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Good Philosophical Books

Bill Cosby

Bill Cosby

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Jun 22, 2011
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I'm looking for a good book to get into that offers philosophical thoughts/ideas/advice
Things like The Prince (Machiavelli) The Confucian Analects, The 48 Laws of Power, Zen Koans etc.

I'm in the mood for some life lessons. Suggestions?
 
War and Peace by Tolstoy
Thus Spoke/Spake Zarathustra by Friedrich Nietzsche
Human, All Too Human by Friedrich Nietzsche
Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
Faust by Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe
Vanity Fair by William Thackeray
Siddhartha by Herman Hesse
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig (highly recommended)
Godel, Escher, Bach: an Eternal Golden Braid by William Hofstadter
Republic by Plato

These books have helped guide my life, though I haven't completed War and Peace yet. Best of luck in your travels, I hope they're fruitful.

Edit: See first, think second, read third, and, most importantly, speak last.
 
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Arthur Schopenhauer, Karl Marx, Jean Jaques Rosseou,
and my favorite: Yamamoto Tsunetomo
 
Arthur Schopenhauer, Karl Marx, Jean Jaques Rosseou,
and my favorite: Yamamoto Tsunetomo
 
Ishmael by Daniel Quinn.
You'll question basically everything about the way you live your life.
 
Observe life, that's my suggestion. The greats watch life and nothing more then having a jolly good think about it.

Read books to confirm the consensus if need be, but philosophy is about looking. Talks work better if you want ideas of others because there is no argument over definition, rhetoric or intent. My suggestion academic wise, anything by Alan Watts as a basis (or framework) then build on the system (its nice and flexible unlike others like Nietzsche, miserable bastard) .
 
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I'm into existentialism and zen, so many of these follow those tones. Some, however, do not.

Fictional Stories with Philosophical Under/Overtones:
The Stranger (or other Albert Camus books. I prefer this one.)
The Mysterious Stranger (Mark Twain, and WOW)
Anthem (short) or The Fountainhead (long) by Ayn Rand
Fight Club (Chuck Palahniuk) (Or watch the movie)
Slaughterhouse-Five or Breakfast of Champions (Kurt Vonnegut. Some may dispute this as philosophy, but I say they have some of the profound philosophical themes and phrases I've read.)
Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)
1984 and Animal Farm (George Orwell)
Man's Search for Meaning (Viktor Frankl, actual story of WWII concentration camp survivor)

Essays and non-story form philosophy:
The Myth of Sisyphus (Albert Camus. The first three chapters are amazing. Fourth, not so much.)
The Virtue of Selfishness (Ayn Rand and Nathaniel Brandon. Collection of essays.)
Wage Labour and Capital (Karl Marx)
The Way We Are (Allen Wheelis)
The Socratic Dialogs (Euthyphro and Apology were my favorites. The cave analogy too.)
The Picture of Dorian Gray (Oscar Wilde. Anything said by Henry Wotton in that book. His aphorisms and other quotes are also wonderful.)
The Enlightenment Trilogy (Jed McKenna... I'm currently rereading these. Book 1 is Spiritual Enlightenment: The Damnedest Thing)

I thought about not adding these, but if you're interested in movies...
American Beauty (Self-Deception and Conformity)
Fight Club (Existentialism, Zen, Anarchy, Self-Deception, Conformity)
I Heart Huckabees (Existentialism)
Office Space (Conformity)
Cast Away (Exile and Return)
About Schmidt (Self-Deception and Impermanence)
Magnolia (Gray areas, Self-Deception, Honesty)
Batman: The Dark Knight (Impermanence, Order and Chaos, Conformity)

Hope that halps! :D
 
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Oh! As far as Alan Watts goes... I found his lectures to be even more amazing than his books. He's got a gift for speaking! Youtube a go go!
 
Nicomachean Ethics (Aristotle)
Art of War (Sun Tzu)
The Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi and Thomas Cleary
The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene
On War by Carl von Clausewitz
The Power of Myth (Joseph Campbell)
The Art of Rhetoric (Aristotle)
Being and Time (Martin Heidegger)
A Critique of Pure Reason (Immanuel Kant)
Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion (David Hume)
The Book of The Law: Liber Al Vel Legis (Aleister Crowley)
 
The Hero With a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell
Island by Aldous Huxley
A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick
And Moby Dick has been pretty awesome thus far, but I'm only about a third of the way in so take that with a grain of salt
 
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Hi Bill

The "Meditations" by Marcus Aurelius are amazing, written almost 2000 years ago, and still so true (in my oppinion). So is the Encheiridion by Epictetus, also a greek stoic philospher.

