The value of Stoicism—traditional or Pigliucci’s version—is in the universal ideas it holds about human nature.
An attempt to update the Stoic philosophy as expressed by Roman thinker and former slave Epictetus (50-130 C.E.).
Some things are within our power; most are not. Stoicism offers a path to discerning the difference. Philosophy professor Pigliucci, a staunch proponent of science education, calls his book, based on Epictetus’ Enchiridion, a “field guide” because life is lived in the field, not in theory. The Enchiridion was composed of 53 “units” or principles; Pigliucci modifies half of those to be in harmony with 21st-century realities, knowing that Stoicism, a highly cosmopolitan body of thought, has undergone many alterations through the centuries and will continue to do so. Founded by Zeno (334-262 B.C.E.), Stoicism espouses the idea that a virtuous and happy life requires applying reason to the betterment of self and society. Pigliucci has the same aim, though, like Socrates (and unlike Epictetus), he does not advise total disregard of “externals” (things not under our control), a dominant ethic of original Stoicism. Of course, the word “stoic” did not mean then what it means today. The author’s modernization of Stoicism involves accepting misfortune or adversity with equanimity but also having goals and pursuing them in a manner consistent with one’s integrity and self-respect. However, even some of Pigliucci’s revisions are ideals; there is a difference between moderation and monasticism. What’s missing here is passion. Being virtuous and phlegmatic all the time would make one admirable but rather dull, and other people’s attitudes, opinions, and actions (externals) are of no concern to us only if we live in a vacuum. While Pigliucci agrees that reading philosophy and living a philosophy are two different things, he stresses that the art of living requires discipline.
The value of Stoicism—traditional or Pigliucci’s version—is in the universal ideas it holds about human nature.Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5416-4693-3
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Basic Books
Review Posted Online: June 30, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
A conversational, pleasurable look into McConaughey’s life and thought.
All right, all right, all right: The affable, laconic actor delivers a combination of memoir and self-help book.
“This is an approach book,” writes McConaughey, adding that it contains “philosophies that can be objectively understood, and if you choose, subjectively adopted, by either changing your reality, or changing how you see it. This is a playbook, based on adventures in my life.” Some of those philosophies come in the form of apothegms: “When you can design your own weather, blow in the breeze”; “Simplify, focus, conserve to liberate.” Others come in the form of sometimes rambling stories that never take the shortest route from point A to point B, as when he recounts a dream-spurred, challenging visit to the Malian musician Ali Farka Touré, who offered a significant lesson in how disagreement can be expressed politely and without rancor. Fans of McConaughey will enjoy his memories—which line up squarely with other accounts in Melissa Maerz’s recent oral history, Alright, Alright, Alright—of his debut in Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused, to which he contributed not just that signature phrase, but also a kind of too-cool-for-school hipness that dissolves a bit upon realizing that he’s an older guy on the prowl for teenage girls. McConaughey’s prep to settle into the role of Wooderson involved inhabiting the mind of a dude who digs cars, rock ’n’ roll, and “chicks,” and he ran with it, reminding readers that the film originally had only three scripted scenes for his character. The lesson: “Do one thing well, then another. Once, then once more.” It’s clear that the author is a thoughtful man, even an intellectual of sorts, though without the earnestness of Ethan Hawke or James Franco. Though some of the sentiments are greeting card–ish, this book is entertaining and full of good lessons.
A conversational, pleasurable look into McConaughey’s life and thought.Pub Date: Oct. 20, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-13913-4
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
If the authors are serious, this is a silly, distasteful book. If they are not, it’s a brilliant satire.
The authors have created a sort of anti-Book of Virtues in this encyclopedic compendium of the ways and means of power.
Everyone wants power and everyone is in a constant duplicitous game to gain more power at the expense of others, according to Greene, a screenwriter and former editor at Esquire (Elffers, a book packager, designed the volume, with its attractive marginalia). We live today as courtiers once did in royal courts: we must appear civil while attempting to crush all those around us. This power game can be played well or poorly, and in these 48 laws culled from the history and wisdom of the world’s greatest power players are the rules that must be followed to win. These laws boil down to being as ruthless, selfish, manipulative, and deceitful as possible. Each law, however, gets its own chapter: “Conceal Your Intentions,” “Always Say Less Than Necessary,” “Pose as a Friend, Work as a Spy,” and so on. Each chapter is conveniently broken down into sections on what happened to those who transgressed or observed the particular law, the key elements in this law, and ways to defensively reverse this law when it’s used against you. Quotations in the margins amplify the lesson being taught. While compelling in the way an auto accident might be, the book is simply nonsense. Rules often contradict each other. We are told, for instance, to “be conspicuous at all cost,” then told to “behave like others.” More seriously, Greene never really defines “power,” and he merely asserts, rather than offers evidence for, the Hobbesian world of all against all in which he insists we live. The world may be like this at times, but often it isn’t. To ask why this is so would be a far more useful project.
If the authors are serious, this is a silly, distasteful book. If they are not, it’s a brilliant satire.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1998
ISBN: 0-670-88146-5
Page Count: 430
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1998
BOOK REVIEW
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