Ethics and On the Improvement of the Understanding (Barnes & Noble Digital Library)
Nonfiction, Religion & Spirituality, Philosophy, Ethics & Moral Philosophy
| Author: | Benedict de Spinoza | ISBN: | 9781411467941 |
| Publisher: | Barnes & Noble | Publication: | March 13, 2012 |
| Imprint: | Barnes & Noble | Language: | English |
| Author: | Benedict de Spinoza |
| ISBN: | 9781411467941 |
| Publisher: | Barnes & Noble |
| Publication: | March 13, 2012 |
| Imprint: | Barnes & Noble |
| Language: | English |
This edition includes a modern introduction and a list of suggested further reading.
Spinoza's commitment to the search for a comprehensive understanding of all things inspired Einstein. Furthermore, discoveries in the neurosciences in the early twenty-first century provide evidence that Spinoza's biological understanding of the emotions may also have been essentially on target. It was upon this prescient naturalistic scientific foundation that Spinoza developed a new approach to ethics. Perhaps the most important heirs to Spinoza's thought are Nietzsche, Marx, and Freud, but the Radical Enlightenment has recently been laid largely at his feet.
Nevertheless, Spinoza's last words in the Ethics sound a note of caution and perhaps even of warning: "All things excellent are as difficult as they are rare." Time, however, is finally catching up with Spinoza and the journey through his philosophy is well worth the effort, as his views now more than ever capture the contemporary scientific imagination and ethical sensibility.
This edition includes a modern introduction and a list of suggested further reading.
Spinoza's commitment to the search for a comprehensive understanding of all things inspired Einstein. Furthermore, discoveries in the neurosciences in the early twenty-first century provide evidence that Spinoza's biological understanding of the emotions may also have been essentially on target. It was upon this prescient naturalistic scientific foundation that Spinoza developed a new approach to ethics. Perhaps the most important heirs to Spinoza's thought are Nietzsche, Marx, and Freud, but the Radical Enlightenment has recently been laid largely at his feet.
Nevertheless, Spinoza's last words in the Ethics sound a note of caution and perhaps even of warning: "All things excellent are as difficult as they are rare." Time, however, is finally catching up with Spinoza and the journey through his philosophy is well worth the effort, as his views now more than ever capture the contemporary scientific imagination and ethical sensibility.
