@@Flux799 Hey, ancient Sumerian is still mostly just understanding the language and its contexts. Hegel on the other hand is buried in conceptually disjointed language that's impossible to deduct in a rigid manner.
“But the height of audacity in serving up pure nonsense, in stringing together senseless and extravagant mazes of words, such as had previously been known only in madhouses, was finally reached in Hegel, and became the instrument of the most bare-faced general mystification that has ever taken place, with a result which will appear fabulous to posterity, and will remain as a monument to German stupidity.” - Edward Caird (1835 - 1908)
This would be my top 10 list of books on a desert Island: Epictetus - Discourses Marcus Aurelius - Meditations Seneca - Hardship and Happiness Seneca - Letters from a Stoic Aristotle - Nicomachean Ethics Plato - Symposium Plato - Republic Kant - Critique of Pure Reason St. Augustine - The City of God The Bible
Oh, now that I think about it, my list should be mostly Stoicism. In the harshness of a deserted island, I think some Marcus Aurelius would really come in handy 😂
1) Plato's Republic. 2) Aristotle's Politics. 3) Aristotle's Nichomachean Ethics. 4) Rawl's A theory of Justice. 5) Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit. 6) Macintyre's After Virtue. 7) Descartes Meditations 8) Aquinas' Summa theologica 9) Kierkegaard's Fear and Trembeling 10) Nietzsche's Beyond Good and Evil.
Mine would probably be. 1. Eroticism - Bataille 2. Being and Nothingness - Sartre 3.Beyond Good and Evil - Nietzsche 4. Notes from Underground - Dostoevsky 5. Philosophy of the Boudoir - Sade 6. Phenomenology Of Spirit - Hegel
My list (with some cheating) Plato: Complete Works Aristotle: Complete Works Agostino: Confessions Descartes: Collected Works Ethics (Spinoza) A Treatise of Human Nature Critique of Pure Reason Being & Time Theory of Justice The Concept of Law (Hart)
Hi Professor Sadler, I have to say that your list of philosophical works are impressive. I, myself, am very fond of Augustine's "City of God" and in many ways I think it is way ahead of its time. It's not perfect, but some of the things he touches on, even when he is speaking as though he does not know what to think about a matter, I find that his reasoning process is usually so spot on, so much so in fact that he often mentions the answer already (perhaps without even knowing) in the form of a question. As time has past, I have become more and more convinced that St. Augustine truly deserves the amount of praise and recognized influence he has earned. There are many modern-day philosophers who are not nearly as skilled thinkers, but merely have the benefit of living in a time and place where more information is open to them.
@@PFMAGGAMFP McCarthy is a very skilled writer and Blood Meridian stands at the "end" of philosophy (not to be mistaken with nihilism). I've found that the best way to learn philosophy is to write it oneself, otherwise you're just trying to memorize what someone else said. We are in charge of our own lives, after all. I'm not in Plato's camp per se, but I've always admired the power in the realization that one cannot learn what one doesn't already know. Teachers have charisma which lends itself well to entertainment, but wisdom isn't something that can be passed along. And good writers are very good magicians. We're all making all of this up as we go anyway. I do tend to relax a lot by reminding myself to try and enjoy the ride.
A lot of what you have would be on my list, specifically Plato's Republic, Aquinas' Summa Theologiae, Decartes' Meditations, and Aristotle's Metaphysics. My other five would be Augustine's Confessions, Kierkegaard's Philosophical Fragments, Locke's Two Treatises of Government, Hume's A Treatise of Human Nature, and Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations. These are not in any particular order of course.
I'd thought of Kierkegaard, Locke and Hume -- but it's tough to decide just what work of Kierkegaard, if I could just choose one, I would want (same problem with Nietzsche). Hume's Treatise was a tempting one as well.
@@MultiBOZA No it hasn't. Sorry to be a party pauper as I don't know if you made that remarks as a tongue in cheek humor. However, if you were being serious, then you are wrong...or rather most people are clueless to believe philosophy is just about abstract knowledge. In fact, one of the books selected by Dr. Sandler in this list is the Phenomenology of spirit by Hegel who set out in the book to show the concrete nature and requirements of philosophical musings
My List: 1) Kant's Critique of Pure Reason 2) Spinoza's Ethics 3) Descartes' Meditations 4) Shankara's Brahmasutra Bhashya 5) Harsha's The Sweets of Refutation 7) Heidegger's Being and Time 8) Plotinus' Enneads 9) Aristotle's Metaphysics 10) Nishida Kitaro's An Inquiry Into the Good
a video I shot recently in response to a number of similar questions I've been getting for some time, this one prompted by thinking about the particular question asked me by an old college classmate and friend
Gregory B. Sadler Ah I see. So that would be an intresting topic as well :). Or have you already done something like that? Ps:Great channel and work. Thank you very much!
St.Augustine is by far one of my favorite philosophers. Without a doubt one of the most powerful in his prose and writing. Only other person that comes to being as powerful is Dostoevsky.
If I may ask, I wasn't raised in the Christian culture. I don't believe in supernatural agents. And I used to be a practicing (and reading) muslim. Do you think I could see St. Augustine like you do ? (I've read Dostoevsky with great pleasure).
@@a1k131 Hey man, sorry for answer late. It's really different. Al-Ghazali uses a sort of aristotelian philosophy whereas Augustine uses a Neoplatonism philosophy. I haven't see much about Al-Ghazali honestly, but a Christian counter-part would be Thomas Aquinas, he uses aristotelian philosophy as well. But for what I've seen Al-Ghazali focus more in metaphysics and the existence of God, causation, etc whereas Augustine is more about ethics, problem of evil his works are much more about self-reflection, much more poetic.
Dr. Sadler, a word of gratitude in making this video and your online work. Supremely rewarding and meaningful. My list, since it was asked in the description, 1. Aristotle, Metaphysics. 2. Augustine, Confessions. 3. Kant, Critique of Pure Reason 4. Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit 5. Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra As is the case for yourself, the last five are perhaps more telling of my individual interests. 6. Pascal, Pensees 7. Heidegger, On the Way to Language 8. Leibniz, Monadology 9. Heraclitus, Collected Scripts 10. Descartes, Meditations
Yes, I do think I could find in these much to consider for the rest of my days. Further, I think I could have in these material enough to form some of my own stances and maintain in my work the type of dialogue amongst the thinkers. But, ultimately, I do hope such a scenario never occurs as I would miss so many other works, including the literary as opposed to just the philosophical.
@@GregoryBSadler Meditations feels more like a collection of poetically exquisite nothings, whereas Epictetus actually and concisely addresses specific issues. Epictetus > Marcus Aurelius any day
@@Recondite101 I think Marcus himself would recognize that Epictetus' Discourses are more meaty than the Meditations. That said, Marcus' stuff is decent
Love it! I'm thinking that id bring works by literary philosophers like Camus, Dostoevsky, or Nietszche. But perhaps over time the literary flash may wear off and I would crave some really philosophical flesh, a system like you said
please do professor sadler! I would love to know your top 10 literary works. especially if it's something i haven't read yet. I read Rlike's letters because of your rilke lecture, maybe 2 years ago and I've kept coming back to Rilke. thanks for these videos!
BG and Evil Rumi's Masnavi The B Karamazov V. Hugo's Laughing Man Seneca's Dialogues Ralph Waldo Emerson's journals and essays ... However, I haven't read many of the classics you have mentioned, so this list is provisional.
I'd cheat and take Complete Works Anthologies of Berkeley, Hume and Nietzsche -- all three of whom I consider some of the best most interesting writers in philosophy. After which I'd add two more: Kant's Critique of Pure Reason (just to see if I can finally get through it -- as I consider it to have some of the most exciting ideas in the history of human thought -- but written, unfortunately, in the most boring way possible) and Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations (to see if I can finally get a REAL sense of why so many consider it such a seminal work).
I've only studied for a few years now, so my list is bound to change, but here it is: 1. Aristotles Metaphysics 2. Descartes Meditations 3. De Beauvoir's Second Sex 4. Platos republic 5. Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations 6. Marx Capital 7. David Chalmers The Conscious Mind 8. Levi Bryant's The Democracy of Objects
I had to do a similar thing in school last year, it was because we read Fahrenheit 451 and books are illegal in that universe but they didn't have to be philosophy. I chose the Bible, The Prince, on the Genealogy of Morality, The Spirit of the Laws, Plato's Republic, the Gulag Archipelago, The Rights of Man, and On the Origin of Species. I would probably change my list now that ive learned more
I'm by no means a philosopher (I've read on the side while studying History), but I'd probably include Rorty's Philosophy and the Mirror of Nature. I'd be hard-pressed to provide a definite work, but I'd have to include Wittgenstein and Hayden White, too. Anyway, I haven't read a few of the ones you listed, so I'll have to get on that, soon.
Fun concept for a video and got me thinking. I hope I don't get stuck on an island in my teens, as I don't have the requisite understanding to take on some of your texts. My list: 1) Principia Mathematica, Whitehead 2) Decline of the West, Spengler 3) Logical Investigations, Husserl (friend insists) 4) Aristotle's Politics 5) The World as Will and Representation, Schopenhauer (haven't read yet, but enjoy his essays) 6) An Inquiry, Reid 7) Copleston's History of Philosophy (could be a mistake, leaving me wanting) 8) Summa 9) Gramsci's Prison Notebooks 10) Vico's New Science
Liber librum aperit. (One book opens another) It's hard to limit myself to so few, because I've enjoyed many thoughtful books - and even ones where I'm fairly certain the author is wrong I've enjoyed for the exercise. I'd have to include one of Wylie's essays, like The Magic Animal, Generation of Vipers, or An Essay on Morals, because they've been such a loadstone in my thinking and I've spent so much time thinking about them and eventually thinking beyond and past them. . And on a desert island it seems Robinson Crusoe might be useful... or at least edifying...
