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Humor And The Good Life In Modern Philosophy
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Book Synopsis Humor and the Good Life in Modern Philosophy by : Lydia B. Amir
Download or read book Humor and the Good Life in Modern Philosophy written by Lydia B. Amir and published by State University of New York Press. This book was released on 2014-01-23 with total page 406 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: By exploring the works of both Anthony Ashley Cooper, Third Earl of Shaftesbury, and Søren Kierkegaard, Lydia B. Amir finds a rich tapestry of ideas about the comic, the tragic, humor, and related concepts such as irony, ridicule, and wit. Amir focuses chiefly on these two thinkers, but she also includes Johann Georg Hamann, an influence of Kierkegaard's who was himself influenced by Shaftesbury. All three thinkers were devout Christians but were intensely critical of the organized Christianity of their milieux, and humor played an important role in their responses. The author examines the epistemological, ethical, and religious roles of humor in their philosophies and proposes a secular philosophy of humor in which humor helps attain the philosophic ideals of self-knowledge, truth, rationality, virtue, and wisdom.
Book Synopsis The Philosophy of Laughter and Humor by : John Morreall
Download or read book The Philosophy of Laughter and Humor written by John Morreall and published by Suny Press. This book was released on 1987 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book assesses the adequacy of the traditional theories of laughter and humor, suggests revised theories, and explores such areas as the aesthetics and ethics of humor, and the relation of amusement to other mental states. Theories of laughter and humor originated in ancient times with the view that laughter is an expression of feelings of superiority over another person. This superiority theory was held by Plato, Aristotle, and Hobbes. Another aspect of laughter, noted by Aristotle and Cicero and neglected until Kant and Schopenhauer developed it into the incongruity theory, is that laughter is often a reaction to the perception of some incongruity. According to the third and latest traditional theory, the relief theory of Herbert Spencer and Freud, laughter is the venting of superfluous nervous energy. Historical examples of all these theories are presented along with hybrid theories such as those of Descartes and Bergson. The book also features traditional explorations of the place of humor in aesthetics, drama, and literature. This is the first work in the last fifty years to include the classic sources in the philosophy of humor and the first to present theories by contemporary philosophers.
Book Synopsis Laughter, Humor, and Comedy in Ancient Philosophy by : Pierre Destrée
Download or read book Laughter, Humor, and Comedy in Ancient Philosophy written by Pierre Destrée and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2019-08-06 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ancient philosophers considered question about laughter, humor, and comedy to be both philosophically interesting and important. They theorized about laughter and its causes, moralized about the appropriate uses of humor and what it is appropriate to laugh at, and wrote treaties on comedic composition. They were often merciless in ridiculing their opponents' positions, borrowing comedic devices and techniques from comic poetry and drama to do so. This volume is organized around three sets of questions that illuminate the philosophical concerns and corresponding range of answers found in ancient philosophy. The first set investigates the psychology of laughter. What is going on in our minds when we laugh? What background conditions must be in place for laughter to occur? Is laughter necessarily hostile or derisive? The second set of questions concerns the ethical and social norms governing laughter and humor. When is it appropriate or inappropriate to laugh? Does laughter have a positive social function? Is there a virtue, or excellence, connected to laugher and humor? The third set of questions concerns the philosophical uses of humor and comedic technique. Do philosophers use humor exclusively in criticizing rivals, or can it play a positive educational role as well? If it can, how does philosophical humor communicate its philosophical content? This volume does not aim to settle these fascinating questions but more importantly to start a conversation about them, and serve as a reference point for discussions of laughter, humor, and comedy in ancient philosophy.
