Driving With Plato
The Meaning of Life's Milestones
-
- £5.49
-
- £5.49
Publisher Description
If life is meaningless as Sartre suggests, what is the point of being born? What does Freud have to say about losing one's virginity or Nietzsche about having a mid-life crisis? From birth to death (and beyond), the best brains in history have thought long and hard about the meaning behind the landmarks that shape our lives - and now acclaimed popular philosopher Robert Rowland Smith brings their genius together for the first time in this smart, witty and accessible journey through life's ups and downs.
Drawing on philosophy, art, literature and psychology, Driving with Plato explores the real meaning of the hoops we all have to jump through. You'll hear from Aristotle on starting school, learn from St Paul about falling in love, and get tips from Cicero on becoming wise in your old age. Whether you are learning to drive or about to get married, Driving with Plato is certain to enlighten and entertain.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Rowland Smith (Breakfast with Socrates) attempts, as in his previous book, to demonstrate the relevance of philosophy to our everyday lives and our humblest and profoundest moments starting school, having children, retiring. He shows us what Sartre can tell us about birth, Althusser and Rousseau on education, Derrida on cheating on exams, Isaiah Berlin on passing a driving test. By dint of a remarkably smooth and inviting style, the author generally overcomes the contrived nature of the book's structure and does offer genuinely novel ways of thinking, not only about our everyday life but also about philosophy. A remarkably varied and eclectic introduction to the great philosophers and a defense of their continuing relevance to our everyday lives.