Gregory B. Sadler I think so. There are some I return to over and over again, and though the words on the page don't change, they do spark new thoughts, and it really is like a conversation with an old friend. Most of them are philosophical, but not capital P Philosophy, per se. I'm thinking of things like Hesiod's "Works and Days" or Fitzgerald's translation of the Rubaiyat. Shakespeare will do for the literary minded. . I was going to post a list of more canon philosophy books last night but ran out of places, and hadn't even left the Hellenes!
I've come back to this list many times over the past few years. I've since worked through the Republic a few times, Aristotle's works, and the Summa. I'm now working on both Being and Time and Phenomenology of Spirit piece by piece. Thank you for supporting my learning, you've never led me astray!
This is one of my favourite videos. I liked to go back to it when I’m about to read one of the texts from this top ten list and in this case Aristotle metaphysics the WD Ross translation.
Late to the party but thought it was a cool exercise so I'll try it out: 1. Nietzsche's Dawnbreak 2. James' Pragmatism 3. Heidegger's Being and Time 4. Dewey's A Common Faith (some very moving passages there) 5. Wittgenstein's Investigations 6. Derrida and Bennington's Jacques Derrida / Circumfession (one of the most fun reads I've ever done, and worth coming back to) 7. Rorty's Philosophy and Social Hope 8. Proust's In Search of Lost Time (considering it's NOT cheating to bring multiple volumes, if the Summa is allowed then the Search is also allowed haha. Maybe in a deserted island I'd actually, finally, finish the whole thing...) 9. Joyce's Finnegans Wake (plenty of time to make sense of the whole thing) 10. Virginia Woolf's To The Lighthouse (good for thinking about death, something I might do a lot in a deserted island...)
Obviously, at some point, you're going to have to leave that island and reintegrate back into the human situation. Therefore, I would recommend Alfred Korzybski's "Science And Sanity." I think it might be the most important work ever written on this planet followed (at a distance) by Alfred North Whitehead's "Process And Reality." I liked your program. Thank you for your insights.
I would bring Chicken Soup for the Soul, the Manual for Windows XP, Sharks Don't Get Cancer, the sequel Shark's Still Don't Get Cancer, and Schelling's Philosophy of Mythology.
When I went to university in my first year I had to take a class each semester in a different subject. First semester I chose Anthropology and second Philosophy. Despite the fact that my lecturer was an old grouch it was a mind blowing class (on Human Nature). I often found myself laughing in class, not because the work was humorous but the arguments were so cleverly put together (Hume on Causation and Cartesian Dualism for example). Although I never studied it again, it's such an interesting subject. Unfortunately most theories in text books in my experience so thank you Gregory for making these videos so I can continue to be amazed. Metaphysics was always the most interesting to me, McTaggart on Time, Philosophy of the Mind, Identity etc. If anyone knows any good books on Metaphysics (anything in that regard) or on those subjects, please pass them on, thanks!
For the last 4 years I was required to read predominantly analytical philosophy, but I can say with some ‘certainty’ that not one of these so called analytical philosophers will make it to the desert island. It might also be more forceful to change the statement to ’10 Philosophical Works I’d safeguard for the future of humanity after the final destruction of civilisation’. The problem with this type of list is that a lot of books are still on my ‘to read’ list but unfortunately still in the’ have not yet read’ pile, so some choices rest on assumptions: Hegel - Phenomenology of Spirit Heidegger - Being and Time Plato - Complete works Aristotle - Metaphysics Kant - Critique of Pure Reason (doubtlessly a, or even the, central work of Philosophy. But it’s endless complexity and at times abstractness together with the fact that there are very few living creatures with a complete comprehension of the whole book makes this a problematic choice. I can imagine the nightmare of teaching Kant to a punch of inquisitive intelligent students on a bad brain day :) Nietzsche - Beyond Good and Evil, Nietzsche - On the Genealogy of Morality, or Nietzsche - Twilight of the Idols, however this uncertainty could easily be resolved by taking the complete ‘Werke’ . Wittgenstein - Philosophical Investigations Then I would have to decide between Hegel’s ‘Science of Logic’, his ‘Philosophy of Right’, Kant’s ‘Critique of Judgment’ and the works of Schopenhauer, Kierkegaard, Schmitt, Derrida, Deleuze, Badiou, Zizek, Lacan and Tillich.
Well. . . I think I'd probably revise the list if it was ’10 Philosophical Works I’d safeguard for the future of humanity after the final destruction of civilization’. This was a more personal list reflecting my own interests to some extent. One rule about this, though -- you can't take any "collected works" along. Otherwise, it would have been a much easier choice!
Then my Plato would probably have to be the Republic. But I still have to read the Parmenides and Gorgias which are favourites to some. My Nietzsche choice would then be ‘Beyond Good and Evil’
I’ve only been studying philosophy for a brief period I can only include 5 that I would genuinely read again 1) The Republic by Plato 2) 2nd Treatise on Government by Locke 3) Critique of Pure Reason by Kant 4) A treatise of Human Nature by Hume 5) Language, Truth and Logic by Ayer Hopefully over time my list will expand and improve
I never found Locke's Treatise all that impressive tbh. It seemed quite easy to me to criticise his contractarianism and his justification for private property.
After watching a few of your videos, I guessed from your taste in philosophical dispositions that you were an SIUC graduate. Actually astounded that I was right.
@@GregoryBSadler By the time I was studying at the school in the late 2000s, Scheler was greatly appreciated and many students were attracted to personalism. My own work was largely on the Fruhromantik reception to late Hegelian logic (obviously with Tyman). I'm enjoying your videos! Merci et bonne journée .
Only one I agree with is Aristotle's Metaphysics. Wish you had picked a different dialogue from Plato. Anyway, you make great and interesting/helpful videos, keep it up!
I know this video is older , but I was wondering if you have a recommended translation of "City of God." Henry Bettenson is the translation you have linked, and I'll use that link if that's the translation you recommend! It's been on my reading list for far too long. I read Confessions a while back and found it incredible. Being familiar with Plato, it was interesting to see those references, and the narrative of the story was outstanding too. But the thing that I found most incredible was was in the last chapters when he turned his search inward. The questions he asked and his insights... I really felt like he was making steps into the theory of the unconsciousness and psychoanalysis without explicitly naming them.
Just discovered your work on CZcams. The 2020 Covid-19 outbreak has been great for exploring philosophy. Am curious as to your selection. No Derrida, Baudrillard?
Great channel, thank you for sharing this interesting list. I see you're leaving out the Stoics, although you are part of the Modern Stoicism movement, (in a desert island I may take at least one text from Seneca, Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus maybe Hadot's Inner Citadel). I also think Spinoza would be in my list, maybe Nietzsche too, but that is of course very personal.
Yes I did, great works in themselves that are systematic, and connect with other great works. That rules out the Stoics and Nietzsche I guess, works that you'd read in other circumstances. But Spinoza? it is systematic, great in itself and seems to me quite connected with many of the great authors in your list, answering Descartes' dualism and advancing Hegel's monism. I was only expressing a personal prefference toward those authors.
Of course, that doesn't mean that I think he's bad. He's got his interesting points, and I like the challenge of teaching him. But, I wouldn't place him as highly as many people seem to
No Anselm? Great writer, 2. Me, I'm going with his On Free Will and the following 2fers: Aquinas' commentaries on Metaphysics, De Anima, and NE, as well as a splendid 3-fer, Gail Fine's On Ideas: Aristotle's Criticism of Plato's Theory of Forms. (4-fer, if you count the footnotes.) Notice that I've got all the branches covered, 2. Whoops, no logic. 'Captain, may I please take my copy of the Kneales' magisterial Development of Logic? And, while you're at it, if I slip you a 20, may I stowaway Geach and Anscombe's 3 Philosophers?'
I'm actually reading the Pensees right now and Pascal was way ahead of his time not only in philosophy, but for his theories in probability as well as some of his inventions. His thought really seems to be somewhat of a precursor towards the existentialist movement and I know he had an impact on the writings of Kierkegaard and Nietzsche as well. I do believe people make way too much of his "Wager" and I don't think his intentions were to mean some sort of "fake it to make it" type thing...as people make it out to be. I honestly think he was meaning for the atheist to actually try it or be open to belief in God. I highly doubt a man of his intelligence would suggest that you could just slip one past God.
Yes, that's a funny way to think about it -- which I'd say a lot of people do fall into -- slip[ping] one past God. Kierkegaard was influenced by Pascal, but Nietzsche really didn't seem to like him (understandably so, given the incompatibilities between their perspectives)
Great series of videos, I enjoyed your list, and of course these things are extremely subjective (I take exception with Plato and Descartes, most people would have them on some list or other), but I was genuinely surprised you did not include any of Kant's work, particularly his Critique of Pure Reason, but I see your reasons.
Manuel Armenteros I just don't find Kant as interesting as most of these thinkers. Given the choice to read any of these works or that dry as bones First Critique, I'd take them. That said, if I did have to pick a Kant, it would be either the second or third Critique
Gregory B. Sadler Sure, it's a matter of preference, but the consequences of transcendental idealism are immense, as is his influence, but I see your point. By the way I emailed you via your "about" page at: info@reasonio.com.
Hi Dr Sadler,I am surprised that you didn't include in your list works of Kant, Locke, Hume, Berkeley, Russell, Wittgenstein and other outstanding philosophers. I think that perhaps, instead of Pascal's Pensees or Acquinas' Summa, you could have instead put Kant's Critique of Pure Reason which to me is a must read for any student of Philosophy. I would like to thank you for all your videos on philosophy because I know they have helped me a lot.
+Ali Shammary Yep, that's why it's my list, rather than yours. I did discuss why some of the better ones you're bringing up didn't make the cut, like Hume, in the video. I wouldn't include Russell even in a top 100 books for an island myself. If I was to bring one of Kant's Critiques, it would be the second or the third, not the first, since I find those much more interesting Glad you've found the videos useful.
