5 Easy Philosophy Books for Beginners
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- čas přidán 26. 09. 2023
- If you want to read more philosophy but aren't sure where to start, here are 5 easy reads you should pick up
The last one might surprise you a little, it might not seem easy
First is the Tao Te Ching by Laozi. It’s infinitely re-readable and you’ll get something new from it each time.
Second is the Analects of Confucius, just filled with easily readable ancient wisdom
Third is Letters from a Stoic by Seneca, everyone’s heard of this one, very readable and packed with life advice.
Fourth is Self Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson, a more modern one
And last is the Bhagavad Gita, a fantastic philosophical story that’s an absolute joy to read
#philosophybooks #philosophy #stoicism #hinduism #confucianism #egoism #stoicismbooks
I'm glad you include the Eastern classics. They are beautiful reads and proof that philosophy does not have to be ridiculously complex.
Start with Plato. That’s always the best place to start
Self reliance is so good! Emerson doesn't waste his time in it and every sentence is full of so much wisdom!
I’ve been trying to get through the Bhagavad Gita for years
Letter from stoic is one of the best i have ever read.
Love your vids! Can I suggest popping links to the books on Amazon and audible in the description to make them easy to find and so you can make a tiny bit on the side referring us on as a thanks for your content :)
Thanks for the tips. I was thinking of trying to read some philosophy, but now I’m totally convinced to stick to physics.
Dao De Jing. Sorry to be that guy.
It had to be somebody
Tao te Ching is correct if you use the Wade-Giles method of Chinese transliteration, but Dao De Jing is pinyin. Neither version is better than the other.
@@jimmyforred9255 technically true but the wade giles encourages English speakers to speak with an aspirated /tʰ/ sound, which is how he said it and is very wrong in mandarin. An english /d/ sound is closer to the unaspirated /t/ sound that pinyin “d” represents.
@@jimmyforred9255 it's not really about Wade Giles vs Pinyin. It's just how the Chinese truly pronounce it. (And before anyone asks, yes I have spent time in China)
Some of your previous 5 book lists were obscure, but these are spot on. Indeed the Bhagada Gita is a masterpiece replete with a striking setting-Arjuna headed off to war-and insightful aphorisms.
Read the Gospels. Follow Jesus
Start with the classics. Dialogues of Plato and Aristotle. Meditations Marcus Aurelius. Then Kant and Hegel. Book of the 5 Rings. Avicenna and Lao Tsu. The Bhavaghad-Gita is great for self-discovery
Marx for his system building process, Das Kapital. Summa Theologica, also for system building. Then Bourdieu for the concept of the habitus.
It's philosophy, the concepts are supposed to be mental gymnastics
bro you said start with hegel??????????????????
@@ivanovski2451 yeah bro
Aristotle did not write dialogues. You. Are. Gay.
I suggest starting with Kant. 😅
That was my second philosophy book. Took me 6 months of additional reading to get a grasp of what he was saying.
@@badcomment6353phenomenology of spirit is a grind. Not even an intermediate philosopher book.
Sofies World should be top of the list. Perfect first philosophy overview.
Great list! I often recommend Peter Singer's "The Life You Can Save," Niccolo Machiavelli's "The Prince," Plato's "The Republic," Viktor Frankl's "Man's Search for Meaning," and Marcus Aurelius's "Meditations." These were the books I started with when I began exploring philosophy beyond my coursework, though they are heavily focused on Western philosophical thought. Afterwards, I would recommend, if you’re up to a nice challenge, reading Leszek Kolakowski’s “The Presence of Myth” could be fun. I would also suggest listening to some debates or interviews and dissecting some of those ideas.
I like having those read to me as I work in the woodshop. Makes the tedious chores like sanding disappear while I learn.
I have a horrible pain condition that affects my every day life called Trigeminal Neuralgia. It absolutely turned my life upside down. With that being said, I just finished Meditations by Marcus Aurelius and it definitely helped me
I love philosophy but have never read these. Thanks!
Throw in the zuangzi while we're at it
The Tao of Pooh is good for beginners. Its winny the Pooh introducing you to Taoism but its for young adults or adults. Very fun.
Plato is great because he writes like a playwright, he sets the scene, there are charecters and dialogues.
And Eric Hoffer is fantastic. A self educated working man who loved aphorisms and writing short books but he didn't skimp on addressing the human condition in a deep a way as Jung. Maybe not with the breadth Jung did but just as deep.