Book Synopsis The Legacy of Nietzsche’s Philosophy of Laughter by : Lydia Amir
Download or read book The Legacy of Nietzsche’s Philosophy of Laughter written by Lydia Amir and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2021-09-30 with total page 575 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book investigates the role of humor in the good life, specifically as discussed by three prominent French intellectuals who were influenced by Nietzsche's thought: Georges Bataille, Gilles Deleuze, and Clément Rosset. Lydia Amir begins by discussing Nietzsche’s reception in France, and she explains why and how he came to be considered a "philosopher of laughter" in the French academe. Each of the subsequent three chapters focuses on the significance of humor and laughter in the good life as advocated by Bataille, Deleuze, and Rosset. These chapters also explore the complex relationship between the comic and the tragic, and of humor and laughter to irony, satire, and ridicule. The Legacy of Nietzsche’s Philosophy of Laughter makes an invaluable contribution to recent interpretive work done on Bataille and Deleuze, and offers further introduction to the relatively understudied Rosset. It illuminates the philosophies of these three thinkers, their connection to Nietzsche, and, overall, the significant role that humor plays in philosophy.
Download or read book Comedy, Seriously written by D. Nikulin and published by Palgrave Macmillan. This book was released on 2015-12-18 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Comedy, Seriously provides a philosophical interpretation of comedy and argues that comedy displays a particular kind of rationality that reflects philosophical thinking. In particular, that comedy is defined not so much by laughter or jokes, but rather the structure of its plot, which is isomorphic with that of the philosophical argument. Comedy allows for the resolution of a conflict and the achievement of well-being and equality through action that follows the comic plot. Moreover, such action is propelled by the 'thinker on stage,' who, as socially and politically oppressed, contributes to the liberation of all and the achievement of the good life. Comedy, therefore, establishes the universal pattern for justice and well-being and allows us to rethink the notion of subjectivity not as the modern isolated subject, but rather as integrated with others through shared action and dialogical involvement.
Book Synopsis Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar . . . by : Thomas Cathcart
Download or read book Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar . . . written by Thomas Cathcart and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2008-06-24 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This New York Times bestseller is the hilarious philosophy course everyone wishes they’d had in school. Outrageously funny, Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar... has been a breakout bestseller ever since authors—and born vaudevillians—Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein did their schtick on NPR’s Weekend Edition. Lively, original, and powerfully informative, Plato and a Platypus Walk Into a Bar... is a not-so-reverent crash course through the great philosophical thinkers and traditions, from Existentialism (What do Hegel and Bette Midler have in common?) to Logic (Sherlock Holmes never deduced anything). Philosophy 101 for those who like to take the heavy stuff lightly, this is a joy to read—and finally, it all makes sense! And now, you can read Daniel Klein's further musings on life and philosophy in Travels with Epicurus and Every Time I Find the Meaning of Life, They Change it.
Download or read book Jokes written by Ted Cohen and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2008-04-15 with total page 112 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Abe and his friend Sol are out for a walk together in a part of town they haven't been in before. Passing a Christian church, they notice a curious sign in front that says "$1,000 to anyone who will convert." "I wonder what that's about," says Abe. "I think I'll go in and have a look. I'll be back in a minute; just wait for me." Sol sits on the sidewalk bench and waits patiently for nearly half an hour. Finally, Abe reappears. "Well," asks Sol, "what are they up to? Who are they trying to convert? Why do they care? Did you get the $1,000?" Indignantly Abe replies, "Money. That's all you people care about." Ted Cohen thinks that's not a bad joke. But he also doesn't think it's an easy joke. For a listener or reader to laugh at Abe's conversion, a complicated set of conditions must be met. First, a listener has to recognize that Abe and Sol are Jewish names. Second, that listener has to be familiar with the widespread idea that Jews are more interested in money than anything else. And finally, the listener needs to know this information in advance of the joke, and without anyone telling him or her. Jokes, in short, are complicated transactions in which communities are forged, intimacy is offered, and otherwise offensive stereotypes and cliches lose their sting—at least sometimes. Jokes is a book of jokes and a book about them. Cohen loves a good laugh, but as a philosopher, he is also interested in how jokes work, why they work, and when they don't. The delight at the end of a joke is the result of a complex set of conditions and processes, and Cohen takes us through these conditions in a philosophical exploration of humor. He considers questions of audience, selection of joke topics, the ethnic character of jokes, and their morality, all with plenty of examples that will make you either chuckle or wince. Jokes: more humorous than other philosophy books, more philosophical than other humor books. "Befitting its subject, this study of jokes is . . . light, funny, and thought-provoking. . . . [T]he method fits the material, allowing the author to pepper the book with a diversity of jokes without flattening their humor as a steamroller theory might. Such a book is only as good as its jokes, and most of his are good. . . . [E]ntertainment and ideas in one gossamer package."