Difficult decisions to cut some philosophers/works, but here's my list at present: Plato's Phaedrus Deleuze's Difference and Repetition Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit Kant's 3 Critiques Leibniz' Monadology Sartre's Being and Nothingness --------------- For my tenth, I'll have to borrow one from you that I might not have otherwise come up with -- Descartes' Meditations Great video! I'd love to hear you say more about your experiences with Pascal; I read through a good chunk of Pensees a few years ago and thought it was only so-so. Maybe I should revisit it.
I probably ought to shoot one of those Philosophical Developments videos about my interest in Pascal sometime. . . . Why the Monadology? -- that's basically like Leibniz's analogy to Epictetus' Enchiridion, a quick, very pared down version of his thought (if I were to take either Leibniz or Epictetus with me, I think it would need to be L's Discourse on Metaphysics or E's Discourses)
The Monadology is a pretty idiosyncratic choice for me; it's the first book that made me feel like I was able to follow along with some astonishingly high flying mental acrobatics. That being said, I'm embarrassed to admit I haven't read Discourse on metaphysics. I love the whimsy, the economy, and the explanatory power of the Monadology: however, I'm open to amending my choice for one that covers a little more ground :) -- though the economy of the Monadology is a big part of what makes it so endearing!
The Monadology was Leibniz's attempt (pretty successful) to provide a synopsis of his philosophical viewpoint. You'll see some of the same themes dealt with, but now in more depth, in the Discourse -- and then the text to follow that up with is the letters between Arnauld and Leibniz, a kind of back and forth debate between the two about some of those ideas
(this video was my intro actually,) I've finally found the time to read Augustine's books. I'm not a strict Christian but I appreciate the value system and his story interests me. You dun blessed us with all these videos.
1. Heidegger- Being and Time 2. Sartre- Being and Nothingness 3. Camus- Myth Of Sisyphus 4. Nietzsche- Human All Too Human or The Gay Science 5. Cormac McCarthy- Blood Meridian or Suttree 6. Faulkner- Absalom Absalom! 7. John Milton- The Complete Poems 8. It’s hard to choose a favorite Dostoevsky, either The Brother’s Karamazov or Demons 9. Thomas Pynchon- Gravity’s Rainbow 10.Alexandre Dumas- The Count Of Monte Cristo I liked your list. The only Aquinas I’ve read is ‘Confessions’ but I must admit I read it when I was too young. Have you read this one? Republic is a good book, I only read it maybe twice. I should read more Greek works. Looking forward to Summa Theologica someday. Some of the works I included were fiction but they contain philosophical themes. Blood Meridian is sometimes thought as a Gnostic text, I’ve read one paper where there is a Nietzsche influence, concerning the Judge. Absalom Absalom name derives from Absalom from the Bible and Gravity’s Rainbow is about science and WW2, the opening is very famous: “A screaming came across the sky.” Cheers, have a good day.
Aquinas didn't write Confessions. You're mixing him up with Augustine, who comes about 8 centuries earlier. And that's an excellent work, but if I was going to bring an Augustine book, it'd be City of God
@@GregoryBSadler That’s right, I checked my shelf. Silly mistake. If we don’t speak again, merry Christmas. I’ve been deleting some social media apps like Facebook Twitter and Twitch.
Tongue in cheek 1.Euclid's Elements 2.Newton's Principia Mathematica 3.Euler's Analysis Infinitorum 4.Gauss's Diquisitiones Arithmeticae 5.Jacobi's Fundamenta Nova 6.Riemann's On the Number of Primes Less Than a Given Magnitude 7.Poincare's Analysis Situs 8.Ramanujan's Lost Notebook 9.Turing's On Computable Numbers, with an Application to the Entscheidungsproblem 10.Grothendieck's EGA
@@Israel2.3.2 Yes, I'm still pursuing a mathematics degree. I'll admit that your comment really surprised me. Don't worry about it, my videos are random and are not of the same philosophical depth as Sadler's if this what you're looking for. I'm assuming you have a degree in mathematics? How are things going for you?
@@mpcc2022 Only three quarters of a mathematics degree from a subpar university unfortunately. Ultimate goal is to acquire a phd in mathematics, specifically in algebraic geometry. My current project is to consume the major works of Leonhard Euler, ten textbooks in all as well as good deal of papers in number theory, physics and engineering. This will occupy my time until October at least. I was planning on following Sadler's Phenomenology of Spirit lectures but I decided to postpone my reading of Hegel. I'll probably be 35 before I'm ready for that one lmao.
@@Israel2.3.2 Maybe other people don't see it this way, but if you get a mathematics degree from a half decent school it's worth something. The mathematician makes the degree. There are plenty of people that go to Stanford and don't do anything. I'm not going to Stanford that's just something a Bioengineering recruit from Stanford told me. Even in places where productivity is the supposed to be the norm, some people standout, other people don't, because nothing makes anyone anything reliably interesting other than their own efforts. That's a nice plan. Euler is an extraordinary genius among mathematical geniuses. Okay, what made you settle on algebraic number theory? I'm trying to find something that's the intersection of Number Theory, Geometry, and Combinatorics. Are you interested in applied mathematics, or pure mathematics; I ask because of your mentioning of physics and engineering. I check out Sadler's videos, but I don't do his series, because, like you, I don't have the time. I just out right read 10 pages of the texts, because I only can manage a few pages of a philosophical work before bed, because I don't have any other time in my day to read philosophy really. Also, since it's not for a class it doesn't really matter if you get stuck or don't completely understand something at first you can always come back to it, or read it over, or look something up.
Dr. Sadler, just found your channel. Thank you. I can certainly see your passion for Philosophy and it's contagious. I am new to the subject, have never taken any classes or the like, but would like to start with some reading. As per your recommendations here, I just picked up the following: The Republic The Metaphysics Pensees City Of God Meditations On First Philosophy Which one do I read first? Also, should I possible start with an Introduction to Philosophy book first?
+Gregory B. Sadler Thank you for the reply. I'm assuming you're referring to the single volume, Five Dialogues: Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Meno, Phaedo (Hackett Classics).
Please, who can tell what edition of the Meditations this is? The only french version that includes the objections and replies that I found was horrible GF Flammarion edition (horrible in terms of cover, paper, font..). This one seems to be old, is it still available? Gregory B. Sadler
Professor where would Maurice Merleau-Ponty be on your list? Top 20? When I started going through Blondel I knew what Ponty meant with his constant mention of action, and I was amazed how his work not only used the good bits of Heidegger, Husserl, Bergson, Scheler, and Blondel, but also contributed to the history of ideas with a number of original thoughts. Do you like his thought?
@@GregoryBSadler Is it because:A)His work about embodiement is mostly correct, but his scope of thought is still norrow.B)His work about embodiement is not on point, and you prefer somone like Marcel C) there are so many other superior philosophers that blow him out of the water or smth else
@@massacreee3028 It's because in the last 30+ years of studying philosophy, I've read hundreds of philosophers. Nobody actually needs reasons NOT to be in the top 20. They needs reasons to push the others out to get in there
Unexpected selection, I have never heard of Blondel and am surprised by how many "christian" philosophers you have included. What about Wittgenstein or the British Empiricists? What would also be interesting is a "thematic" list that considers the setting of living on a desert island. Heidegger is definitely a great choice then. Imagine yourself sitting in a tropic Todtnauberg hut. Maybe also something in line with Chalmers' "Constructing The World", like Carnap's "The Logical Structure of the World".
Probably much less surprising for someone who knows or follows my work, or who has watched any of my other personal videos. I've already discussed Hume and Locke in previous comments here. Wittgenstein, I've done an entire video about previously
Gregory B. Sadler yeah I've seen that a lot of your videos center around christian themes, I'll visit them later. A book that just came to my mind, although I've not yet read much of it, but seems to be very promising, is Eihei Dogen's "The True Dharma-Eye Treasury", a 2000-page massive essay collection on Zen Buddhism. Have you talked about Buddhism in any of your videos or articles?
My thoughts exactly. Why use your time in the playgrounds of thought if you had to pick. Even on a desert island the understanding of the will to power is relevent and even usefull.
Interesting! Mine (only providing top 5, since top 10 would require a lot more thought) would be - Augustine's Confessions, Epicurus (the only three original texts that remained), Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit, Nietzsche's Thus Spoke Zarathustra, and probably Boethius' Consolation of Philosophy. Do you mind me asking why you'd pick Augustine's De civitate dei rather than Confessiones?
Dr. Sadler, have you read the philosophical works of Avicenna or any other great Muslim philosophers? If so, what are your thoughts about their ideas and contribution to the field of philosophy?
Perhaps down the line, in a video. In the mean time, I've got several videos on him you can watch, and a few writings as well, that you can find in Academia.edu
Just subbed after watching this. I was a student of literature who always approached philosophy with a great deal of skepticism, but I appreciate what you are doing here. Maybe I would have more Bergson and Russell on my list. And just one question: which historical era do you think created the most interesting philosophical work? 🍸
Descartes as a sorbet to cleanse your philosophical palate. LOL We have a saying here in Germany, "Never read Goethe in English, Never read Keats in German, But never read Hegel in any language" LOL I agree that the opening up of other vistas by a writer or book makes it more rewarding especially on a reread as you can dive off in so many other directions Having read Karl Popper's "The Open Society and Its Enemies" (sometimes called "The Open Society by one of its Enemies") I have a bias against Plato and Hegel and so tend to avoid them in my reading. I want to understand Heidegger but am put off by what Lévinas described as a lack of ethics - which meant he became a Nazi and served the Nazi state so have preferred to read Lévinas and find him rewarding.
Unfortunately, I think I need a desert island in order to examine Hegel and Heidegger as one should. Otherwise, just give me any ten of Bertrand Russell's books--a beautiful writer as well as a beautiful thinker. I would also like to take Ernest Becker's "Denial of Death," "Escape from Evil," and "The Birth and Death of Meaning." ...Kenneth Burke's "Language as Symbolic Action" and "Rhetoric of Motives." Every time I read Becker and Burke, I fell like Moses is splitting a sea in my head. Anyway, I put Blondel's "Action" on my reading list. Thanks.
