The Syntopicon: An Encyclopedia of Ideas | TW Clips

In this clip Christian breaks down the syntopicon - an original work by Mortimer Adler and part of Britannica's Great Books of the Western World book set. This clip is taken from a full video that can be found here:
• Britannica's Great Boo...
ABOUT THINKINGWEST
ThinkingWest aims to revive the “Great Conversation” in our digital age through promoting the study of the great books of the western world, classical approaches to education, and through thoughtful commentary on current events, history, philosophy, culture, education, and religion.
RECOMMENDED BOOKS
How to Read a Book, Mortimer Adler and Charles van Doren: amzn.to/3NOLCrm
How to Read and Why, Harold Bloom: amzn.to/3J69V0y
The Well-Educated Mind, Susan Wise Bauer: amzn.to/3LB5Djq
LINKS
Website: thinkingwest.com/
Donate to support this work: thinkingwest.com/donate/
Classic book lists: thinkingwest.com/book-lists/
Music composed and produced by Adam Drakos.
#greatbooks #classicaleducation #philosophy

[@ThinkingWest]

This clip is part of a longer video that reviews the complete Great Books of the Western World Book set. Check our the full video here:
czcams.com/video/yZRahuLq2x4/video.html

[@RickSeigmund01]

Thank you for this. I just secured a beautiful set of the Great Books by Brittanica. I'm reading Adler's How To Read A Book now, and will begin reading through set afterwards. Would you reccomend reading through the Syntopicon first? Or, simply use it as a reference? Really appreciate your videos.

[@ThinkingWest]

Thanks Rick. It might be a bit dry reading straight through without broader context, so it’s probably best to use it as a reference. You can revisit it each time a topic is brought up in your reading that you’d like to dive into further.

[@Roland96351]

I would definitely say it was intended as a reference. I have found it difficult to read straight through the books. I would definitely hit Plato and Homer early on. Don't miss Epictetus and maybe Lucretius, plutarch , and Montaigne. Then I would feel free to graze back and forth keeping track of what you read. The material is dense at times and I would suppose many have given up. Don't miss Cervantes and I would throw in count of Monte Cristo even though it is not in the set. I actually do most of my reading with audiobooks and I try go back and make some notes in the books. Enjoy, it will open up a new world for you.

[@peterbrennan1085]

If you’re going to read a book the Adler How to Read a Book method you’re in for quite a bit of work!

[@robertdobbs2283]

@@peterbrennan1085 The earlier editions were particularly demanding. Finish the book and apply it = you could read with extraordinary depth. The newer editions followed more a modern teaching philosophy - poorer results.

[@Roland96351]

Don't forget the KJV Bible is intended to be an indispensable part of the set. I am in my third year reading through it via podcast.

[@bradbowers4414]

Is it? I always wondered why it didn't have a bible.