The art of war is also really short and straightforward (It was literally written to be a manual and the method of making it from bamboo strips was expensive AF so it had to be concise and to the point)
bhagwad geeta
Noted. Meditations by Marcus Aurelius makes for practical philosophy too.
Good list, i would add the Gospel of John. The basis for many of the philosophers listed.
Not sure if this a coincidence but all the 5 books are on sale on Audible right now. Most of them costing just over a dollar and the highest was just over 6$ 😜
Just getting into this type of material but I read a book by Shankara (Advaita Vedanta stuff) and now reading Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. Your recommendations seem like some good ones to read after this :)
Tao Te Ching is definitely an infinitely re-readable book, it is fantastic. The Bhagavad Gita on the other hand was really difficult for me to finish the first time. I flew three the Tao Te Ching several times back to back the first time I read it, but the BG was quite a bit more tedious for me the first time.
start with descartes. that's where modern philosophy starts
But then, you will be putting Descartes before the horse....
Get a copy of Plato's Republic. Very important get the Benjamin Jowett translation. For Emerson, get the collected Essays. There is gold in them tha'r hills.
I don't know if there's an english version of Gracian / Schopenhauer "Handorakel" out there, but read it anyway.
I was shocked at how good this list was
Lao Tsu has my favorite leadership quote of all time:
“Of the best leaders, when the task is done, the workers all remark ‘We have done it ourselves.’”
Bhagavad Gita❤
Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Neitzche's writing style is pretty easy to grasp. Though he does tend to over explain.
Hannah Arendt
Just start with Plato, then Aristotle.
Really good choices good to see Confucious. What does analect mean is that similar to dialect?😮
Also did Sun Tzu also write the Art of War?
Recommend Marcus Arelius and
Great!
Republic (Plato)
On sense and reference (Frege)
An enquiry concerning human understanding (Hume)
Not difficult and far more interesting than the ones in the video.
Thank you!
You're welcome!
Hey just fwy it’s pronounced dao de Jing by laow zuu and I would add The Republic to the list.
Thanks! I recommend the Tao of Pooh. Super easy read
I've had that on my shelf forever but still haven't read it
@@nateliason I'm so glad my dad pushed me to read it. That, the "Te of Piglet", and on the opposite side of these things, "Starship Troopers" by Hienlein.
Read Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder. Great introduction to several philosophies
The best work of philosophy is "I, The Jury" by Mickey Spillane
I can recommend the only philisofical book I ever read; "The scientific method" by Karl Popper. It tells you what science is and what makes it different from other teachings.
You should start with Dr. Van Til and Dr. Bahnsen for an overview of the rational preconditions necessary to do philosophy, that only the biblical worldview can account for.
😂
Good selection for beginners. I was expecting something like Sophie's world, but maybe I'm just stupid.
Meditations by Marcus Aurelius not being here is criminal
Pronouced, Dao duh ching, by Lao Tzuh.
this seems like... a particular flavor of philosophy
Tao te Ching is pronounced with Ds rather than Ts
Try Red Book... I heard thats a nice bedtime read...😂
❤
Or you can study western philosophy through anthroposophical studies by Rudolph Steiner.
Learn how to pronounce the titles before you recommend them or read them for that matter.
Before you even started I was like "I'm gonna write Tao Te Ching in the comments because there's NO way you're gonna mention that one."
Moreland’s Consciousness and the Existence of God or Philosophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview. Don’t knock em till you try em
Okay, but you have to add Michel de Montaigne's essays
DOW DIH JING.
O try the bible too
The Stranger
Essence of Vedanta ***
It drives me crazy....you pronounce it. DAO, it is NOT with a T sound. So many CZcamsrs keep doing this, and it makes them come off sounding ignorant.
Seriously? Tao Te Ching? Bhagavad Gita? Easy?
I think you're using "philosophy" as code for "self-help", which is fucking absurd.
And no the Dao de Jing is not by any stretch of the imagination an easy read.
Nor the analects.
Philosophy and self help are the same exact thing. In fact, there is a word for it, it's called psychology.
@@spontaneousbootay Bollocks. I have a degree n Psych.
@@neilritson7445 that's not saying much. Psychology comes from philosophy. Philosophy simply means the love of knowledge. Maybe learn the history.
Steel this Book.
