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naraburns  nihil supernum  1yr ago (text post)   2252 thread views

Wellness Wednesday for February 8, 2023

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Hoping to start a book club to help people learn more about philosophy/improve themselves etc.

Anyone know of good intro to philosophy books, specifically utilitarianism? Looking for something newer and accessible but that still gives an accurate overview of the philosophy.

I wasn't going to get into it since it's not utilitarianism*, but since that barrier is broken I guess I'll throw out another strong recommendation for Meditations. I just recently did a book club where we did one notebook each week and discussed our thoughts and reflections, and it was very edifying. The book deserves its stellar reputation.

*Seriously guys, he says right in the OP that he wants books on utilitarianism and y'all are recommending classical philosophy lol.

I actually appreciate it the Stoics are my favorite. I'd start with Seneca over Aurelius though, he's much more accessible. Epictetus is good too.

Epictetus is really great. I finished reading his works about a month ago, and I loved them. He seems like he was a delightfully sassy old man when interacting with his students.

Been trying to read Seneca now, but I'm finding his work less interesting. But I'm sticking with it still.

Hard derec of Marcus Aurelius' Meditations. It's a great book, but it's also one of the most repetitive books I've ever read, and it is bound to seem dull to some creative spirits. Not a good place to start IMO.

Don't have any recs myself, unfortunately, but you can try the IEP which has a handy bibliography at the bottom and sometimes includes short reviews. The SEP may also help, though it is usually more dense.

What's the level of commitment of your membership?

If/once you're very committed, Russell's History of Western Philosophy will cover, well, what it says on the tin.

If you're looking for something short/easy; I second Marcus Aurelius, or I'll throw in Hesse "Siddhartha." It's practically a pamphlet, but it has a followable narrative and asks all the big questions.

what it says on the tin.

If it says "Russell" on the tin, yes it will certainly cover that.

Start at the beginning and work you way up.

You can't go wrong with Plato's The Republic. It's honestly one of my favourite books, period. It's quite readable and in relatively plain English (depending on your translation) unlike a lot of early modern and modern philosophical texts which can have a lot of jargon. It basically assumes no prior technical understanding of philosophy. It's actually surprisingly funny.

Philosophy-wise, you can find elements of all modern political philosophical schools running through Plato's ideal city state. Liberalism, fascism, socialism. Along with asking some pretty foundational philosophical questions derived from first principles (what is justice? Why should we value it?). Socrates and Plato having the title of father(s) of Western philosophy is well earned.

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On the "starting a club" side, this "make it a Thing" post/link-to-tweet-thread seems relevant: https://cimmerianmists.substack.com/p/on-reading-the-classics

It's funny, I've just started getting into classical philosophy and my therapist asked me if this was an interest I might be able to find others to share with. It's interesting that it does seem to be a "male" self-improvement kind of thing, but really, I just felt it as a click on of sudden interest and finding some good books.

I don't know anyone in my area and dont have a place to host if I did, but maybe this kind of thing is something I could work towards. Seems like you'd want a good grasp of things as a host anyway.

That is amazing. One of the most based things I've ever read

Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. It's short, sweet, and a classic for a reason. Furthermore it's actually a decent intro to classical philosophy.

Peter Singer's Practical Ethics is a pretty good starting point for preference utilitarianism.

If you're looking for philosophical self-improvement, Montaigne's Essays and Seneca's Moral Letters are excellent reading material.

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