—Kirkus Reviews "One of the many triumphs of Ted Cohen's Jokes-apart from the not incidental fact that the jokes are so good that he doesn't bother to compete with them-is that it never tries to sound more profound than the jokes it tells. . . . [H]e makes you feel he is doing an unusual kind of philosophy. As though he has managed to turn J. L. Austin into one of the Marx Brothers. . . . Reading Jokes makes you feel that being genial is the most profound thing we ever do-which is something jokes also make us feel-and that doing philosophy is as natural as being amused."—Adam Phillips, London Review of Books "[A] lucid and jargon-free study of the remarkable fact that we divert each other with stories meant to make us laugh. . . . An illuminating study, replete with killer jokes."—Kevin McCardle, The Herald (Glasgow) "Cohen is an ardent joke-maker, keen to offer us a glimpse of how jokes are crafted and to have us dwell rather longer on their effects."—Barry C. Smith, Times Literary Supplement "Because Ted Cohen loves jokes, we come to appreciate them more, and perhaps think further about the quality of good humor and the appropriateness of laughter in our lives."—Steve Carlson, Christian Science Monitor
Book Synopsis Women in Philosophical Counseling by : Luisa de Paula
Download or read book Women in Philosophical Counseling written by Luisa de Paula and published by Lexington Books. This book was released on 2015-04-23 with total page 323 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With contributions from eighteen professional women counselors from twelve different countries, this book is the first to provide an overview of new-born philosophical practices from an entirely female perspective. It gives voice to women's thoughts and brings to the reader a living portrait of philosophy as a service to people and a training for those in search of a fully lived existence. As the authors draw on first-hand experience, their philosophical analyses intertwine with changes in attitudes and real-life stories, unearthing that forgotten soul of philosophical thought which our ancestors referred to as the Anima. The book provides a lively, sprightly and vivacious picture of how philosophy is used in practice, a long way from the rigidness and stereotypical severity of its traditional image. It will not fail to inspire readers to live their thoughts and think their lives.
Book Synopsis Rethinking Philosophers' Responsibility by : Lydia Amir
Download or read book Rethinking Philosophers' Responsibility written by Lydia Amir and published by Cambridge Scholars Publishing. This book was released on 2017-11-06 with total page 341 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Calling on philosophers as the custodians of rationality to reconsider their responsibility toward their communities and the state of civilization at large, this book considers philosophy to be a practical discipline. Largely foreign to philosophers and non-philosophers alike, this conception of philosophy discloses the relevance of its unique contributions to contemporary society. The book offers a compelling and accessible analysis of philosophy also in relation to religion, psychology, the New Age Movement, and globalization, and exemplifies through a wide range of current problems how philosophers can fulfil their responsibility. Its argument that responsibility lies where one is capable of doing what is needed, and even more so, when no one else can do it, targets philosophers. However, its innovative study of contemporary philosophy coupled with its original contributions to the problems at hand will engage academics and students from other disciplines, as well as a general readership.
Book Synopsis Taking Philosophy Seriously by : Lydia Amir
Download or read book Taking Philosophy Seriously written by Lydia Amir and published by Cambridge Scholars Publishing. This book was released on 2019-01-17 with total page 504 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Taking Philosophy Seriously initiates a meta-philosophical dialogue that challenges the division between academic and practical philosophy. In contradistinction to the perfectionist tradition of philosophy, it offers a melioristic view of philosophy that rethinks the approach to philosophy, reinvigorates its academic teaching and secures the respectability of its practitioners outside the academe. It addresses the neglected topic of philosophers’ education through a subtle analysis of the mentor-apprentice relationship and the remedies philosophers have found to its tensions. It reveals the problems inherent in emulating past practical philosophies from Alexandrian times, the Enlightenment or the 19th century, and the necessity of reevaluating the tools, reconsidering the means, and rethinking the methods of the contemporary practice of philosophy. To that purpose, it problematizes the notions of dialogue, self-knowledge, and self-transformation, and questions the feasibility of autonomy and self-integration as well as the differentiation between philosophy and psychology. It offers original solutions to the problems it highlights and points to unique benefits in the practice of philosophy that contribute to resolving the contemporary crisis of philosophy. This book combines high academic standards and an accessible style, and will engage academic and practical philosophers alike, professionals in education and the helping professions, and the general public.
