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From Socrates to Sartre: The Philosophic Quest

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Professor Lavine, who teaches (or taught) philosophy at George Washington University, invades the late night airwaves once a week on Maryland Public Television's "College of the Air" programming during the regular school year. This is the book on which her television course is based. "From Socrates to Sartre" is a brief, yet thought-provoking analysis of six major Western philosophers: Socrates, Descartes, Hume, Hegel, Marx, and Sartre. Interspersed between the discussions of these six thinkers are brief chapters about transformational periods in Western philosophy and their major figures (e.g., Aristotle, Aquinas, Kant, Leibniz, Husserl, etc.). Though I regret that some of these other major philosophers are given rather cursory treatment, at least they are mentioned. Had the author given every major philosopher full treatment, she would have written a much less welcoming book for the neophyte student.

That leaves us with Professor Lavine's detailed and candid exploration of the six philosophers she has aptly chosen. Her writing style is straightforward and crafted with just the right mix of serious complexity and common-sense explanation. Some parts of the chapters get overloaded with raised questions, but that is what philosophy is all about. Rather than guide the reader through what ought to be thought, she leaves many of these questions open, prompting the sort of self-examination that is the crucial basis of any introductory philosophical survey. I would recommend this book, really only second to Will Durant's THE STORY OF PHILOSOPHY (and, I guess, Thomas Nagel's WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?, too), to any reader curious about exploring the history of the Western philosophical tradition.

Lavine's survey of philosophy, "From Socrates to Sartre: The Philosophic Quest," is wonderfully successful at many things. First of all, it lets a new reader, who has never dabbled in philosophy, learn what the classical thinkers have thought. Much of the true philosophical works out there, from Kant's "Critique of Pure Reason" to Sartre's "Being and Nothingness," are quite dense and almost incomprehensible to even a well read reader. Lavine does a splendid job of taking these huge works and condensing them for the reader, expressing the main points. However one should not think that I am insinuating that this is a "dumbed down" book of philosophy, not by any means. Lavine respects her reader's intelligence and lets it grow through taking very abstract philosophical ideas from centuries ago and making them very practical today. Lavine also successfully shows the reader that no philospher, not Plato, Descartes, Hume, Hegel, Marx, nor Sartre, was successful in devising a philosophy that withstood criticism. Lavine shows the reader the holes in each philosophy. More importantly, however, is Lavine mangages to make the reader think for themselves about what their personal philosophy is, and how it affects their lives. I never thought of myself as I great thinker before reading this book, but afterwords I am armed with the ideas and the conundrums to debate with any other armchair philosopher. This book makes a great introduction to philosophy while still teaching very specific ideas of each philosopher. A wonderful book

This volume does not present itself as a comprehensive
overview of all of Western (or Eastern) philosophy. It is
rather an excellent focus on several major philosophers
and the major areas which their philosophies examined,
analyzed, and attempted to explain. Additional volumes
which might be added along with this one would be
Bertrand Russell's A HISTORY OF WESTERN PHILSOPHY, Will
Durant's THE STORY OF PHILOSOPHY, and a non-philosophy
book, but an excellent overview and beginning guide to
further more specific reading and research -- Charles
Van Doren's A HISTORY OF KNOWLEGE.
How do we know? And, how do we know -- that we know?
What are the processes by which we take the stimulations
from the external world -- through our eyes, ears, nose,
mouth, skin -- transmit them to our brain, and then have
them decoded, categorized, analyzed, correlated, and
turned into thoughts, ideas, and actions? Most of us
never think about this intricate, and very profound