I'd actually debated about including Perelman's New Rhetoric. As far as the Hegel goes, if you want to work through the Phenomenology at least, you might take a look at the Half-Hour Hegel series. I've shot 17 installments so far
@@GregoryBSadler True, but I find in Parts I and II, one of my favourite accounts of man and morality in relation to power and the conditions of sociability. As for the fiction, probably something Goethe.
No Kierkegaard?! *Gasp* Well, having Pascal there helps make up for that. Slightly. :) Seriously though, this was a fascinating video. This may show my ignorance but when it comes to metaphysics how does one determine what is true? I mean lets take Aristotle's four causes way of conceptualizing reality or Aquinas distinction between act and potency. How does one know that these are the best ways to conceptualize things? I mean I know that modern philosophers moved away from Aristotle's way of thinking but I don't know why or even how one would go about disputing such things. I guess that is part of the disagreement too. I mean in history or science it is easy to dispute things. One goes back to the sources or one does another experiment. How does one do this in metaphysics? Just considering all the things in metaphysics that I don't understand or just know a little bit about hurts my head.
Well, there's no simple answer (or rather, there's plenty of deficient simple answers) to that question. I tend to see it this way: Any metaphysics that is going to worth entertaining must do justice to the whole range of reality and our experience of it. It should be able to address its rivals and predecessors, and make some reasonable case for why it provides a superior perspective.
+Gregory B. Sadler This answer you gave sounds *exactly* like the type of answer I'm accustomed to providing. You sound like the type of person who cares about over-arching, encompassing philosophical conclusions. Socrates, apparently was the same way. I find this to be a quality in people who are given to having a desire to believe the right things as much as it is humanly possible to do.
What do you think of something like the Enneads which is also pretty systematic? I've noticed that Neoplatonic stuff is seldom spoken of in comparison to other schools of Western philosophy. Why do you think Neoplatonism isn't given much attention even with its vast scope?
I think Plotinus is very cool, and if I was doing the "20 works. . ." , he would probably be on my list, or at least in contention. Why isn't Neo-Platonic stuff discussed as much? It tends to get passed over when we teach philosophy (as used to also be the case with the Stoics and Epicureans), unless the instructor understands and likes it. Also, there's a bit more of a learning curve required in order to make sense of what is being discussed.
Interesting, so would you say that perhaps the difficulty is a bigger factor for it being passed over or is "dislike" or "distaste" a bigger factor based on your experience and experience you've had with your peers? Do philosophers today who still take interest in the classics as you do believe that Plotinus really did have genuine insights into things which others did not have? Do they think the criticisms he makes regarding Aristotle are well founded, considering Aristotle is taken so much more seriously and authoritatively? Sorry if that's too many questions lol, just curious. I personally am very into Plotinus because of the role his philosophical language and concepts play in the Nizari Ismaili Islamic school of thought (Definitely also a big contributor to other Islamic schools and Christianity as well) which I follow and so I've seen the insights that Plotinus has to be truly piercing.
Most of my peers in philosophy have never studied Plotinus or other neo-Platonists, period. They haven't got a distaste or dislike, since they'd have to know enough about his thought to have that reaction. I'd say that when you're talking about "philosophers today who still take interest in the classics", you're actually talking about two very different groups. There's the people who actually study the texts, keep up on the better research, and understand the history. An Aristotle scholar in that line is quite likely to know neo-Platonic stuff as well, and may well appreciate it. Then there's the "great books" or "western civ" types, who usually have relied more on glosses and manuals rather than actually studying the text. They typically have some rather schematic and outdated "history of philosophy" stuck in their heads, one that says Aristotle is really great and the neo-Platonists not so much.
very interesting.......hmm. So it just gets passed over period. How unfortunate. But ya I can understand it, I'm reading a companion book by Lloyd Gerson right now that my mentor recommended and it's not at all easy but I found it made more sense when I look at what someone like Nasir Khusraw says for example in his works which basically use Neoplatonic concepts to illustrate three hyposteses of Ismaili thought: God, Universal Intellect and Universal Soul. But ya definitely something people should prolly look into more. It actually in that sense in very helpful in reconciling Islam and Christianity when it comes to the Trinity and the concept of tawhid though not completely since in Christianity I believe all the members of the Trinity are coequal whereas in Ismaili Islam, they are arranged in a hierarchy.
"Frankly, I don't even know if Hegel got Hegel." The first time that Hegel ever made me laugh. Thanks
Paul Arthur it’s true though. Hegel’s work is almost equivalent to deciphering ancient Sumerian text.
@@Flux799 Hey, ancient Sumerian is still mostly just understanding the language and its contexts. Hegel on the other hand is buried in conceptually disjointed language that's impossible to deduct in a rigid manner.
“But the height of audacity in serving up pure nonsense, in stringing together senseless and extravagant mazes of words, such as had previously been known only in madhouses, was finally reached in Hegel, and became the instrument of the most bare-faced general mystification that has ever taken place, with a result which will appear fabulous to posterity, and will remain as a monument to German stupidity.” - Edward Caird (1835 - 1908)
Yeah, Phenomenology of the Spirit is setting records for how many commas can be in one sentence. The commas, oh the commas!
I really like the fact that your videos are not rushed like most topical videos on youtube.
Demian Haki Yes, if anything, they're at the other extreme -- as some commenters tell me
Gregory B. Sadler Well, the short, quick videos certainly have their merit, but it's nice to settle into a lecture once in a while.
I like it too. Then I put the speed in 2x.
Without this philosophical magnum opus, he'll never make it on that island -- The Boy Scout Manual.
Never made it past being a cub scout myself
@@GregoryBSadler Can anybody call themselves a philosopher even without formal credentials? Excellent video thank you sir.
@@davidsoto4394 Anybody can call themselves anything really. It's whether others will buy in to it or not that matters
@@GregoryBSadler Excellent video.
@@davidsoto4394 i joined you in this conversation
This would be my top 10 list of books on a desert Island:
Epictetus - Discourses
Marcus Aurelius - Meditations
Seneca - Hardship and Happiness
Seneca - Letters from a Stoic
Aristotle - Nicomachean Ethics
Plato - Symposium
Plato - Republic
Kant - Critique of Pure Reason
St. Augustine - The City of God
The Bible
Nice.
Oh, now that I think about it, my list should be mostly Stoicism. In the harshness of a deserted island, I think some Marcus Aurelius would really come in handy 😂
1) Plato's Republic.
2) Aristotle's Politics.
3) Aristotle's Nichomachean Ethics.
4) Rawl's A theory of Justice.
5) Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit.
6) Macintyre's After Virtue.
7) Descartes Meditations
8) Aquinas' Summa theologica
9) Kierkegaard's Fear and Trembeling
10) Nietzsche's Beyond Good and Evil.
I too am a fan of After Virtue. I teach portions of it in my philosophy classes. I truly see Incommensurability as the ethical problem of our time.
The Philosopher's Rant Can you explain incommensurability to me?
Hegels work is unreadable hahaah
I consider that book list and your calm, reflective way of presenting them, true wealth. They bring me peace.
Mine would probably be.
1. Eroticism - Bataille
2. Being and Nothingness - Sartre
3.Beyond Good and Evil - Nietzsche
4. Notes from Underground - Dostoevsky
5. Philosophy of the Boudoir - Sade
6. Phenomenology Of Spirit - Hegel
that's a killer list, love it
My list (with some cheating)
Plato: Complete Works
Aristotle: Complete Works
Agostino: Confessions
Descartes: Collected Works
Ethics (Spinoza)
A Treatise of Human Nature
Critique of Pure Reason
Being & Time
Theory of Justice
The Concept of Law (Hart)
Lonergan Insight and Method in Theology
Hi Professor Sadler, I have to say that your list of philosophical works are impressive. I, myself, am very fond of Augustine's "City of God" and in many ways I think it is way ahead of its time. It's not perfect, but some of the things he touches on, even when he is speaking as though he does not know what to think about a matter, I find that his reasoning process is usually so spot on, so much so in fact that he often mentions the answer already (perhaps without even knowing) in the form of a question. As time has past, I have become more and more convinced that St. Augustine truly deserves the amount of praise and recognized influence he has earned. There are many modern-day philosophers who are not nearly as skilled thinkers, but merely have the benefit of living in a time and place where more information is open to them.
+TruthUnadulterated Yes, imagine what any of these guys would have been like had they access to today's information!
1. Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching
2. Plato's Symposium
3. Dante's Comedy
4. Shakespeare's sonnets
5. Montaigne's Essays
6. Hume's Enquiry
7. Thoreau's Walden
8. James's Varieties of Religious Experience
9. Pynchon's Gravity's Rainbow
10. McCarthy's Blood Meridian
Gravity's Rainbow is a great choice. Like most of Pynchon's books they can be read over and over again and just keep getting better and better
Great list
@@PFMAGGAMFP I chose books I've found to be actually readable. Kant would be handy for a fire, though.
@@PFMAGGAMFP Heidegger. How about you? Are you a fan of the metaphysicians in general and/or have a favorite or two?
@@PFMAGGAMFP McCarthy is a very skilled writer and Blood Meridian stands at the "end" of philosophy (not to be mistaken with nihilism). I've found that the best way to learn philosophy is to write it oneself, otherwise you're just trying to memorize what someone else said. We are in charge of our own lives, after all. I'm not in Plato's camp per se, but I've always admired the power in the realization that one cannot learn what one doesn't already know. Teachers have charisma which lends itself well to entertainment, but wisdom isn't something that can be passed along. And good writers are very good magicians. We're all making all of this up as we go anyway. I do tend to relax a lot by reminding myself to try and enjoy the ride.
