The Consolations of Philosophy

Rating:
Summary: Far Better Introductory Books on Philosophy
Review: Sorry Alain.

I found this book enormously disappointing.

I wouldn't for one moment knock the author's grasp on the subject nor his well-intended purpose of making philosophy understandable to a mass audience through giving it some practical use.

To paraphrase one of his quotes, Euclid from memory, "What is the use of philosophy if it can't do anything for you". Badly recalled, but you get the idea.

So why gripe about this book?

I think it fails in both areas, one to provide an interesting introduction to the subject and two to have any obvious practical application.

If you are looking for a good introduction to Philosophy then Brain Magees Dorling Kindersley intro is great, or if in a more imaginative approach then Sophie's World is great.

If you are looking for some inspiration to shore you up ("Consolations") then there are upteem Self-Help books that will do the job much better.

Overall, a good work of erudition, but really not very interesting. Perhaps it deserves the Consolation Prize.

Rating:
Summary: not a repeat
Review: Having enjoyed HOW PROUST CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE, I looked forward to THE CONSOLATIONS OF PHILOSOPHY. Perhaps I was disappointed because it was less provocative and original than the first book. Or perhaps he's chosen too many philosophers, making the focus less deep and sharp.

Rating:
Summary: Mixed Feelings
Review: Alain De Botton takes six philosophers - Socrates, Epicurus, Seneca, Montaigne, Schopenhauer, and Nietzsche - and examines their work for insights that can give us consolation for problems we may face now. We can turn to Socrates when we're feeling unpopular, and come away consoled. Not enough money? No worry, just turn to Epicurus for what's more important than money. Relationship woes? Listen to Schopenhauer. And so on.

I have a number of problems both with the approach and its execution. First, I don't believe that philosophy at its best is just an alternative to "Dear Abby". And not because I think that it should be instead a matter of esoteric theory. I'm convinced that it's even more practical than de Botton seems to realize. The great philosophers provide us with ideas that are central for better understanding our lives and flourishing in the world. They don't just offer us consolations for our difficulties and failures. It's true that many people don't think of philosophy until they face hardship, but the enterprise of philosophy itself is much more than whatever problem solving resources the great thinkers may indeed offer. Second, I have objections to how this author pairs philosophers and problems. I would never go to Schopenhaur for advice, or even perspective, on relationship trouble. Third, even when de Botton gets the pairing of philosopher and problem right, in my view he often misses the best of what his philosopher has to offer.

Let me give an example. De Botton turns to Socrates as a man who didn't mind not being popular. When we ourselves feel unappreciated, when we are swimming against the current, we should turn to Socrates for consolation, de Botton believes. Why? Well, Socrates worked hard to help the Athenians of his time to become more philosophical about their lives, and as a result they voted to have him executed. Socrates could have given up his quest to bring real wisdom into people's lives and thereby avoided the death penalty, but he stood firm in what he thought was right. The consolation his example offers, de Botton claims, is that, like him, we can take comfort in potentially being vindicated by "posterity." Socrates, after all, has been judged by subsequent generations to have been one of the greatest of human beings, because of his relentless pursuit of wisdom, despite the unpopularity of his quest.

But this is not how Socrates consoled himself. He did not find it within himself to stand firm against the crowd and persist in his unpopular course because he trusted that posterity would redeem his memory. He did it because he was convinced it was the right thing to do, whatever posterity might think. In fact, he believed that he was on a mission from God, and thus would allow nothing on earth to dissuade him from completing his appointed task.

Posterity had nothing to do with it. And that's a good thing, since most of us can't look to posterity as our ultimate court of appeals. The distant future won't likely pay that much attention to the majority of us, perhaps including even Mr. de Botton. So it's not a very convincing mental stratagem to entrust ourselves to its higher judgments. But we can do what Socrates in fact did. We can persist in doing what we think is right whether it is popular or not, precisely because we are convinced that it is right. We can even dig deeper and, again like Socrates, anchor ourselves to the ultimate spiritual supports available to any of us. All this, de Botton seems to miss.

I started off not liking this book at all. But by the time I finished it, my feelings had changed a bit. I had even come to like it. In a way. Not so much as a book of philosophy, but more like a very personal revelation of how bits of philosophy have affected one man. If you view this book as just a personal report on how reading philosophy can touch a sensitive and intelligent person, it takes on a very different look. I'm glad the author wrote it.

If you'd like to see a longer assessment, come to visit www.MorrisInstitute.com, where I invite your response as well.

Rating:
Summary: Good book on how the past masters can help you in your life
Review: If you are looking for an account of the development of philosophical thought this is certainly not your book. But if you want a book which provides good insights from the past masters regarding how to handle your daily struggles, please buy this book right now! And buy a copy for each member of your family even if they are not really interested in philosophy. The genius of de Botton lies in the fact that he presents 4 giants of Western civilization in such a brilliant way that no formal background in philosophical thought is necessary. I commend de Botton for the enormous task of boiling down difficult systems such as Scopenhauer's to their essentials without drifting away from their original content. The part on Seneca is particuliarly inspiring and that on Montaigne is superbly funny. I have one advice for you: do not let one more week pass without reading this life-changing little masterpiece! Vlaidimir Pintro- Student of philosophy at S.U.NY.

