics with), and many, many others. Thus, his work on Wittgenstein scholarship is monumental: writing about Wittgenstein involved establishing a whole collection of sources related to his life and work.
   
   I also happen to like this book a lot. I personally prefer the kind of biography McGuinness has written. You read it slowly, lingering over the groupings of artifacts and remembrances he has brought together and leads you through as a patient guide. You begin to realize how vast the collection is, how much there is to be put together. He does not tell you what to make of everything --- although (as he put it in the preface to the first edition) he does attempt to present Wittgenstein's life "as something capable of being seen as a unity". He pauses at times to address the reader on the significance of a certain detail, on the ambiguities involved in the craft of biography and on more general conundrums involved in making sense of another human being. He tells us not only about his subject, but how he came to know his subject, generously sharing his finds with the reader. It is somehow extremely scholarly and humbly personal at the same time. I like his style because it allows the reader some mental freedom to develop his or her own picture of things from what is known. McGuinness tells us in the new preface that his interest "is not in causes but in effects, in seeing how Wittgenstein (the young Wittgenstein, in this volume) lived out the situation he was in." You will want to have this book for the sheer amount of information it contains (it has an index, too), regardless of your taste in biographical style.
   
   When this book was out of print, I snapped up used copies to loan to students and colleagues. (I would not part with my own.) Now I can tell them what I would tell anyone interested in Wittgenstein's life or early analytic philosophy: we are very fortunate to have this labor of love available to us, and in an affordable edition, too --- how great that now anyone can go get a copy!



2. Professor McGuinness' Young Ludwig (1988) was the first thoroughly researched and in-depth life history of the philosopher. Over fifteen years passed and the text eventually went out of print. Oxford decided to launch a second edition, with a new preface by McGuinness, enabling the work to be read by a new generation of readers interested in the rich culture and family that contributed to Wittgenstein's thought and the creation of the Tractatus. In fact, the last chapter of the book is devoted entirely to the Tractatus, which to a large extent sheds new light on this often-misunderstood philosophical text.
   
   McGuinness spent many years researching and composing this biography. He travelled throughout Europe, Israel and America, studying countless manuscripts and correspondence, interviewing family and individuals that knew the philosopher, many of whom, unfortunately, have passed on.
   
   This is a detailed analysis of Wittgenstein, painting a rich cultural picture of pre-WW1 Vienna. Wittgenstein's father, Karl, was an extraordinary man in his own right, a capitalist of ingenious talent, creating an empire of extreme wealth and prestige. A creative and forceful personality, similar to his youngest son, along with his wife, was at the centre of the thriving music and art scene in Vienna, where Brahms, Mahler, and Klimt were frequent guests at the house for musical evenings and group discussions on literature, culture and politics. Karl Wittgenstein wrote many economic articles for major publications in Vienna and Germany that continue to be read by historians today.
   
   The family, however, experienced tragedy, with three of Karl's oldest sons committing suicide. Ludwig often considered ending his own life, but experienced a spiritual transformation after WW1, (As many young men who survived experienced after the war) was awarded medals for bravery and ended up a prisoner of war in an Italian camp. It is in this camp that Wittgenstein wrote the finishing touches, from the copious notebooks written during the war, of his only published philosophical treatise, Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus. The biography describes the philosopher's war experiences, his time as a prisoner of war and his eventual return to Vienna, where he gave away his massive inheritance, attempted to publish his book, attended teachers college to instruct elementary school and became a gardener for a Catholic monastery.
   
   Unfortunately, the biography ends in 1921, a year before the first publication of the English translation of the Tractutas. I believe in the "philosophical biography" as it can present the family and cultural influences on the philosopher, revealing better insight into the particular ideas and thought processes of that philosopher.
   
   This is a prize winning biography giving the reader greater insight into a unique and extraordinary human being.

5 comments about Street Zen: The Life and Work of Issan Dorsey.

1. I found this book extremely inspiring. The life of Issan Dorsey is a must read for anyone who has ever felt dragged down, left out, and mentally or physically ill. That should include everyone!



2. I read the reviews of this book before purchasing it. As a queer writer in Spirituality and Religion I have a great deal of sensitivity about heterosexist bent towards gay characters and history. So, David Sunseri's review of the book sat perched on my shoulder as I read this book.
   
