by Confucius (1998)
"Formulated in the ruins of a society that had been founded on untenable spiritualistic concepts of governance, Confucius' philosophy postulated a humanistic social order that has survived as China's social ideal ever since." "Confucius' teachings are very literary in nature. The Analects is made up of dialogues, stories, and anecdotes, always aphoristic and full of poetic turns of thought."--BOOK JACKET.
Elizabeth Rottenberg
This is an exploration of the notion of 'drive' as it passes from Kant's need of reason, to Freud's concept of hallucinatory wish fulfillment, to the relentless force of indifferentiation in Flaubert's 'Bouvard and Pécuchet'.
Edwin Curley
This book is the fruit of twenty-five years of study of Spinoza by the editor and translator of a new and widely acclaimed edition of Spinoza's collected works. Based on three lectures delivered at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1984, the work provides a useful focal point for continued discussion of the relationship between Descartes and Spinoza, while also serving as a readable and relatively brief but substantial introduction to the Ethics for students. Behind the Geometrical Method is actually two books in one. The first is Edwin Curley's text, which explains Spinoza's masterwork to readers who have little background in philosophy. This text will prove a boon to those who have tried to read the Ethics, but have been baffled by the geometrical style in which it is written. Here Professor Curley undertakes to show how the central claims of the Ethics arose out of critical reflection on the philosophies of Spinoza's two great predecessors, Descartes and Hobbes. The second book, whose argument is conducted in the notes to the text, attempts to support further the often controversial interpretations offered in the text and to carry on a dialogue with recent commentators on Spinoza. The author aligns himself with those who interpret Spinoza naturalistically and materialistically.
Robert B. Pippin
"In Henry James and Modern Moral Life, Professor Robert Pippin argues that James's fiction reveals a sophisticated theory of moral understanding and moral motivation. Pippin claims that James is engaged in a distinctive kind of original thinking and reflecting on modern moral life in his novels and short stories.". "Pippin further contends that James, in his sensitivity to the precarious and confusing situation of moral understanding in modern societies, both avoids skepticism and powerfully presents the nature of moral claims and dependence.". "Professor Pippin offers new interpretations of Portrait of a Lady, The Wings of the Dove, The Ambassadors, The Golden Bowl, and several of James's short stories, including The Beast in the Jungle and The Turn of the Screw, to support his case for James's moral philosophy."--BOOK JACKET.
Yu Dan, Yi Zhongtian zhu
The hostess of the highly rated CCTV forum program, Yu Dan, known for her witty and contemporary interpretation of Confucian philosophy, guides readers through Chinese classics.