"What I believe" by Hans Kung, a very liberal Christian theologist, to me was a very liberating read, without wanting to go into religion here.

Tom
 
Seinfeld and Philosophy
The Simpsons and Philosophy
Family Guy and Philosophy
South Park and Philosophy
 
"Plato and a Platypus walk into a bar" is a great read and helps simplify a wide range of philosophical concepts.
 
A Brief History of Everything by Ken Wilber
Savor by Thich Nhat Hanh & Lilian Cheung
 
Hamlet, of course! I mostly say this because, in my opinion, if a reader takes the time to really read deeply into the text, one can get a lot out of Hamlet. It asks a lot of big questions and offers lots of interesting thoughts that are differently interpreted by each reader.

Other than that, I would recommend looking into the hard sci-fi genre. Arthur C. Clarke is one of the biggest philosophers for me. Try 2001: A Space Odyssey. The beginning suggests that alien interaction with early human life is the reason for our advancement. Which, if thought about enough, really makes sense. I mean, evolution does not explain everything. There's too much of a jump in our capabilities. What inspired us to first start using tools? Or what inspired us to understand that other humans were able to be killed, captured or made slaves? Clarke suggests that this inspiration had to be planted within us by a superior race. Another good one by him is Childhood's End.

The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russel is another excellent book - a little less philosophical, but it's an excellent read that really changes perspectives for the reader.

I would finally recommend Into the Forest by Jean Hegland. This book is philosophical in the sense that it makes the reader ask, "Would I be able to do that in this situation?" It takes place in the near future when our system crashes and all oil is depleted. It's a very, very quick read and well worth it. If you're not into female writers (I usually am not), really try going for this one. It is a feminine writing voice, but it's very well done and thoroughly engaging.
 
Oh, and if you're into liberal writers (which I'm sure where you stand on that), anything by Kurt Vonnegut is a good, philosophical read. Of course, the philosophy is always buried within fiction or satire, but that just makes it more enjoyable.
 
I am not interested in philosophy per se, to read and to know it as a theory; I only care for the practical side and for that...
"The Little Prince" by Antoine de Saint-Exupery did it for me; feel free to say it's a children's book and also know your child inside needs it XD (damn, I was deep!)
lib_xkllWL.jpg


then there is Buddhist philosophy and I could say for a beginner like me, this other book was most welcomed and appreciated (because of the wide spectrum and educational approach):

Cargo_Sophie-s%20World_cover3.jpeg
 
detectivepope said:
My suggestion academic wise, anything by Alan Watts as a basis (or framework) then build on the system (its nice and flexible unlike others like Nietzsche, miserable bastard) .
Click to expand...
I have a soft spot for Nietzshe. If it weren't for time and space I'd make him a cup of tea and take him bowling.

Nietzshe and The Vicious Cycle- Klossowski http://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/N/bo3644209.html
Tao Te Ching- Stephen Mitchell translation http://www.amazon.com/dp/0060916087/?tag=infjs-20 Beautiful translation, capturing the essence of the original very well.
Awareness- Anthony De Mello http://www.amazon.com/dp/0385249373/?tag=infjs-20 Sober reflection on life and the importance of awareness. No fat on the meat here. ;)
Mysticism- F.C Happold http://www.amazon.com/dp/0140137467/?tag=infjs-20 Though with a Christian bias, a good overall introduction to mysticism. I think a good read.
Love's Excecutioner and Other Tales Of Psychotherapy- Irvin D. Yalom http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0140128468/?tag=infjs-21
A very interesting book about interesting cases, with interesting human issues.

...here's one recent read, completely sensationalist but I read it for fun and enjoyed much more than a gossip magazine:
Philosophers Behaving Badly- Rogers, Thompson http://www.philosophynow.org/issues/65/Philosophers_Behaving_Badly_by_Nigel_Rodgers_and_Mel_Thompson

For those interested in artists (in this case musicians) two gems which I can wholehearted recommend :) You can find good insight on the artistic process and lots of descriptive stories of the real issues artists face:
Just Kids- Patti Smith http://www.amazon.com/dp/006621131X/?tag=infjs-20
Tori Amos: Piece By Piece- Ann Powers http://www.amazon.com/dp/076791676X/?tag=infjs-20
 
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