The Great Philosophers: Xenophanes, Democritus, Empedocles, Bruno, Epicurus, Boehme, Schelling, Leibniz, Aristotle, Hegel (The Great Philosophers, Volume III) (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Michael Ermarth (Author), Leonard H. Ehrlich (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Scrutinizing 10 philosophers from Epicurus to Hegel, Jaspers, the famed German existentialist (1883-1969), extracts the living essence of each philosopher's wisdom in these higly individualistic critiques. For Jaspers, Giordano Bruno, the Italian wandering scholar burnt at the stake by the Inquisition, is the founder of modern pantheism, while Democritus, the ancient Greek atomist, showed that "it is possible to live, without God, in tranquillity, serene and active." Jaspers also discusses the egalitarianism of philosophical poet Xenophanes; Empedocles as a self-styled prophet and savior; Aristotle's pursuit of truth through the intellect; religious mystic Jakob Boehme; and the systems of Leibniz and Schelling. Translated from the 1981 German edition of Jaspers's posthumous writings, this searching study complements the first two volumes of The Great Philosophers which were published in the 1960s.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Containing Volumes 3 and 4 of Jaspers's overview of individual philosophers through history, this translation includes his presentations of the systems, ideas, and historical significances of Xenophanes, Democritus, Empedocles, Bruno, Epicurus, Boehme, Aristotle, Schelling, Leibniz, and Hegel. Some chapters are simply edited lectures, but the individuals are given evenhanded and lucid treatment. All quotations are rendered by the translators into English, so that this book is truly available to lay readers with little or no academic training. Because of its clarity and the individuals covered, it belongs in most public and academic collections, while scholars will be interested in Jaspers's choices of characterizations of both the thinkers and their systems.
- Francisca Goldsmith, Berkeley P.L., Cal. Poetry
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 396 pages
• Publisher: Harcourt (November 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0151369429
• ISBN-13: 978-0151369423
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,554,290 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a splendid and wonderful book, November 21, 1998

By	Sean O'connell([e-mail]) (Palatine,Illinois) - See all my reviews

What a magnificient analysis full of profound and original insights.This book was done with such exemplary clarity that one need not be a student of philosophy in order to comprehend the ideas that are discussed.I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in discovering the important pathway into the lives and thoughts of the great minds.