Rating:
Summary: Writing With Simplicity Takes Courage
Review: I bought this book after seeing an interview of de Botton on C-SPAN. It is, as one of the previous reviewers has related, clear and understandable. Interestingly, it seems to me that de Botton anticipated that the tremendous amount of work he must have engaged in to achieve his extreme clarity would engender the types of "dumbing down" attacks referenced by the previous reveiwer. With respect to this mindset, de Botton had this to say:

"Every difficult work presents us with a choice of whether to judge the author inept for not being clear, or ourselves stupid for not grasping what is going on. Montaigne encouraged us to blame the author. *An incomprehensible prose-style is likely to have resulted more from laziness than cleverness; what reads easily is rarely so written. Or else such prose masks an absence of content; being incomprehensible offers unparalleled protection against having nothing to say . . . .*

But writing with simplicity takes courage, for there is a danger that one will be overlooked, dismissed as simpleminded by those with a tenacious belief that impassable prose is a hallmark of intelligence. So strong is this bias, Montaigne wondered whether the majority of university scholars would have appreciated Socrates, a man they professed to revere above all others, if he had approached them in their own towns, devoid of the prestige of Plato's dialogues, in his dirty cloak, speaking in plain language . . . ."

A. de Botton, The Consolations of Philosophy 158-9 (2000) (emphasis added).

The other chapters are just as straightforward and clearly written. I hope that you read this book. It is excellent.

I am grateful for this gift from de Botton.

Rating:
Summary: Second thing, let's kill all the philosophers
Review: ... that is, unless they know how to submerge and come up laughing like a loon, or next best, a de Botton

Rating:
Summary: Philosophy in perspective
Review: The Consolations of Philosphy is a great book, that bridges the gap between the abstract image many people have of philosophers and what they were like as human beings. De Bottom, while considering each philosophers importance and influence on Western thought, also paints a collection of touching portraits that bring them down from the pedestals by giving us an intimate look into the people and places behind the ideas. After finishing this book you will never look at Socrates, or Schopenhauer the same way again. In the portraits that De Bottom gives us, we are reminded of both the importance of philosophy, and the unhearlded, events that produced it. In Reading these stories you are invited to take a rare glimpse into the minds of some of the most important thinkers of Western culture, and in the process, gain a better understanding of what philosophy really means, not only to the world but to oneself.

Rating:
Summary: True Consolation
Review: Don't confuse a light-handed approach with lack of substance. The author is obviously knowledgable about the philosophers whose thought he deals with in this book. Rather than a Victorian-style heavy meal, he prepares a 'nouvelle cuisine' dish full of subtle flavor. And the book really is useful as a self-help volume..when a friend recently remarked that I seemed to be adapting well to our newly-appointed boss's directives, I replied based on deBotton's chapter on Seneca: "A dog can either run behind the cart, or be dragged along, either way, he's going where the cart goes... and I intend to run, not get dragged." My only quibble is that there is no mention of the exalted philosopher Boethius, from whose work the title and the concept (philosophy as healing) are derived. I would have sincerely loved a chapter discussing Boethius, for example his notion of predestination v. free will. Maybe next time... but I still love this book!

Rating:
Summary: Don't worry Be happy
Review: When a man who has just suffered a serious problem (eg. his house burnt down) is interviewed on the news, and he remains calm and composed ("At least I got out alive, things could be worse"), the reporter describes him as being philosophical.

De Botton takes being philosophical to another level, demonstrating that even philosophers can be "philosophical". He takes six philosophers and culls from their writings (in the case of Socrates, Plato's) ways to handle difficulties in life.

He offers:

Socrates on being unpopular ("We shouldn't care all that much about what the populace will say of us, but about what the expert on matters of justice and injustice will say"); Epicurus on not having enough money ("when measured by the natural purpose of life, poverty is greath wealth; limitless wealth, great poverty"); Seneca on frustration ("Unseasonable weather upsets the health; and we must fall ill...we cannot change this order of things...it is to this law (of Nature) that our souls must adjust themselves, this they should follow, this they should obey...That which you cannot reform, it is best to endure"); Montaigne on inadequacy ("We are richer than we think, each one of us"); Schopenhauer on a broken heart ("In the course of his own life and in its misfortunes, he will look less at his own individual lot than at the lot of mankind as a whole, and accordingly will conduct himself...more as a knower than a sufferer"); Nietzsche on difficulties. Nietzsche, at least on a simplistic level, seems to have dealt with difficulties by going insane. This doesn't seem, to me, to provide much consolation. His writings may offer some consolation, but one also can't ignore the life that he lived. Constrast him with Socrates and Seneca who went to their prescribed deaths with utmost equanimity. Perhaps I could be wrong, but he might have done better had he embraced his father's religion rather than abhorring it.

De Botton makes the musings of these men accessible to a general audience. The book is easy to read and may even spur you on to read the actual works of these philosohers.

Rating:
Summary: Consolation fits best
Review: One entering the world of philosophy, will find that they begin to open their minds to new worlds. One begins to compare and realize that even from some of the oldest philosophers, Socrates, Plato, and Seneca, we all can relate no matter the time frame.

This terrifically written book, sums up to me the world which is out there, only we struggle to reach it when sometimes the answer is right in front of us.

I highly recommend this book, simply for the enjoyment of seeing what the human mind is capable of producing.