A lot of what you have would be on my list, specifically Plato's Republic, Aquinas' Summa Theologiae, Decartes' Meditations, and Aristotle's Metaphysics. My other five would be Augustine's Confessions, Kierkegaard's Philosophical Fragments, Locke's Two Treatises of Government, Hume's A Treatise of Human Nature, and Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations. These are not in any particular order of course.
I'd thought of Kierkegaard, Locke and Hume -- but it's tough to decide just what work of Kierkegaard, if I could just choose one, I would want (same problem with Nietzsche). Hume's Treatise was a tempting one as well.
The title of my choice would read'' How to build a boat''.
That is technology, not philosophy - philosophy has always been considered to be abstract knowledge without specific technical how-to tips! 😅
@@MultiBOZA No it hasn't. Sorry to be a party pauper as I don't know if you made that remarks as a tongue in cheek humor. However, if you were being serious, then you are wrong...or rather most people are clueless to believe philosophy is just about abstract knowledge. In fact, one of the books selected by Dr. Sandler in this list is the Phenomenology of spirit by Hegel who set out in the book to show the concrete nature and requirements of philosophical musings
@Nick Trosclair Thought of it myself!
My List:
1) Kant's Critique of Pure Reason
2) Spinoza's Ethics
3) Descartes' Meditations
4) Shankara's Brahmasutra Bhashya
5) Harsha's The Sweets of Refutation
7) Heidegger's Being and Time
8) Plotinus' Enneads
9) Aristotle's Metaphysics
10) Nishida Kitaro's An Inquiry Into the Good
I think you're missing 6
Quite a catholic list.
Yep, I have catholic tastes in both senses of the term
a video I shot recently in response to a number of similar questions I've been getting for some time, this one prompted by thinking about the particular question asked me by an old college classmate and friend
Dude. How can u go to an island without Dostoevski ? ;)
Remember in the video, where I say: If it were not just Philosophy, the list would be different?
Gregory B. Sadler
Ah I see. So that would be an intresting topic as well :). Or have you already done something like that?
Ps:Great channel and work. Thank you very much!
Thanks -- no, this is the first list of this sort I've shot as a video
St.Augustine is by far one of my favorite philosophers. Without a doubt one of the most powerful in his prose and writing. Only other person that comes to being as powerful is Dostoevsky.
John Dostoevskys is one of the top 5 writers to ever exist, every sentence is sheer beauty
If I may ask, I wasn't raised in the Christian culture. I don't believe in supernatural agents. And I used to be a practicing (and reading) muslim.
Do you think I could see St. Augustine like you do ? (I've read Dostoevsky with great pleasure).
@@a1k131 I think so man.
@@ricardooliveira9774
Can you enjoy "the works" of Ebu Hamid Mohammad Ghazali ? He's a Muslim philosopher..
@@a1k131 Hey man, sorry for answer late.
It's really different. Al-Ghazali uses a sort of aristotelian philosophy whereas Augustine uses a Neoplatonism philosophy.
I haven't see much about Al-Ghazali honestly, but a Christian counter-part would be Thomas Aquinas, he uses aristotelian philosophy as well.
But for what I've seen Al-Ghazali focus more in metaphysics and the existence of God, causation, etc whereas Augustine is more about ethics, problem of evil his works are much more about self-reflection, much more poetic.
Whew. Just about fits my list. Aquinas and Plato makes one think deeply about what appears simple.
Dr. Sadler, a word of gratitude in making this video and your online work. Supremely rewarding and meaningful.
My list, since it was asked in the description,
1. Aristotle, Metaphysics.
2. Augustine, Confessions.
3. Kant, Critique of Pure Reason
4. Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit
5. Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra
As is the case for yourself, the last five are perhaps more telling of my individual interests.
6. Pascal, Pensees
7. Heidegger, On the Way to Language
8. Leibniz, Monadology
9. Heraclitus, Collected Scripts
10. Descartes, Meditations
Glad you enjoyed it. Some overlap in our lists. So, these are the ones that you'd want to read over and over?
Yes, I do think I could find in these much to consider for the rest of my days. Further, I think I could have in these material enough to form some of my own stances and maintain in my work the type of dialogue amongst the thinkers.
But, ultimately, I do hope such a scenario never occurs as I would miss so many other works, including the literary as opposed to just the philosophical.
Great list! Not really a fan of Descartes (I’m Pascalian that way) but I would definitely throw Thoreau’s Walden and Thus Spoke Zarathustra up there.
Interesting video concept. I'll love to explore Scheler and Blondel first time I've heard of these works. Thanks Mr Sadler!
You’re very welcome
Great list and discussion. Thanks!
+William S. You're welcome!
I would actually put John Dewey's "Experience and Nature" at the top of my list!
I feel like some stoic philosophy would be good when you're on a desert island
And so which one book would you pick?
@@GregoryBSadler meditations by Marcus aurelius
@@plonzz That would be way down on the list. Epictetus' Discourses, Seneca's Letters, even one of Seneca's treatises would be better
@@GregoryBSadler Meditations feels more like a collection of poetically exquisite nothings, whereas Epictetus actually and concisely addresses specific issues. Epictetus > Marcus Aurelius any day
@@Recondite101 I think Marcus himself would recognize that Epictetus' Discourses are more meaty than the Meditations.
That said, Marcus' stuff is decent
Top tier list. Almost as expected until you pulled out the last two, definitely have to check those out.
They're definitely worth it
Love it! I'm thinking that id bring works by literary philosophers like Camus, Dostoevsky, or Nietszche. But perhaps over time the literary flash may wear off and I would crave some really philosophical flesh, a system like you said
Well, I might end up doing a "10 literary works" video sometime
please do professor sadler! I would love to know your top 10 literary works. especially if it's something i haven't read yet.
I read Rlike's letters because of your rilke lecture, maybe 2 years ago and I've kept coming back to Rilke. thanks for these videos!
BORING. psued philosophers
I always keep coming back to this video.
Thank you very much, I really appreciate the content of the channel.
You're very welcome!
BG and Evil
Rumi's Masnavi
The B Karamazov
V. Hugo's Laughing Man
Seneca's Dialogues
Ralph Waldo Emerson's journals and essays
...
However, I haven't read many of the classics you have mentioned, so this list is provisional.
By the way, has this list changed for you since you uploaded the video?
I'd cheat and take Complete Works Anthologies of Berkeley, Hume and Nietzsche -- all three of whom I consider some of the best most interesting writers in philosophy. After which I'd add two more: Kant's Critique of Pure Reason (just to see if I can finally get through it -- as I consider it to have some of the most exciting ideas in the history of human thought -- but written, unfortunately, in the most boring way possible) and Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations (to see if I can finally get a REAL sense of why so many consider it such a seminal work).
Well, that is indeed cheating.
I've only studied for a few years now, so my list is bound to change, but here it is:
1. Aristotles Metaphysics
2. Descartes Meditations
3. De Beauvoir's Second Sex
4. Platos republic
5. Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations
6. Marx Capital
7. David Chalmers The Conscious Mind
8. Levi Bryant's The Democracy of Objects
the Investigations are such a fun read and have such high reread value I feel they are an underrated pick here in Sadler's comments
I had to do a similar thing in school last year, it was because we read Fahrenheit 451 and books are illegal in that universe but they didn't have to be philosophy. I chose the Bible, The Prince, on the Genealogy of Morality, The Spirit of the Laws, Plato's Republic, the Gulag Archipelago, The Rights of Man, and On the Origin of Species. I would probably change my list now that ive learned more
Interesting assignment there!
Definitely picking one of SK's pseudonyms work personally as I will need some humor to survive.
Picking it as what?
I'm by no means a philosopher (I've read on the side while studying History), but I'd probably include Rorty's Philosophy and the Mirror of Nature. I'd be hard-pressed to provide a definite work, but I'd have to include Wittgenstein and Hayden White, too.
Anyway, I haven't read a few of the ones you listed, so I'll have to get on that, soon.
Wittgenstein would be powerfull but too short for a deserted island :)
Fun concept for a video and got me thinking. I hope I don't get stuck on an island in my teens, as I don't have the requisite understanding to take on some of your texts. My list:
1) Principia Mathematica, Whitehead
2) Decline of the West, Spengler
3) Logical Investigations, Husserl (friend insists)
4) Aristotle's Politics
5) The World as Will and Representation, Schopenhauer (haven't read yet, but enjoy his essays)
6) An Inquiry, Reid
7) Copleston's History of Philosophy (could be a mistake, leaving me wanting)
8) Summa
9) Gramsci's Prison Notebooks
10) Vico's New Science
Liber librum aperit. (One book opens another)
It's hard to limit myself to so few, because I've enjoyed many thoughtful books - and even ones where I'm fairly certain the author is wrong I've enjoyed for the exercise.
I'd have to include one of Wylie's essays, like The Magic Animal, Generation of Vipers, or An Essay on Morals, because they've been such a loadstone in my thinking and I've spent so much time thinking about them and eventually thinking beyond and past them.
.
And on a desert island it seems Robinson Crusoe might be useful... or at least edifying...
I suppose some of the books that one has spent much of one's life with are like a kind of doorway to conversations with an old friend
Gregory B. Sadler
I think so. There are some I return to over and over again, and though the words on the page don't change, they do spark new thoughts, and it really is like a conversation with an old friend.
Most of them are philosophical, but not capital P Philosophy, per se. I'm thinking of things like Hesiod's "Works and Days" or Fitzgerald's translation of the Rubaiyat. Shakespeare will do for the literary minded.
.
I was going to post a list of more canon philosophy books last night but ran out of places, and hadn't even left the Hellenes!
Studies in Pessimism - Schopenhauer
I've come back to this list many times over the past few years. I've since worked through the Republic a few times, Aristotle's works, and the Summa. I'm now working on both Being and Time and Phenomenology of Spirit piece by piece. Thank you for supporting my learning, you've never led me astray!
