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Philosophical Books Recommendations

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Atrex

Member
I would like to read some more philosophical books from any era, and i am interested in what you guys recommend. Thanks.
 

White Man

Member
foucault.jpeg


Excerpt:

http://web.ics.purdue.edu/~felluga/punish.html

A fine and interesting introduction to power structures and the Technologies of Power. Very graphic.
 
Philosophy, Who Needs It - Ayn Rand

Actually a collection of essays. The essay that shares the title can be found here.

16 Laws of Success - Napoleon Hill

Written by a man who dedicated his life to the study of success and successful people in the early 20th century. Very good and applicable.
 

Triumph

Banned
Cosmic Trigger by Robert Anton Wilson
The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell
Siddhartha by Herman Hesse
Narcissus and Goldman by Herman Hesse

Eat a whole shit ton of halucinogens and then read these books.
 

Aurum

Member
If you were interested in Foucault, I'd actually suggest "Power/Knowledge" (a collection of essays) or Rabinow's "Foucault Reader" before diving into something like D+P ... better to get a solid background first, IMO.

It's hard to recommend a specific philosophy book unless you really specify what area of philosophy you're interested in. Naming some general area (even something as broad as analytic or continental philosophy) would help.

And for the love of god, don't read Ayn Rand.

If you've never done any type of philosophy reading before and just want somewhere to start, I'd start with one of the following authors:

-Plato (Euthyphro, Crito, the Apology, Symposium, etc - all easy to read and good general introductions to philosophic thought)

-Nietszsche (The Gay Science, Groundwork for the Geneology of Morals, Beyond Good and Evil - a good starting point for most modern philosophy, especially if you're interested in reading Heidegger, Sartre, Foucault, or others eventually)

-Wittgenstein (Tractatus, Philosophical Investigations - might not be the best place to start, but if you're into analytic philosophy this would be very interesting)
 

White Man

Member

AntoneM

Member
White Man said:
Tractatus Logico Philosophicus by Ludwig Wittgenstein!

Actually, if you want a good overview of both Popper and Wittgenstein, their lives, their work, and the philosophical climate of the early 20th century, check out:

wittgenstein.jpg


Wow, an entire post on philosophy by myself without mentioning a single french person.

I second this book, a fun read for anyone
 

StoOgE

First tragedy, then farce.
the Tractatus is crap. Its all about Philosophical Investigations. Neo Wittgenstein > Old Wittgenstein.

But read the Tractatus first.. you would kinda miss the boat on Investigations without the first.

Also, reading some Frege and Russel first is a good idea. Arthur Schopenhauer should be read also. Anyway, read alot of their stuff.. then the Tractatus.. then the Investigations, and your world will be absolutely blown away around 300 pages in :D
 

White Man

Member
max_cool said:
I second this book, a fun read for anyone



Tractatus Logico Philosophicus is a fun read, Soon to be a a big summer blockbuster buddy-cop flick with Tom Arnold as some sort of side-kick in it,

Wittgenstein's Poker Really got me interested in the wirk of all involved parties. It's a super well-written boook. Highest recicommendations.
 

Dilbert

Member
Remind me never to come to you guys for STARTER philosophy book recommendations. Holy crap, you're going to scar this guy for life!

I'd recommend Mortimer Adler's Six Great Ideas as a good starter. From there, you can branch into more traditional philosophical texts, but it's an accessible book for people who aren't necessarily used to thinking critically about the "big ideas" in life.
 

Atrex

Member
-jinx- said:
Remind me never to come to you guys for STARTER philosophy book recommendations. Holy crap, you're going to scar this guy for life!


haha im not altogether new to the realm of philosophy i have read Siddhartha, Narcissus, several novels from albert kamus, and franz kafka(although not exactly philosophy books), Phaedo and Republic from Plato, Dantes Divine Comedy(again not really a philosophy book)....and several other things...basically i am open and eager to read anything preferrably something dark, twisted, or completely strange....but yet still reasonable and logical of course, thanks for all of the suggestions so far i knew i could count on this forum :).
 

paul777

Banned
Atrex said:
haha im not altogether new to the realm of philosophy i have read Siddhartha, Narcissus, several novels from albert kamus, and franz kafka(although not exactly philosophy books), Phaedo and Republic from Plato, Dantes Divine Comedy(again not really a philosophy book)....and several other things...basically i am open and eager to read anything preferrably something dark, twisted, or completely strange....but yet still reasonable and logical of course, thanks for all of the suggestions so far i knew i could count on this forum :).

If you're interested in epistemology, Descartes's Meditations on First Philosophy is a good way to start. It's a pretty easy read, and he is a part of the foundation that Hume, Kant, and Wittgenstein build upon later. Also, his methodological skepticism could be considered uncommon/strange.
 
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