Abby Hoffman. 😁
My advice: start with Tractatus logic-philosophicus (Ludwig Wittgenstein). Then put it down and do something useful. 😂😂😂😂😂
You have no idea of philosophy at all. You don't know what philosophy means. Ignorance is not your fault. Your ignorance comes as a result of your inability to know the ALBANIAN LANGUAGE. In ALBANIAN LANGUAGE the word philosophy means:
fillo = start
shof= see,
so the word philosophy means to start seeing.
How could you start seeing if you don't know the ALBANIAN LANGUAGE?
Agree in part - we live in a world of American/ West European narratives. Nassim Taleb is Lebanese - try looking for him
I definitely don't want to start reading more philosophy. Thanks though
See my comment on Taleb - his Fooled by Randomness is a brilliant book!!
1. The Gita is just a religious text,
2. Analects and Tao Te Ching are not easy reads. Like, they won't make your head hurt like Hegel, but without context(which does take time to build) you won't be understanding squat. Everyone is just straight up sound like fortune cookie wisdom.
I'm not the biggest fan of the guy, but probably the most enticing book to start is beyond good and evil.
Another beginner book that will make you pumped up is Russell's History of Western Philosophy.
I also really loved reading Descartes as teen, both Meditations and Discourse on Method.
Plato is also a very lively read. Maybe try First Alcibiades to start.
Yeah you hit upon context, when you’re trying to get into philosophy, that’s what you need to build, context
@@garethsmith3036
context and method. That's why I find Descartes such a good read.
He gives you a very clear theory of mind, of world, to play with.
From there it's easy to understand why everyone loves and hates him and how they build upon him.
If you don't get that philosophy is about systems of knowledge you'll be left with the impression that it is the art of having strong opinions.
another good one I just remembered is Sophie's World.
Probably the best introduction to philosophy out there.
It's fun, it's easy, it's educational, it is a real journey to read it.
The Gita is not just a religious text. It is also a part of a national epic, and an Upanishad serving as the fundamental text for several schools of Indian philosophy.
Quite the text which few others in literature can live up to! Even eg. Christian scholastic writings don't do as much though they are highly emphasized in the history of Western philosophy
@@sskpsp no, for everything you just said, no
Just because the bible is influential, it won't make it philosophy
Or start with the pop-culture in philosophy series. They have ones written about adventure time and Rick and Morty. Psych monk supernatural The Simpsons two on Doctor Who. Chronicles of Narnia. They collect papers from lots of professors who touch on the themes of the books and lead them to a myriad of other philosophers. It’s my favorite series I’m going through.
Analects are readable? Spoken like someone who's never read them.
😂
Disclaimer, all of these are continental philosophy books. And self-reliance is a stretch.
Unless continental philosophy is just anything that isn’t analytical philosophy, then no, none of these books are properly continental. The only one that is even reminiscent is dao de jing. But I think that including even that in continental philosophy would be a stretch
Philosophy - phenomen of Western culture. If you talm qbout something outside, it is not a philosophy, but school of thought.
same thing mate!
Confucious is stupid Better to go with Plato
Why is he stupid?
Meanwhile on Hindu CZcams:
"My favourite philosophy book is The Bible."
Start with the bible
fiction comes later
What’s your favorite female philosopher? And I really wouldn’t recommend Confucius because he was the one that changed Chinese society into a completely sexist one.
I like Alice A Bailey. She's a bit esoteric for some. " Glamour, a world problem" was great imo.
Arendt and de Beauvoir, but read one of the many intros to Heidegger prior.
Not surprising, coming from a feminazi. The Analects is required reading for anyone to understand the ethos of Eastern Asia. The CCP recognized the value of Confucius that they revived Confucian schools and learning in China. So take that man hater!
Pronounced dow duh jing
I think you confuse Philos Sophos - Love of knowledge - with old books. Nassim Nicholas Taleb for example has modern views on reality, knowledge, and the love of that.
AAHHAHAHAHAHAAHHHAHAHAHAHA
Last one monkey book
Cry meleech😂
This is not philosophy, but definitely is anti-Christian.
I'd suggest plato to start but, as my YT name might suggest, I'm biased towards those books and letters and I also suggest you don't call the Gita a philosophy book. You're going to have a lot of angry religious people. 😂
The youtube vid: tao te ching read by Wayne Dyer chillstep (dirtyzen)
Has a red ouroboros aa the pic/thumbnail or whatever.
It is just 🤌🤌🤌
❤