René Descartes spent much of his life in solitude. Fortunately, these countless lonely hours helped Descartes produce the declaration that changed all philosophy: “I think, therefore I am.” Convincing himself to doubt and disregard sensory knowledge, Descartes found he could prove his existence through his thoughts alone. This internal reality, he believed, was the true reality, while the external was hopelessly deceiving.
In Descartes in 90 Minutes, Paul Strathern offers a concise, expert account of Descartes’s life and ideas and explains their influence on man’s struggle to understand his existence in the world. The book also includes selections from Descartes’s work, a brief list of suggested readings for those who wish to delve deeper, and chronologies that place Descartes within his own age and in the broader scheme of philosophy.
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"I'm really digging Strathern's series on philosophy, they are light-hearted while also being very informative. " — Carlos (4 out of 5 stars)
"I'm really digging Strathern's series on philosophy, they are light-hearted while also being very informative. "
“Well-written, clear, and informed, they have a breezy wit about them. I find them hard to stop reading.”
“Witty, illuminating, and blessedly concise.”
“Each of these little books is witty and dramatic and creates a sense of time, place, and character…I cannot think of a better way to introduce oneself and one’s friends to Western civilization.”
" Cogito ergo sum -- what else is there to say? "
" I'm really digging Strathern's series on philosophy, they are light-hearted while also being very informative. "
" great audio. descartes was brilliant. "
" I picked this short book up to supplement my reading of Shorto's book, Descartes' Bones. A quick read that affords an overview of Descartes' life and time. "
Paul Strathern earned a degree in philosophy at Trinity College, Dublin, and has lectured in philosophy and mathematics. The author of many nonfiction books and of articles for numerous publications, he has also written several novels and has won the Somerset Maugham Prize. He lives and writes in London.
Simon Vance (a.k.a. Robert Whitfield) is an award-winning actor and narrator. He has earned more than fifty Earphones Awards and won the prestigious Audie Award for best narration thirteen times. He was named Booklist’s very first Voice of Choice in 2008 and has been named an AudioFile Golden Voice as well as an AudioFile Best Voice of 2009. He has narrated more than eight hundred audiobooks over almost thirty years, beginning when he was a radio newsreader for the BBC in London. He is also an actor who has appeared on both stage and television.
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