Book Synopsis The Philosophy of Tolkien by : Peter Kreeft
Download or read book The Philosophy of Tolkien written by Peter Kreeft and published by Ignatius Press. This book was released on 2009-09-03 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: While nothing can equal or replace the adventure in reading ; Tolkienಙs masterwork, The Lord of the ; Rings, Peter Kreeft says that the journey into its ; underlying philosophy can be another exhilarating ; adventure. Thus, Kreeft takes the reader on a voyage ; of discovery into the philosophical bones of Middle earth. ; He organizes the philosophical themes in The Lord of the ; Rings into 50 categories, accompanied by over 1,000 ; references to the text of Lord.Since many of the great ; questions of philosophy are included in the 50-theme ; outline, this book can also be read as an engaging ; introduction to philosophy. For each of the philosophical ; topics in Lord, Kreeft presents tools by which they can be ; understood. Illustrated.
Book Synopsis The Humor of Kierkegaard by : Søren Kierkegaard
Download or read book The Humor of Kierkegaard written by Søren Kierkegaard and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2004-07-26 with total page 356 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Who might reasonably be nominated as the funniest philosopher of all time? With this anthology, Thomas Oden provisionally declares Søren Aabye Kierkegaard (1813-1855) -- despite his reputation as the melancholy, despairing Dane -- as, among philosophers, the most amusing. Kierkegaard not only explored comic perception to its depths but also practiced the art of comedy as astutely as any writer of his time. This collection shows how his theory of comedy is integrated into his practice of comic perception, and how both are integral to his entire authorship. "The Humor of Kierkegaard" is for anyone ready to be amused by human follies. Those new to Kierkegaard will discover a dazzling mind worth meeting. Those already familiar with his theory of comedy will be delighted to see it concisely set forth and exemplified. -- From publisher's description.
Book Synopsis Philosophy, Humor, and the Human Condition by : Lydia Amir
Download or read book Philosophy, Humor, and the Human Condition written by Lydia Amir and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2019-12-19 with total page 314 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents an original worldview, Homo risibilis, wherein self-referential humor is proposed as the path leading from a tragic view of life to a liberating embrace of human ridicule. Humor is presented as a conceptual tool for holding together contradictions and managing the unresolvable conflict of the human condition till Homo risibilis resolves the inherent tension without epistemological cost. This original approach to the human condition allows us to effectively address life’s ambiguities without losing sight of its tragic overtones and brings along far-ranging personal and social benefits. By defining the problem that other philosophies and many religions attempt to solve in terms we can all relate to, Homo risibilis enables an understanding of the Other that surpasses mere tolerance. Its egalitarian vision roots an ethic of compassion without requiring metaphysical or religious assumptions and liberates the individual for action on others’ behalf. It offers a new model of rationality which effectively handles and eventually resolves the tension between oneself, others, and the world at large. Amir’s view of the human condition transcends the field of philosophy of humor. An original worldview that fits the requirements of traditional philosophy, Homo risibilis is especially apt to answer contemporary concerns. It embodies the minimal consensus we need in order to live together and the active role philosophy should responsibly play in a global world. Here developed for the first time in a complete way, the Homo risibilis worldview is not only liberating in nature, but also illuminates the shortcomings of other philosophies in their attempts to secure harmony in a disharmonious world for a disharmonious human being.