You're very welcome
This is one of my favourite videos. I liked to go back to it when I’m about to read one of the texts from this top ten list and in this case Aristotle metaphysics the WD Ross translation.
That's nice to read. Can't go wrong with Aristotle!
I really like these more personal videos as well, thank you!
You're welcome!
Late to the party but thought it was a cool exercise so I'll try it out:
1. Nietzsche's Dawnbreak
2. James' Pragmatism
3. Heidegger's Being and Time
4. Dewey's A Common Faith (some very moving passages there)
5. Wittgenstein's Investigations
6. Derrida and Bennington's Jacques Derrida / Circumfession (one of the most fun reads I've ever done, and worth coming back to)
7. Rorty's Philosophy and Social Hope
8. Proust's In Search of Lost Time (considering it's NOT cheating to bring multiple volumes, if the Summa is allowed then the Search is also allowed haha. Maybe in a deserted island I'd actually, finally, finish the whole thing...)
9. Joyce's Finnegans Wake (plenty of time to make sense of the whole thing)
10. Virginia Woolf's To The Lighthouse (good for thinking about death, something I might do a lot in a deserted island...)
(can you tell I did three semesters of lit in college? yeah, I figured)
Interesting list
Obviously, at some point, you're going to have to leave that island and reintegrate back into the human situation. Therefore, I would recommend Alfred Korzybski's "Science And Sanity." I think it might be the most important work ever written on this planet followed (at a distance) by Alfred North Whitehead's "Process And Reality." I liked your program. Thank you for your insights.
Yep, I've read it, decades ago. Wasn't as impressed by it as apparently you are. Glad you enjoyed the video
I would bring Chicken Soup for the Soul, the Manual for Windows XP, Sharks Don't Get Cancer, the sequel Shark's Still Don't Get Cancer, and Schelling's Philosophy of Mythology.
Well, no accounting for taste, I suppose
Just a question, do you like Schopenhauer?
I do, but he's not someone I read often
The Republic had been my first pick as well :)
Taking Plato into the Cave 3:01!
thank you very much for putting this together!
You're very welcome!
The brothers karamazov, thus spake zarathustra, Aristotle's Metaphysics, Huis-Clos, and Spinoza's ethics
Oh and every book by James Joyce (:
Take plenty of eyeglasses. Hegel is the Finnegan's Wake of philosophy.
It's a good idea to have some extra glasses there in any case
Gregory B. Sadler Good job. Wish you would list some of the 21st C. philosophers you would recommend.
ken thomas There isn't anyone in the 21st century at this point, whose works I'd include in the 10 I'd take along to a desert island
Ah, imagine getting to the island, having those books, and discovering you had broken your glasses and had none to spare.
Epicurus, Nietzsche, Camus, Tolstoy, Bakunin, Kierkegaard, Spinoza, Marx, Thoreau, Benjamin.
When I went to university in my first year I had to take a class each semester in a different subject. First semester I chose Anthropology and second Philosophy. Despite the fact that my lecturer was an old grouch it was a mind blowing class (on Human Nature). I often found myself laughing in class, not because the work was humorous but the arguments were so cleverly put together (Hume on Causation and Cartesian Dualism for example). Although I never studied it again, it's such an interesting subject. Unfortunately most theories in text books in my experience so thank you Gregory for making these videos so I can continue to be amazed. Metaphysics was always the most interesting to me, McTaggart on Time, Philosophy of the Mind, Identity etc. If anyone knows any good books on Metaphysics (anything in that regard) or on those subjects, please pass them on, thanks!
Glad you enjoy the videos!
For the last 4 years I was required to read predominantly analytical philosophy, but I can say with some ‘certainty’ that not one of these so called analytical philosophers will make it to the desert island. It might also be more forceful to change the statement to ’10 Philosophical Works I’d safeguard for the future of humanity after the final destruction of civilisation’.
The problem with this type of list is that a lot of books are still on my ‘to read’ list but unfortunately still in the’ have not yet read’ pile, so some choices rest on assumptions:
Hegel - Phenomenology of Spirit
Heidegger - Being and Time
Plato - Complete works
Aristotle - Metaphysics
Kant - Critique of Pure Reason (doubtlessly a, or even the, central work of Philosophy. But it’s endless complexity and at times abstractness together with the fact that there are very few living creatures with a complete comprehension of the whole book makes this a problematic choice. I can imagine the nightmare of teaching Kant to a punch of inquisitive intelligent students on a bad brain day :)
Nietzsche - Beyond Good and Evil, Nietzsche - On the Genealogy of Morality, or Nietzsche - Twilight of the Idols, however this uncertainty could easily be resolved by taking the complete ‘Werke’ .
Wittgenstein - Philosophical Investigations
Then I would have to decide between Hegel’s ‘Science of Logic’, his ‘Philosophy of Right’, Kant’s ‘Critique of Judgment’ and the works of Schopenhauer, Kierkegaard, Schmitt, Derrida, Deleuze, Badiou, Zizek, Lacan and Tillich.
Well. . . I think I'd probably revise the list if it was ’10 Philosophical Works I’d safeguard for the future of humanity after the final destruction of civilization’. This was a more personal list reflecting my own interests to some extent.
One rule about this, though -- you can't take any "collected works" along. Otherwise, it would have been a much easier choice!
Then my Plato would probably have to be the Republic. But I still have to read the Parmenides and Gorgias which are favourites to some. My Nietzsche choice would then be ‘Beyond Good and Evil’
I’ve only been studying philosophy for a brief period I can only include 5 that I would genuinely read again
1) The Republic by Plato
2) 2nd Treatise on Government by Locke
3) Critique of Pure Reason by Kant
4) A treatise of Human Nature by Hume
5) Language, Truth and Logic by Ayer
Hopefully over time my list will expand and improve
All of those are works worth reading and rereading. The Ayer perhaps less so than the others
I never found Locke's Treatise all that impressive tbh. It seemed quite easy to me to criticise his contractarianism and his justification for private property.
Nice list! Really enjoyed this.
Glad to read it
After watching a few of your videos, I guessed from your taste in philosophical dispositions that you were an SIUC graduate. Actually astounded that I was right.
That's a surprise to me, given that most other SIUC students weren't all that interested in most of these authors
@@GregoryBSadler By the time I was studying at the school in the late 2000s, Scheler was greatly appreciated and many students were attracted to personalism. My own work was largely on the Fruhromantik reception to late Hegelian logic (obviously with Tyman). I'm enjoying your videos! Merci et bonne journée
.
@@sakalak Very different department by then, it seems
Thanks for the information.
Only one I agree with is Aristotle's Metaphysics. Wish you had picked a different dialogue from Plato. Anyway, you make great and interesting/helpful videos, keep it up!
Glad you enjoy them
I know this video is older , but I was wondering if you have a recommended translation of "City of God." Henry Bettenson is the translation you have linked, and I'll use that link if that's the translation you recommend! It's been on my reading list for far too long. I read Confessions a while back and found it incredible. Being familiar with Plato, it was interesting to see those references, and the narrative of the story was outstanding too. But the thing that I found most incredible was was in the last chapters when he turned his search inward. The questions he asked and his insights... I really felt like he was making steps into the theory of the unconsciousness and psychoanalysis without explicitly naming them.
czcams.com/video/tCyjm58NUos/video.html
Oh my god! u rock man, whitout a doubt
I had already saw like 5 videos of you, u r amazing.
+Jenifer Calderón Hahaha! I'm glad you like the videos.
Just discovered your work on CZcams. The 2020 Covid-19 outbreak has been great for exploring philosophy.
Am curious as to your selection. No Derrida, Baudrillard?
They're not good enough.
Henry Thoreau, Walden
Great channel, thank you for sharing this interesting list. I see you're leaving out the Stoics, although you are part of the Modern Stoicism movement, (in a desert island I may take at least one text from Seneca, Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus maybe Hadot's Inner Citadel). I also think Spinoza would be in my list, maybe Nietzsche too, but that is of course very personal.
You heard the criteria for why I would take the books I did, right?
Yes I did, great works in themselves that are systematic, and connect with other great works. That rules out the Stoics and Nietzsche I guess, works that you'd read in other circumstances. But Spinoza? it is systematic, great in itself and seems to me quite connected with many of the great authors in your list, answering Descartes' dualism and advancing Hegel's monism. I was only expressing a personal prefference toward those authors.
I'm not a fan of Spinoza. I think he's pretty overrated, quite frankly.
Of course, that doesn't mean that I think he's bad. He's got his interesting points, and I like the challenge of teaching him. But, I wouldn't place him as highly as many people seem to
No Anselm? Great writer, 2. Me, I'm going with his On Free Will and the following 2fers: Aquinas' commentaries on Metaphysics, De Anima, and NE, as well as a splendid 3-fer, Gail Fine's On Ideas: Aristotle's Criticism of Plato's Theory of Forms. (4-fer, if you count the footnotes.) Notice that I've got all the branches covered, 2. Whoops, no logic. 'Captain, may I please take my copy of the Kneales' magisterial Development of Logic? And, while you're at it, if I slip you a 20, may I stowaway Geach and Anscombe's 3 Philosophers?'
I'd take the Desert Islands essay collection by Deleuze :p
I'm actually reading the Pensees right now and Pascal was way ahead of his time not only in philosophy, but for his theories in probability as well as some of his inventions. His thought really seems to be somewhat of a precursor towards the existentialist movement and I know he had an impact on the writings of Kierkegaard and Nietzsche as well. I do believe people make way too much of his "Wager" and I don't think his intentions were to mean some sort of "fake it to make it" type thing...as people make it out to be. I honestly think he was meaning for the atheist to actually try it or be open to belief in God. I highly doubt a man of his intelligence would suggest that you could just slip one past God.
Yes, that's a funny way to think about it -- which I'd say a lot of people do fall into -- slip[ping] one past God. Kierkegaard was influenced by Pascal, but Nietzsche really didn't seem to like him (understandably so, given the incompatibilities between their perspectives)
Great series of videos, I enjoyed your list, and of course these things are extremely subjective (I take exception with Plato and Descartes, most people would have them on some list or other), but I was genuinely surprised you did not include any of Kant's work, particularly his Critique of Pure Reason, but I see your reasons.