procedure, because it happens so fast -- and we have
done it so often. But we should think about it carefully
and often. We should question the motives behind our
associations and categorizations of ideas. Do we fall
into "habits" (biases, prejudices) of pleasure or ego
which form the usual basis for our thought formations
and actions...which prevent us from seeing and understanding
things objectively...and more in their fuller light?
This excellent volume examines those same ideas in
light of the philosophies of a select group of deep
thinkers. But the writing in this work is clear,
insightful, and very stimulating to further reading
in the philosophers themselves. The philosophers covered
in this work (after an "Introduction" titled -- "The
Indestructible Questions") are: Plato; Descartes;
Hume; Hegel; Marx; and Sartre. There is a concluding
section titled: The Contemporary Scene in Philosophy.
Each of these major divisions is subdivided into
sections on the important concepts, analyses, and
understandings contributed by the major philosopher.
The sub-sections under PLATO are titled: Virtue is
Knowledge; Shadow and Substance; The Divided Line;
The Tri-Partite Soul; The Ideal State. The sub-sections
under DESCARTES are: Historical Transition to the
Modern World; Doubting to Believe; God Exists; The
Clockwork Universe; Body and Soul. The sub-sections
under HUME are: How do you Know?; "A Well-Meanin'
Critter"; Will the Sun Rise Tomorrow?: Reason--"Slave
of the Passions". The sub-sections under HEGEL are:
A Revolution in Thought; The Real is the Rational;
Master and Slave; The Cunning of Reason; The Owl of
Minerva. The sub-sections under MARX are: The Young
Hegelian; Alienated Man; The Conflict of Classes;
The World to Come. The sub-sections under SARTRE
are: My Existence is Absurd; Nausea; "Condemned to
be Free"; No Exit.
Many people are offended by the idea that Plato
suggested the censoring of dramatists and poets who
play on the passions of their audiences. They have
labeled Plato everything from a Fascist to a proto-
Communist. The author of this text does an excellent
presentation of Plato's point (one which might bear
modern relevance): "Why does Plato so degrade and
devalue the artist? Plato is suspicious of all forms
of communication which use images, such as painting,
poetry, sculpture, drama, religious ritual. These
art forms use images to provide fantasy rather than
truth, and Plato feared that the passions of the
public are easily stimulated, influenced, and controlled
by their persuasive imagery. (What would Plato think
of our public relations industry, which is in the
business of manufacturing images for its clients?)"
One doesn't have to agree with Plato...but one can
certainly see his point through this clear and
objective presentation. It is to our benefit to
examine our own biases and "habits" of thinking
and analyzing -- to keep ourselves keen to seeking
the truth of what is, rather than what we would like
it to be. We need to have a firmer basis for our
thinking and evaluating (giving of value) rather than
what "pleases" us, feeds our own vanity or ego, or
whatever confirms "our group's" way of "seeing" things.

I read this book when I was a senior in high school. It was the single book that really got me into philosophy. It made me feel like I understood it, not just the ideas in isolation, but the general course of philosophy over the centuries. Other introductory surveys that I read had good information but didn't tell an interesting story, and left me feeling like philosophy was just a handful of thinkers who came up with these philosophical systems which you could choose to believe or not --- most often not.

This book avoids this pitfall and tells a very interesting story, from which the reader can say, "Ah, I think I understand why these ideas were formed in relation to previous ideas and historical events." This is far more illuminating and rewarding than: Plato said this, and Descartes said this, and Marx said this, and Sartre said this. It also makes the book an exciting read, as you work progressively through the centuries --- becoming a Platonist, then, no, a Cartesian, then, no, a Marxist! No, an existentialist! And that sort of thing....

Six/seven years later, as I write this, I'm finishing up my Master's thesis in philosophy. Lavine opened up that door for me.

I completely agree with other reviews that say the book is clearly written and summarizes the six most major Western philospophers in a way that makes their conclusions easily accessible. But these reviews neglect what for me was the best part of the whole book, the 7th and final chapter, "The Contemporary Scene in Philosophy". Here Lavine relates how Wittgenstein reformed the practice of Philosophy and destroyed much of what came before by stating a simple rule: Any statement a Philosopher makes must follow the rules of the language being used to make the statement. This is Linguistic Philosophy. As someone who found much of Philosophy annoying because so many core statements by Descartes, Hegel, Sartre, etc. seemed to be nonsensical, it was a catharsis to find out that Wittgenstein felt the same way, and that he used his rule to categorize much of their work as useless.

This final chapter also shows the continuing tenacity of David Hume's Empiricism and its descendants - Logical Positivism, Analytic Philosophy, and Science. To me, Wittgenstein's rule is the application of the scientific method to Philosophy itself - if a statement is nonsensical according to the rules of the language, there's nothing useful that can come from it. This parallels Hume's rule that if a statement is not testable, then it is also useless.

To me it's sad that I never even heard the name Hume until adulthood, after a friend recommended Lavine's book. I think the United States might be a lot better off if David Hume were taught in public schools as part of a class in critical thinking.

This is a nice little book that examines metaphysics (the philosophy of reality) by a cursory examination of six philosophers. This is not an all-encompassing book on world philosophy (no attention is paid to non-western thought) nor is it an in depth examination of any one school of thought or a particular philospher. This book is an introduction to a segment of philosophy and should be evaluated on that basis.

Thelma Lavine does a nice job of putting the various philosphers (Plato, Descartes, Hume, Hegel, Marx, Sartre) in their historic context; of concisely outlining their major contributions to the advancement of philosophic thought; and then summarizing the critics of each.

What I like about the book is the ability to read it in segments. I started with Descartes then went back to Plato skipped ahead to Sartre and then back to Hume ignoring Marx altogether (not that Marx is unimportant, but I felt that I was already pretty well versed in Marxist thought.) Thanks to this book I am now interested in a more in depth exploration of existentialism and am anxious to delve into the source materials. I feel that I now have a context to read Nausea or the Stranger and hopefully, I will get more out of them with this background.

