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Summary: The Beautiful Truth About Motorcycles And Everything
Review: Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance contains two works -- one, a philisophical inquery into the nature of being, including references to Zen and the Tao; the other, a story of a man and his son treking across country on a motorcycle, revealing our narrator's past, and eventually resolving certain conflicts within himself. The more traditional "story" is independant enough from the intelectual "chataqua" (as the author terms it) that either is worthy of individual enjoyment, but they are so artfully connected that the combined effect is greater than many times the sum of its parts. This book deserves the term "classic" because it was crafted with a certain Quality, that empowers it to enrapture readers, effect lives, alter thought patterns, and -- as all great art should -- reveal a certain truth, and the beauty within that truth. All the praise that I could bestow upon this book would not make up for the benefit I have recieved from it. I love Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.
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Summary: Very engrossing story that only falls apart at the end
Review: Don't let the title of this review fool you, I really did like the book. I quite enjoyed looking through the many layers (some obvious, others subtle) and I'm quite sure that I'll catch more when I read this book again. One does not need to know anything at all about Greek, Eastern or Modern philosophy to read this book, although the more one already knows, the more one will get out of it. Personally, I felt that the meditations on the role of Quality in reality started off very well. This was a very good attempt at merging the Eastern and Western (or "classical vs romantic" as they are also stated in the book) modes of thinking into a single coherent thought. Unfortunately, I felt that it fell slightly short of its goal. Pirsig's world view would seem to add an unlimited amount of inherent facts to every object that exists. Quality doesn't seem to me to have a single value for all things. For example, a screwdriver would be seen to have very good Screw-Turning Quality, but would have very low Beer-Can-Opening Quality. For every possible method, there would be a different Quality rating. Instead of Pirsig's single combination between one subject and one object, you have all sorts of relations between an object and every possible subject. Although I felt the reasoning didn't quite hold up, I found the train of thought to be an utterly fascinating one. I very much like the idea of Quality being the relation of a mind with an object. If nothing else, the book opens up a lot of room for meditation on the subject. It's an interesting seed that leads the mind into all sort of passages of reason. Even if you don't agree with his conclusions, it's a great place to start letting your brain flow. The conventional story of the motorcyclist and his son, told in between the meditating, is rather enjoyable as well. Pirsig's description of the open road is quite appealing and I found myself wanting to take a few months off and ride out into the sunset! The passages describing the feel of the road and the differences between seeing something from inside a car versus seeing it from a motorcycle are quite good and although I've never been near a motorbike in my life, I began to understand the desire for the wide open spaces that he has. The bottom line is that this is a very good book for anyone interested in philosophy, motorcycles or just well-written stories.
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Summary: A must for anyone
Review: The significance of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance is incredible. Pirsig takes his readers on two very important trips; one through the states to Bozeman, Montanna and a profoundly significant philosophical journey. Pirsig confronts his former self, Phaedrus, as well as some of lifes most perplexing questions. He does so using the dialectic and rhetoric as tools for discussion. The author's former self, Phaedrus, is consumed by the Aristotelian point of view and all that it stands for. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance is read today, and remembered by scholars who read it when it was first published, and they continue to be amazed; as will I in twenty years.
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Summary: This book is not what the title suggests
Review: When I read this book the first time I had several misconceptions about it. My first was that it is a motorcycle travel recount. It isn't. Yes, it has some elements of description how the author rides with his son and two friends through the states. But this serves only to give a frame, a context. My second was that I thought it is a philosophical piece. No, it isn't. Sure, the author deals with philosophical questions. And it is really entertaining and quite learning to experience the original notions of some concepts as intended by their inventors Plato, Socrates, and some others. Then there is this crazy idea of overcoming a perceived dichotomy between aesthetics and technics by the author. Which is interesting, but the proposed solution is quaint at best. And my personal opinion about that one is that everyone should find for himself the solution for this "problem". No, what makes this book so interesting is that the author describes a transformation of himself. With words and phrases quite common to the western world. One could almost say that he conquers himself. It is believable and sometimes shocking what he reveals. It has nothing to do with Zen whatsoever. I read a bit about Zen, and to be quite frank, the idea of Zen sounds ridiculous to me. Again the title might confuse the buyer of the book. Luckily the book was recommended to me by a former teacher and when I finally got the chance to read it, I did. I read the german translation, which is quite good, albeit has some flaws. And I read this edition, which is better, because the author explains some things which might have gone unnoticed otherwise. And I'm thankful for that.