Manuel Armenteros I just don't find Kant as interesting as most of these thinkers. Given the choice to read any of these works or that dry as bones First Critique, I'd take them. That said, if I did have to pick a Kant, it would be either the second or third Critique
Gregory B. Sadler Sure, it's a matter of preference, but the consequences of transcendental idealism are immense, as is his influence, but I see your point. By the way I emailed you via your "about" page at: info@reasonio.com.
That actually goes to our marketing director -- for booking talks. Is that what you were looking for?
Gregory B. Sadler No I thought that was your usual email, apologies...
Just found this channel. You are instantly likeable.
+Adam0804 Thanks!
Hi Dr Sadler,I am surprised that you didn't include in your list works of Kant, Locke, Hume, Berkeley, Russell, Wittgenstein and other outstanding philosophers. I think that perhaps, instead of Pascal's Pensees or Acquinas' Summa, you could have instead put Kant's Critique of Pure Reason which to me is a must read for any student of Philosophy. I would like to thank you for all your videos on philosophy because I know they have helped me a lot.
+Ali Shammary Yep, that's why it's my list, rather than yours. I did discuss why some of the better ones you're bringing up didn't make the cut, like Hume, in the video. I wouldn't include Russell even in a top 100 books for an island myself. If I was to bring one of Kant's Critiques, it would be the second or the third, not the first, since I find those much more interesting
Glad you've found the videos useful.
+Gregory B. Sadler Ha! Totally agree with you about Russell.
Difficult decisions to cut some philosophers/works, but here's my list at present:
Plato's Phaedrus
Deleuze's Difference and Repetition
Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit
Kant's 3 Critiques
Leibniz' Monadology
Sartre's Being and Nothingness
---------------
For my tenth, I'll have to borrow one from you that I might not have otherwise come up with -- Descartes' Meditations
Great video! I'd love to hear you say more about your experiences with Pascal; I read through a good chunk of Pensees a few years ago and thought it was only so-so. Maybe I should revisit it.
I probably ought to shoot one of those Philosophical Developments videos about my interest in Pascal sometime. . . .
Why the Monadology? -- that's basically like Leibniz's analogy to Epictetus' Enchiridion, a quick, very pared down version of his thought (if I were to take either Leibniz or Epictetus with me, I think it would need to be L's Discourse on Metaphysics or E's Discourses)
The Monadology is a pretty idiosyncratic choice for me; it's the first book that made me feel like I was able to follow along with some astonishingly high flying mental acrobatics. That being said, I'm embarrassed to admit I haven't read Discourse on metaphysics. I love the whimsy, the economy, and the explanatory power of the Monadology: however, I'm open to amending my choice for one that covers a little more ground :) -- though the economy of the Monadology is a big part of what makes it so endearing!
The Monadology was Leibniz's attempt (pretty successful) to provide a synopsis of his philosophical viewpoint. You'll see some of the same themes dealt with, but now in more depth, in the Discourse -- and then the text to follow that up with is the letters between Arnauld and Leibniz, a kind of back and forth debate between the two about some of those ideas
(this video was my intro actually,) I've finally found the time to read Augustine's books. I'm not a strict Christian but I appreciate the value system and his story interests me. You dun blessed us with all these videos.
Cool! Glad you're reading Augustine - he's well worth it!
1. Heidegger- Being and Time
2. Sartre- Being and Nothingness
3. Camus- Myth Of Sisyphus
4. Nietzsche- Human All Too Human or The Gay Science
5. Cormac McCarthy- Blood Meridian or Suttree
6. Faulkner- Absalom Absalom!
7. John Milton- The Complete Poems
8. It’s hard to choose a favorite Dostoevsky, either The Brother’s Karamazov or Demons
9. Thomas Pynchon- Gravity’s Rainbow
10.Alexandre Dumas- The Count Of Monte Cristo
I liked your list. The only Aquinas I’ve read is ‘Confessions’ but I must admit I read it when I was too young. Have you read this one? Republic is a good book, I only read it maybe twice. I should read more Greek works. Looking forward to Summa Theologica someday. Some of the works I included were fiction but they contain philosophical themes. Blood Meridian is sometimes thought as a Gnostic text, I’ve read one paper where there is a Nietzsche influence, concerning the Judge. Absalom Absalom name derives from Absalom from the Bible and Gravity’s Rainbow is about science and WW2, the opening is very famous: “A screaming came across the sky.” Cheers, have a good day.
Aquinas didn't write Confessions. You're mixing him up with Augustine, who comes about 8 centuries earlier. And that's an excellent work, but if I was going to bring an Augustine book, it'd be City of God
@@GregoryBSadler That’s right, I checked my shelf. Silly mistake. If we don’t speak again, merry Christmas. I’ve been deleting some social media apps like Facebook Twitter and Twitch.
Great choices.
Thanks!
i really enjoy your channel ... thanks ALOT !
You're welcome
Gregory B. Sadler Please do a bookshelf tour
Mike Tyson.
That would take a very long time, I think
Myth of Sisyphus would be my top pick.
I'm a little amazed to see that some of the Stoic works aren't in here.
Discourses of Epictetus would definitely be on my list.
Check the date of the video
@@GregoryBSadler hmm... I would love to see you update this...
@@samisiddiqi5411 That's not how CZcams works. Once you've uploaded it, you can't effectively edit a video
@@GregoryBSadler oh no that's not what I mean.
I mean that you should do another video like this one, but from this year.
@@samisiddiqi5411 I think it would be a better use of my time at the present to do additional top 10 videos about other genres of work
This a fire video bro 🔥🔥. The republic is one im going through right now. You recommend reading confessions or city of God First?
You'll reread both, if you want to develop a solid understanding, so which one you pick first doesn't really matter
Because I put one of them twice, I would have to add plato's theory of forms.
appreciate the commentary
Glad you enjoyed it
Tongue in cheek
1.Euclid's Elements
2.Newton's Principia Mathematica
3.Euler's Analysis Infinitorum
4.Gauss's Diquisitiones Arithmeticae
5.Jacobi's Fundamenta Nova
6.Riemann's On the Number of Primes Less Than a Given Magnitude
7.Poincare's Analysis Situs
8.Ramanujan's Lost Notebook
9.Turing's On Computable Numbers, with an Application to the Entscheidungsproblem
10.Grothendieck's EGA
This is not philosophy.
@@mpcc2022 100% agree. Do you still want to be a mathematician? Haven't watched your vids in a while.
@@Israel2.3.2 Yes, I'm still pursuing a mathematics degree. I'll admit that your comment really surprised me. Don't worry about it, my videos are random and are not of the same philosophical depth as Sadler's if this what you're looking for. I'm assuming you have a degree in mathematics? How are things going for you?
@@mpcc2022 Only three quarters of a mathematics degree from a subpar university unfortunately. Ultimate goal is to acquire a phd in mathematics, specifically in algebraic geometry. My current project is to consume the major works of Leonhard Euler, ten textbooks in all as well as good deal of papers in number theory, physics and engineering. This will occupy my time until October at least.
I was planning on following Sadler's Phenomenology of Spirit lectures but I decided to postpone my reading of Hegel. I'll probably be 35 before I'm ready for that one lmao.
@@Israel2.3.2 Maybe other people don't see it this way, but if you get a mathematics degree from a half decent school it's worth something. The mathematician makes the degree. There are plenty of people that go to Stanford and don't do anything. I'm not going to Stanford that's just something a Bioengineering recruit from Stanford told me. Even in places where productivity is the supposed to be the norm, some people standout, other people don't, because nothing makes anyone anything reliably interesting other than their own efforts. That's a nice plan. Euler is an extraordinary genius among mathematical geniuses. Okay, what made you settle on algebraic number theory? I'm trying to find something that's the intersection of Number Theory, Geometry, and Combinatorics. Are you interested in applied mathematics, or pure mathematics; I ask because of your mentioning of physics and engineering.
I check out Sadler's videos, but I don't do his series, because, like you, I don't have the time. I just out right read 10 pages of the texts, because I only can manage a few pages of a philosophical work before bed, because I don't have any other time in my day to read philosophy really. Also, since it's not for a class it doesn't really matter if you get stuck or don't completely understand something at first you can always come back to it, or read it over, or look something up.
Dr. Sadler, just found your channel. Thank you. I can certainly see your passion for Philosophy and it's contagious. I am new to the subject, have never taken any classes or the like, but would like to start with some reading. As per your recommendations here, I just picked up the following:
The Republic
The Metaphysics
Pensees
City Of God
Meditations On First Philosophy
Which one do I read first?
Also, should I possible start with an Introduction to Philosophy book first?
+El Pizza Guapo I always suggest starting with Plato, but not the Republic. Rather the Meno, Ion, Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, and Phaedo
+Gregory B. Sadler Thank you for the reply. I'm assuming you're referring to the single volume, Five Dialogues: Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Meno, Phaedo (Hackett Classics).
That would work. You can, of course, find all of those dialogues for free, online
Of course, but for about $2 per book, no reason why I shouldn't just own them. Maybe the whole family will one day enjoy them.
Please, who can tell what edition of the Meditations this is? The only french version that includes the objections and replies that I found was horrible GF Flammarion edition (horrible in terms of cover, paper, font..). This one seems to be old, is it still available? Gregory B. Sadler
It's published by Presses Universitaires de France in 1970, translated and edited by Florence Khodos. A real gem
Yes a gem, definitely. I'll see if I can find it somewhere on the web. Thank you!
Professor where would Maurice Merleau-Ponty be on your list? Top 20? When I started going through Blondel I knew what Ponty meant with his constant mention of action, and I was amazed how his work not only used the good bits of Heidegger, Husserl, Bergson, Scheler, and Blondel, but also contributed to the history of ideas with a number of original thoughts. Do you like his thought?
