ABSTRACT

The Meaning of Life and the Great Philosophers reveals how great philosophers of the past sought to answer the question of the meaning of life. This edited collection includes thirty-five chapters which each focus on a major philosophical figure, from Confucius to Rorty, and that imaginatively engage with the topic from their perspective. This volume also contains a Postscript on the historical origins and original significance of the phrase ‘the meaning of life’.

Written by leading experts in the field, such as A.C. Grayling, Thaddeus Metz and John Cottingham, this unique and engaging book explores the relevance of the history of philosophy to contemporary debates. It will prove essential reading for students and scholars studying the history of philosophy, philosophy of religion, ethics, metaphysics or comparative philosophy.

chapter 4|6 pages

Socrates and the meaning of life

chapter 5|8 pages

Plato and the meaning of life

chapter 6|8 pages

Diogenes and the meaning of life

chapter 10|6 pages

Koheleth and the meaning of life

chapter 11|8 pages

Epictetus and the meaning of life

chapter 13|9 pages

Avicenna and the meaning of life

chapter 15|8 pages

Aquinas and the meaning of life

chapter 16|8 pages

Montaigne and the meaning of life

chapter 18|7 pages

Spinoza and the meaning of life

chapter 19|8 pages

Kant and the meaning of life

chapter 21|8 pages

Kierkegaard and the meaning of life

chapter 22|8 pages

Marx and the meaning of life

chapter 23|7 pages

Mill and the meaning of life

chapter 29|8 pages

Beauvoir and the meaning of life

chapter 30|5 pages

Weil and the meaning of life

chapter 31|8 pages

Ayer and the meaning of life

chapter 32|7 pages

Camus and the meaning of life

chapter 33|8 pages

Murdoch and the meaning of life

chapter 34|6 pages

Fanon and the meaning of life

chapter 35|8 pages

Rorty and the meaning of life

chapter |10 pages

Postscript

The blue flower