Book Synopsis The Socratic Handbook by : Michael Noah Weiss
Download or read book The Socratic Handbook written by Michael Noah Weiss and published by LIT Verlag Münster. This book was released on 2015 with total page 440 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this book, 34 renowned philosophical practitioners from 20 different countries present a variety of dialogue methods for philosophical practice, which have never before been published in such a compact and compiled form. By having Socrates and his method of maieutics (the art of midwifery of the soul, as he called it) as one of its main sources of inspiration, the book offers different methodological approaches in order to prompt people to wonder, to reflect, to change perspective, and to think differently; in short, to make people philosophize about life and the way they live it. (Series: Report of the Global Ethic Initiative Austria / Schriftenreihe der Initiative Weltethos Osterreich - Vol. 9) [Subject: Philosophy]
Book Synopsis Saturday Night Live and Philosophy by :
Download or read book Saturday Night Live and Philosophy written by and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2020-01-28 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This hilarious cast of star philosophers will make you laugh while you think as they explore the moral conundrums, ridiculous paradoxes, and wild implications of Saturday Night Live Comedian-philosophers from Socrates to Sartre have always prodded and provoked us, critiquing our most sacred institutions and urging us to examine ourselves in the process. In Saturday Night Live and Philosophy, a star-studded cast of philosophers takes a close look at the “deep thoughts” beneath the surface of NBC’s award-winning late-night variety show and its hosts’ zany antics. In this book, philosophy and comedy join forces, just like the Ambiguously Gay Duo, to explore the meaning of life itself through the riffs and beats of the subversive parody that gives the show its razor-sharp wit and undeniable cultural and political significance. Our guest hosts raise some eyebrows with questions like: Is Weekend Update Fake News? Does SNL upset dominant paradigms or trap us in political bubbles? When it comes to SNL, how can we tell the difference between satire, smart-assery, and seriousness? Is the Ladies Man too stupid for moral responsibility? What is the benefit of jokes that cause outrage? The Church Lady has a bad case of moral superiority. How about you? What can Wayne and Garth teach us about living a happy life?
Book Synopsis Ars Vitae by : Elisabeth Lasch-Quinn
Download or read book Ars Vitae written by Elisabeth Lasch-Quinn and published by University of Notre Dame Pess. This book was released on 2020-10-15 with total page 567 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Despite the flood of self-help guides and our current therapeutic culture, feelings of alienation and spiritual longing continue to grip modern society. In this book, Elisabeth Lasch-Quinn offers a fresh solution: a return to classic philosophy and the cultivation of an inner life. The ancient Roman philosopher Cicero wrote that philosophy is ars vitae, the art of living. Today, signs of stress and duress point to a full-fledged crisis for individuals and communities while current modes of making sense of our lives prove inadequate. Yet, in this time of alienation and spiritual longing, we can glimpse signs of a renewed interest in ancient approaches to the art of living. In this ambitious and timely book, Elisabeth Lasch-Quinn engages both general readers and scholars on the topic of well-being. She examines the reappearance of ancient philosophical thought in contemporary American culture, probing whether new stirrings of Gnosticism, Stoicism, Epicureanism, Cynicism, and Platonism present a true alternative to our current therapeutic culture of self-help and consumerism, which elevates the self’s needs and desires yet fails to deliver on its promises of happiness and healing. Do the ancient philosophies represent a counter-tradition to today’s culture, auguring a new cultural vibrancy, or do they merely solidify a modern way of life that has little use for inwardness—the cultivation of an inner life—stemming from those older traditions? Tracing the contours of this cultural resurgence and exploring a range of sources, from scholarship to self-help manuals, films, and other artifacts of popular culture, this book sees the different schools as organically interrelated and asks whether, taken together, they can point us in important new directions. Ars Vitae sounds a clarion call to take back philosophy as part of our everyday lives. It proposes a way to do so, sifting through the ruins of long-forgotten and recent history alike for any shards helpful in piecing together the coherence of a moral framework that allows us ways to move forward toward the life we want and need.
Book Synopsis Philosophy as a Way of Life by : Pierre Hadot
Download or read book Philosophy as a Way of Life written by Pierre Hadot and published by Wiley-Blackwell. This book was released on 1995-08-03 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents a history of spiritual exercises from Socrates to early Christianity, an account of their decline in modern philosophy, and a discussion of the different conceptions of philosophy that have accompanied the trajectory and fate of the theory and practice of spiritual exercises. Hadot's book demonstrates the extent to which philosophy has been, and still is, above all else a way of seeing and of being in the world.