He's interesting, but likely wouldn't be in my top 20
@@GregoryBSadler Is it because:A)His work about embodiement is mostly correct, but his scope of thought is still norrow.B)His work about embodiement is not on point, and you prefer somone like Marcel C) there are so many other superior philosophers that blow him out of the water or smth else
@@massacreee3028 It's because in the last 30+ years of studying philosophy, I've read hundreds of philosophers. Nobody actually needs reasons NOT to be in the top 20. They needs reasons to push the others out to get in there
Unexpected selection, I have never heard of Blondel and am surprised by how many "christian" philosophers you have included. What about Wittgenstein or the British Empiricists?
What would also be interesting is a "thematic" list that considers the setting of living on a desert island. Heidegger is definitely a great choice then. Imagine yourself sitting in a tropic Todtnauberg hut. Maybe also something in line with Chalmers' "Constructing The World", like Carnap's "The Logical Structure of the World".
Probably much less surprising for someone who knows or follows my work, or who has watched any of my other personal videos.
I've already discussed Hume and Locke in previous comments here. Wittgenstein, I've done an entire video about previously
Gregory B. Sadler yeah I've seen that a lot of your videos center around christian themes, I'll visit them later. A book that just came to my mind, although I've not yet read much of it, but seems to be very promising, is Eihei Dogen's "The True Dharma-Eye Treasury", a 2000-page massive essay collection on Zen Buddhism. Have you talked about Buddhism in any of your videos or articles?
I generally don't. It's enough for me to stick with the stuff I'm working on, which will likely keep me very busy for a while
Thus Spoke?
My thoughts exactly. Why use your time in the playgrounds of thought if you had to pick. Even on a desert island the understanding of the will to power is relevent and even usefull.
Interesting! Mine (only providing top 5, since top 10 would require a lot more thought) would be - Augustine's Confessions, Epicurus (the only three original texts that remained), Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit, Nietzsche's Thus Spoke Zarathustra, and probably Boethius' Consolation of Philosophy. Do you mind me asking why you'd pick Augustine's De civitate dei rather than Confessiones?
Well, I did mention my reasons in the video for picking City of God. . .
Dr. Sadler, have you read the philosophical works of Avicenna or any other great Muslim philosophers? If so, what are your thoughts about their ideas and contribution to the field of philosophy?
I've read some of them, but I'm by no means a scholar in the field of Islamic philosophy. They've got some interesting ideas to examine
I noticed you have Alasdair MacIntyre's "After Virtue". Thoughts on that book, communitarianism, and the man himself?
Perhaps down the line, in a video. In the mean time, I've got several videos on him you can watch, and a few writings as well, that you can find in Academia.edu
Thank you sir.
Just subbed after watching this. I was a student of literature who always approached philosophy with a great deal of skepticism, but I appreciate what you are doing here.
Maybe I would have more Bergson and Russell on my list.
And just one question: which historical era do you think created the most interesting philosophical work?
🍸
Which era? That's very tough for me to answer. . .
Nice discussion. One question though, of your top 5 which would you read first?
Thank you for all of your lectures!
You're asking which of the top 5 would I suggest someone else read first?
That would be good. Thank you.
Well, it definitely wouldn't be Hegel to start with! I suppose I'd say to start with the Plato or Descartes
Again Thank you.
good list.
Thanks!
Descartes as a sorbet
to cleanse your philosophical palate. LOL
We have a saying here in Germany,
"Never read Goethe in English,
Never read Keats in German,
But never read Hegel in any language" LOL
I agree that the opening up of other vistas
by a writer or book
makes it more rewarding especially on a reread
as you can dive off in so many other directions
Having read Karl Popper's
"The Open Society and Its Enemies"
(sometimes called "The Open Society by one of its Enemies")
I have a bias against Plato and Hegel
and so tend to avoid them in my reading.
I want to understand Heidegger
but am put off by what Lévinas described as
a lack of ethics - which meant he became a Nazi
and served the Nazi state so
have preferred to read Lévinas
and find him rewarding.
Yes. There are lots of quips abut Hegel.
I have three of your top five... I have much work to do
He also has his own special terminology
interesting vid, thanks!
You're welcome
Unfortunately, I think I need a desert island in order to examine Hegel and Heidegger as one should. Otherwise, just give me any ten of Bertrand Russell's books--a beautiful writer as well as a beautiful thinker. I would also like to take Ernest Becker's "Denial of Death," "Escape from Evil," and "The Birth and Death of Meaning." ...Kenneth Burke's "Language as Symbolic Action" and "Rhetoric of Motives." Every time I read Becker and Burke, I fell like Moses is splitting a sea in my head.
Anyway, I put Blondel's "Action" on my reading list. Thanks.
I'd actually debated about including Perelman's New Rhetoric.
As far as the Hegel goes, if you want to work through the Phenomenology at least, you might take a look at the Half-Hour Hegel series. I've shot 17 installments so far
Tbh I would bring Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan, and at least one philosophical fiction!
Well, you'd certainly get something interesting with Hobbes. The entire second half of the work - books 3 and 4 - are his weird theology
@@GregoryBSadler True, but I find in Parts I and II, one of my favourite accounts of man and morality in relation to power and the conditions of sociability.
As for the fiction, probably something Goethe.
1) thus spoken Zarathustra.
2) a critique of pure reason.
3) problems of philosophy.
4) the incoherence of the incoherent.
5) proof by ibn sina.
How to build a television set so I could watch reruns of Gilligan
Not philosophical
Okay, then. Give us your 10-philosophers-anything-you'd-like list. Loving your channel.
Well, I did already
No Kierkegaard?! *Gasp* Well, having Pascal there helps make up for that. Slightly. :) Seriously though, this was a fascinating video. This may show my ignorance but when it comes to metaphysics how does one determine what is true? I mean lets take Aristotle's four causes way of conceptualizing reality or Aquinas distinction between act and potency. How does one know that these are the best ways to conceptualize things? I mean I know that modern philosophers moved away from Aristotle's way of thinking but I don't know why or even how one would go about disputing such things. I guess that is part of the disagreement too. I mean in history or science it is easy to dispute things. One goes back to the sources or one does another experiment. How does one do this in metaphysics? Just considering all the things in metaphysics that I don't understand or just know a little bit about hurts my head.
Well, there's no simple answer (or rather, there's plenty of deficient simple answers) to that question.
I tend to see it this way: Any metaphysics that is going to worth entertaining must do justice to the whole range of reality and our experience of it. It should be able to address its rivals and predecessors, and make some reasonable case for why it provides a superior perspective.
+Gregory B. Sadler This answer you gave sounds *exactly* like the type of answer I'm accustomed to providing. You sound like the type of person who cares about over-arching, encompassing philosophical conclusions. Socrates, apparently was the same way. I find this to be a quality in people who are given to having a desire to believe the right things as much as it is humanly possible to do.
He looks like David foster Wallace as a chad
I'll have to take your word for that. Not a fan of the guy myself
Just one question. Dou you like Nietzsche/What do you think of Nietzsche?
I've got a whole Nietzsche playlist, as well as a video discussing my Nietzschean phase. Watch some of those, and you'll find the answers
Thank you very much :) i will
thank you
@@ralphkelm3254 i love nietzsche's thinking.
What do you think of something like the Enneads which is also pretty systematic? I've noticed that Neoplatonic stuff is seldom spoken of in comparison to other schools of Western philosophy. Why do you think Neoplatonism isn't given much attention even with its vast scope?
I think Plotinus is very cool, and if I was doing the "20 works. . ." , he would probably be on my list, or at least in contention.
Why isn't Neo-Platonic stuff discussed as much? It tends to get passed over when we teach philosophy (as used to also be the case with the Stoics and Epicureans), unless the instructor understands and likes it. Also, there's a bit more of a learning curve required in order to make sense of what is being discussed.
Interesting, so would you say that perhaps the difficulty is a bigger factor for it being passed over or is "dislike" or "distaste" a bigger factor based on your experience and experience you've had with your peers? Do philosophers today who still take interest in the classics as you do believe that Plotinus really did have genuine insights into things which others did not have? Do they think the criticisms he makes regarding Aristotle are well founded, considering Aristotle is taken so much more seriously and authoritatively? Sorry if that's too many questions lol, just curious. I personally am very into Plotinus because of the role his philosophical language and concepts play in the Nizari Ismaili Islamic school of thought (Definitely also a big contributor to other Islamic schools and Christianity as well) which I follow and so I've seen the insights that Plotinus has to be truly piercing.
Most of my peers in philosophy have never studied Plotinus or other neo-Platonists, period. They haven't got a distaste or dislike, since they'd have to know enough about his thought to have that reaction.
I'd say that when you're talking about "philosophers today who still take interest in the classics", you're actually talking about two very different groups.
There's the people who actually study the texts, keep up on the better research, and understand the history. An Aristotle scholar in that line is quite likely to know neo-Platonic stuff as well, and may well appreciate it.
Then there's the "great books" or "western civ" types, who usually have relied more on glosses and manuals rather than actually studying the text. They typically have some rather schematic and outdated "history of philosophy" stuck in their heads, one that says Aristotle is really great and the neo-Platonists not so much.
very interesting.......hmm. So it just gets passed over period. How unfortunate. But ya I can understand it, I'm reading a companion book by Lloyd Gerson right now that my mentor recommended and it's not at all easy but I found it made more sense when I look at what someone like Nasir Khusraw says for example in his works which basically use Neoplatonic concepts to illustrate three hyposteses of Ismaili thought: God, Universal Intellect and Universal Soul. But ya definitely something people should prolly look into more. It actually in that sense in very helpful in reconciling Islam and Christianity when it comes to the Trinity and the concept of tawhid though not completely since in Christianity I believe all the members of the Trinity are coequal whereas in Ismaili Islam, they are arranged in a hierarchy.