   Having finished this book I have to say that I am left seriously questioning Sunseri's criticism of the book. It is a wonderful story and a tender account of a remarkable person. Having read this book and appreciating the care given to speak to the myriad parts of Issan Dorsey's (full) life story, I have to wonder if Sunseri isn't speaking from a place of internalized homophobia. Nowhere did I find the "sensationalizing" of homosexuality that Sunseri and Harper Leah (?) mention.
   
   In fact, I am now left to believe that Sunseri and Leah would prefer a completely sex-free, queer-free reading of Dorsey's life.
   If the book had sensational parts, that's because parts of Issan Dorsey's life were sensational and outrageous. That's not heterosexist bias dear ones. Heterosexist bias would be to "clean up" those stories and de-queer Dorsey. Fortunately Schneider doesn't suffer from any such prudery.
   
   A closer reading of Sunseri's reviews show what is clearly a bitter bias towards anything involving the entire Soto Zen community. Sunseri states that quite vividly in his review of Robert Winson's "Dirty Laundry."
   
   Fortunately, I don't suffer from that bias. I approached this book wanting to know more about this intriguing person, Issan Dorsey, who, by all accounts, wasn't afraid to embrace the totality of his life's existence and who has left a legacy of caring for others in need.
   
   Do not miss this book if you're interested in a truly remarkable story of a Gay pioneer and spiritual elder. It is not the complete story. But it is one of the stories and it deserves to be read. Perhaps members of the Hartford Zen Center complaining about the lack of Issan's "teachings" in the book could get off their zazen pillows and publish them. I'm sure they have more access to it than anyone.



3. My impression from this book was it was a story of a present day Bodhisattva.
   A story of a man whom lived life fearlessly. Who lived as a Herman Hesse's Narcissi but in reality not between book covers. In this book I felt was a true betrayal of the concepts of the Bodhisattva. Issan seems to have had spontaneously.
   
   
   Earlier statements of cheapness is sad.Value statements betray a judgment and lack of Bodhisattva sentiment. Was Milarepa's story a cheap story? The fact that murderer he was? Or is it part of the story of that Bodhisattva's life? I find Issan Dorsey's life neither cheap or over blown. I have known others with similar lives so the fellow whom judges this book as " straight " has a "bent" view. Again cheapness ...well it saddens me to hear a student of Dharma make such a statement.



4. I enjoyed this book, and nearly gave it four stars, but I felt that it was missing something.
   
   There was a little too much of the dark history. I know it was setting the stage, but I found that it went from depressing to numbing. Perhaps that's my own baggage: Having known drag queens, drug addicts, drug dealers, and hustlers, I guess I could have skipped over most of the first half of the book.
   
   The intimate details of death towards the end of the book were powerful, and appreciated. Again, perhaps it's just me, but it was refreshing to hear such honest detail without the author becoming gruesome or patronizing. Death, without the facade we in America often use to hide from it.
   
   Two things I would have enjoyed: (1) More details about the author's relationship with Issan, e.g., more conversations they had had simply as friends; (2) Samples of Issan's talks and teachings.
   
   Still, a good book about a great man.



5. I read this book because I heard about a renowned Buddhist named IssanDorsey at a dharma talk. I'm gay myself, and hearing that Issan Dorsey was also a gay man made me interested in finding out about his life. So, I popped his name into a search engine, and ordered this book from amazon.
   Up until recently, my relationship with religion in general has been a bad one. The tendency of Western religions to preach hate toward my kind has made it all but impossible for me to participate in any of them. Legislators on both sides of the political aisle have used religion as a vehicle for either passing laws to restrict my freedom or turn a blind eye to these efforts, for fear that any support for my community would render one 'unelectable'. None of this has made for a very good advertisement of religion for my community.
   Buddhism struck me as being fundamentally different, and when I read this book, I realized just how different it was. Issan Dorsey was from my side of the tracks, and instead of preaching self-loathing to him, Buddhism taught him how he could make a major difference in the lives of those who needed him the most.
   I'm pretty inspired to give this Buddhism thing a try now. I've never heard of a religion that doesn't judge people before. Maybe this is the one for me.