Having struck out in previous efforts to connect with philosophy, I could not have been happier to discover this magnificent work. Professor Lavine combines an intellectual mastery of her subject with an unfailing (and no less important) connection to her reader as she introduces the breathtaking accomplishments and historical context of the great philosophers.

Trifling are criticisms of her failure to mention every philosopher of significance or place equal emphasis on the many (at least a dozen) whose work she does address. The book would lose infinitely more than it would gain by so doing.

Professor Lavine is an extraordinary guide for an extraordinary journey. I am energized and excited by the experience of reading this book.

Thelma Lavine's _From Socrates to Sartre_ provides a good introduction to the major western philosophers, and a truly outstanding summary of their ideas; however there were a number of thinkers I wish she had discussed in more detail.

Her survey begins with a brief discussion of the pre-Socratic thinkers and does a fantastic job of summarizing Socrates before giving a truly outstanding overview of Platonic and Aristotlean logic. This, (and her later overview of Existentialism) were real highlights of the book.

The contributions of St. Ausustine and Thomas Aquinas are touched upon, before providing a lengthy analysis of Descartes - it, too, is first rate, although I found myself wishing she had given more detail to Sir Francis Bacon's empricism. Lavine next turns her attention to the Enlightenment and Hume - the treatment of his ideas and general philosophy is good, although again, I wish greater attention was given Immanuel Kant.

Her sections on Hegel and Marx were solid - I particularly enjoyed her biography of Marx, but again, more information on Feurbach and his influence on Marx would have been helpful.

In discussing the predecessors to Existentialism, Kierkegaard and Nietzsche are discussed, but I had hoped for a deeper explaination of their ideas about the human condition. I was disappointed that Heidigger was scarcely mentioned at all.

The last 100 pages detail Existentialism in general and Sartre in particular, which is the strongest part of the book. The ideas behind Existentialism and its influences are very well explained, and were very insightful.

For a book on philosophy, its accessable for the layperson (such as myself) and provided a good overview of a few of the major western thinkers. Her lists of recommended readings are also helpful - but I kept finding myself wanting to know more. This, of course is the measure of a good survery, as it serves to whet the readers appetite for deeper material.

Thought Provoking, Quick Reference...

From Socrates to Sartre: the Philosophic Quest, by T.Z. Lavine.

This was my introduction compilation to all things philosophical -- and that foggy world of philosophy. Tattered and yellowed from years of reference, I concure with Professor of Philosophy Peter Diamandopoulos, "...it is an elegantly written, lucid and informative work."

The Preface states "Try to imagine a world without philosophy. In From Socrates to Sartre, the works of six philosophers and their views of man, God, nature, truth, ethics, and politics will be explored." Granted, six philosophers does not seem like very many, but have you ever tried to read all the works by just one philosopher and thoroughly understand what you have read? "...and the philosophic viewpoints dominating the contemporary sense in philosophy are examined." What a plus, one gets it all right here!

This book is very easy to understand and absorb. One gets a peek at Plato with Virtue is Knowledge, Shadow and Substance, The Divided Line, The Tripartite Soul, The Ideal State. Delve into Descartes with Historical Transition to the Modern World, his ever popular Doubting to Believe, God Exists, The Clockwork Universe, and Body and Soul. Next, the philosophical quest takes you into the world of Hume with How do you Know? (a favorite of mine), A Well-Meanin' Critter, Will the Sun Rise Tomorrow?, and Reason: Slave of the Passions.

Part Four deals with Hegel. You will learn about his Revolution in Thought, The Real is the Rational, Master and Slave, The Cunning of Reason, and The Owl of Minerva -- Hegel's ethics and political philosophy. On to Marx with The Young Hegelian, Alienated Man, The Conflict of Two Classes, and The World to Come.

Sartre is the last of the six philosophers that Lavin explores -- this is my favorite: My Existence is Absurd (The Fundamental Existentialist premise: Existence precedes essence, a major theme of Existentialism), Nausea, Condemned to be Free, and No Exit. A good section for all studying, or even curious about Existentialism.

The last Chapter deals with Contemporary Science in Philosophy. --Katharena Eiermann, 2005, the Realm of Existentialism -- Presidential Hopeful

I had always been scared of philosophy, and assumed the subject would be too weird and difficult for me. But I decided to give one intro book a shot. Sure glad it was this one! Reading this book made me realize I was completely wrong about philosophy. It turns out that philosophy deals with compelling questions we all ask ourselves every day. This book gives a clear, concise overview of how philosophers have tried to answer these questions. It made a philosophy devotee out of me -- just finished up my MA, and am now starting a PhD program!