Vico, the great philosopher and legal theorist of the Enlightenment who lived and died in obscurity, was among the first to sound the prevailing modern theme. In The New Science, he marvels "that the philosophers should have bent all their energies to the study of the world of nature, which, since God made it, He alone knows: and that they should have neglected the study of the nations or civil world, which since men had made it, men could come to know." Attacking Cartesian rationalism as well as questioning the Platonic tradition; developing the comparative studies of mythology, anthropology, archaeology, philology, linguistics; historical in one sense (man's cultural adventures constitute "the ideal eternal history") and ahistorical in another ("progress" is only the rising and falling of cyclical patterns); deciphering the origins of civilization through its primitive riddles, "crude beginnings," "frightful superstitions"—these are some of the recognitions which made no sense to the savants of Vico's day but which are brilliantly annotated in his works. Sir Isaiah Berlin, an articulate expositor and fervent Viconian, has written a dazzling monograph celebrating his hero's immensely protean mind. Like Vico himself, however, he now and then gives the effect of chasing both the hounds and the hares, so that the reader not previously acquainted with the Italian's often contradictory, bizarre, darkly poetic genius may find the journey a bit rough. The complementary study of Herder—whose belief that "we live in a world we ourselves create" became a shibboleth of nationalism, populism, and romanticism—is far easier to grasp. The essays do not overlap, but are presented in stimulating contrast to and concert with one another.
Pub Date: May 20, 1976
ISBN: 0670745855
Page Count: 264
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 15, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1976
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
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