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Summary: Moby Dick and Time?
Review: My immediate reaction after reading this book was one of ambiguity: Moby Dick and Time? Reality, the white whale, or rather, the ghost of rationality, manifests itself as the insuperable and the innocent so cleverly in this book and yet, through the archeology of memory, time too is added into the formula. Is the "inquiry" skimpy or economic? A second reading made me see that the unnecessary development of certain theories through both the narrative and the analysis were bogging the true ideas down so much that synthesis is literally impossible in such a short space. And so, philosophically, the book contributes little. But then, taking the narrative events and the rather intriguing semiotic treatment of memory, an artistic lustre becomes apparent. It is unfortunate that Prisig chose to write a "chautauqua" instead of a novel.
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Summary: Difficult but worthwhile reading!
Review: The author and his son Chris travel from Minnesota to California by motorcycle. At first they are accompanied by another couple, but, a bit later, father and son are left to continue their journey alone. Throughout the trip, the author is deep in thought which is reflected in the paucity of communication with his son and more communication with himself alone. A reader involved with this book must either have great fortitude or a fervent interest in philosophy to make it to the end of the story. Despite its haunting quality, its philosophic meanderings are often overwhelming for the casual reader. Best reserved for a reader who likes to "work" at reading, ZEN AND THE ART OF MOTORCYCLE MAINTENANCE, is a sad but profound story of philosophic theory, mental illness, and a father-son relationship which will leave a deep impression on those willing it struggle through it.
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Summary: Hard to follow...but not so bad
Review: To some extent I can agree with another reviewer that said this book was incredibly boring. But I basically attribute this to that fact that I did not quite get what the author was trying to say to me. Perhaps this is because I'm young and inexperienced in life or maybe it's because I have no experience in philosophy and therefore had no idea where he was coming from. This is a book that I will have to read again in a few years and then hopefully it will make more sense to me. In the end I walked away with something very valuable and I don't regret one bit that I suffered through all 418 pages. If you want an easy read...don't read this book!! If you are currently going through a time in your life where you're being very introspective and at the same time are feeling critical of the culture around you, then I would definitely recommend this book.
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Summary: A Philosophy Lecture Posing as a Novel
Review: As an aspiring novelist with a degree in english and philosophy, I find it disheartening to find philosophy lectures thinly disguised as novels (Lila, Sophie's World -- could that title have slyly been borrowed from Sophie's Choice?). Also, Persig, in his so-called quest, refuses to acknowledge such modern philosophers as Nietzche, Kierkegaard, Sartre, Camus, or even Rand. He also doesn't attempt to create a synthesis between eastern and western philosophy, as the title would suggest. Herman Hesse, for example, does manage an intriguing blend of eastern mysticism with western philosophy -- he is greatly influence by Nietzsche. Persig's prose is often flat, but his protagonists are very driven in their quest for metaphysical quality. But as characters, they don't -- for me, seem very interesting. If the reader is interested in the philosophical novel, may I suggest reading Sartre, Camus, Hesse, Rand, Mann, Dostoievsky, or Tolstoi.
Rating:
Summary: Speechless
Review: What can I say one of the smartest things Ive ever done was reading this book,its chock full of insights and philosophy of why late 20th century living is the way it is.I was mesmorized from beginning to end. To those who have already read this book Lila,an inquiry into morals is also a similiar book from this author that is also great.
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Summary: A dry, but important book that will change your mind
Review: Are you into soul-searching? Do you think about your place in the world? How do you deal with technology and remain sane? If you have ever asked yourself some of these questions, you're in good company with Pirsig's classic book on "What is Quality?" He'll make you think about what makes something enjoyable. The book is academic in tone, and difficult to get through, but it's not a novel, so what did you expect? It's depth-charged. It doesn't sugar up the prose just so that it's easily digestable, but if you're going to read only one philosophical book in your life time from cover to cover, make this the one book you read. On my essential and must-read list.
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