One of the most famous works from classical antiquity is Plato's «Symposium». The symposium of this work is more literally translated to mean a dinner-party. At this dinner-party several notable figures from classical antiquity, including Phaedrus, Pausanias, Eryximachus, Aristophanes, Agathon, and Socrates in turn give speeches in praise of the god of love. An intriguing dialogue, «Symposium», is a must read for any student of classical an ...
"The Basic Writings of Nietzsche" collects some of the most famous and representative works of German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. In this anthology you will find complete editions of «The Birth of Tragedy,» a work of dramatic theory written early in the philosopher's career, «Beyond Good and Evil,» a polemic critique of past philosophers in regards to their considerations of morality, «On the Genealogy of Morals,» which would expo ...
First written in 1757, this treatise on aesthetics provides a distinct transition from Neoclassicism to Romanticism. This is apparent in Burke's ultimate preference for the Sublime over the Beautiful, for he defined the latter as that which is well-formed and aesthetically pleasing and the former as that which has the power to compel or destroy mankind. Within this text, Burke also posits that the origin of these ideas comes by way of their ...
Philosopher David Hume was considered to one of the most important figures in the age of Scottish enlightenment. In «An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding» Hume discusses the weakness that humans have in their abilities to comprehend the world around them, what is referred to in the title as human understanding. This work, now commonly required reading in philosophy classes, exposed a broad audience to philosophy when it was first published. ...
The «Protagoras», like several of the Dialogues of Plato, is put into the mouth of Socrates, who describes a conversation which had taken place between himself and the great Sophist at the house of Callias-'the man who had spent more upon the Sophists than all the rest of the world'-and in which the learned Hippias and the grammarian Prodicus had also shared, as well as Alcibiades and Critias, both of whom said a few words-in the prese ...
Friedrich Schiller was a German philosopher, poet, and playwright during the late 1700's. Schiller was in the army when he began writing his first plays. His superiors found his first composition and immediately told him that he was no longer allowed to write anymore. In response, Schiller deserted the army, moved to another country, and began writing under a false name. During this time, Schiller became close with famed playwright Johann W ...
Considered one of the most important works of literature in Western Civilization, Desiderius Erasmus's essay, «Praise of Folly», is a classic satirical work in the style of Lucian, the ancient Greek, in which the Goddess of Folly extols the virtues of frivolousness and indulgence of ones passions and then turns to a satirical examination of Christian piousness. In a humorously satirical way, «Praise of Folly» examines the abuses of power of ...
It was called «The Birth of Tragedy from the Spirit of Music.» In a preface, subsequently published, the author, whose style had in the mean time undergone a complete transformation, bids us observe that «behind this questionable book lay a problem of the first rank and enticement, but likewise a deep personal interest.» Certain is it that in «The Birth of Tragedy» we may discern «that unbodied figure of the thought, which gave it surmised shape ...
Considered one of Friedrich Nietzsche's most important works, «The Genealogy of Morals» is a collection of three essays concerning the author's «thoughts on the origin of our moral prejudices.» In the three essays («Good and Evil, Good and Bad», " «Guilt, Bad Conscience, and the like», and «What is the meaning of ascetic ideals?») Nietzsche reflects upon the genealogical hypothesis of morality put forth in Paul Ree's work «The Ori ...
