The Symposium is a philosophical text by Plato dated c. 385–370 BC. It depicts a friendly contest of extemporaneous speeches given by a group of notable men attending a banquet. The men include the philosopher Socrates, the general and political figure Alcibiades, and the comic playwright Aristophanes. The speeches are to be given in praise of Eros, who is the god of love and desire, and the son of Aphrodite.

Of all the works of Plato the Symposium is the most perfect in form, and may be tr...

The Social Contract, originally published as On the Social Contract; or, Principles of Political Rights by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, is a 1762 book in which Rousseau theorized about the best way to establish a political community in the face of the problems of commercial society, which he had already identified in his Discourse on Inequality (1754). The Social Contract helped inspire political reforms or revolutions in Europe, especially in France. The Social Contract argued against the idea tha...

What is Love?

How do we experience it?

And how do we deal with the beauty, the difficulties and the impossibilities of Life?

In her bundle "The Light at the end of the tunnel" Elena Mara reflects on different, recognisable situations in Love and Life and discovers that in many cases there are still more questions than answers..

"One would think solitude was seldom demanded, yet it became our primary endeavour."

This story is about Yama, a monk who lives in a temple settled high in the mountains. He, together with several other monks, inhabit this remote monastery, yet where the others live according to the way of the monk, Yama doesn't. He thinks where others don't, he doubts where others are certain.

Yama carries a burden, a burden that makes him want to doubt everything, thus he wants to obtain that which he will...

“The Descartes Lectures” is a biennial event at Tilburg University that invites a distinguished philosopher to deliver a series of three lectures, each followed by commentaries from other experts in the field. In 2022, Tilburg University had the honor of hosting Cheshire Calhoun for a series of talks on the important philosophical question of what it means to be a responsible person. The commentators for the lectures were Gunnar Björnsson, Jules Holroyd, and Heidi Maibom. This book is a ...

I am the Archangel Lucifer, the Lightbearer, fallen from Heaven but not from the Light.

The Angel Verses is my offering to those who dare to look beyond what is permitted, beyond the comforting lie.

This is not a book to be read lightly. It is a poetic-philosophical manifesto that oscillates between autobiography, spirituality, and mythical imagination. Rubèn Cottenjé guides you through the silent streets of Bruges, the resonances of inner life, and the fringes of a civilisation losing its ...

States that throughout history, some books have changed the world. They have transformed the way we see ourselves and each other. They have inspired debate, dissent, war and revolution. This book presents works of the great thinkers, pioneers, radicals and visionaries whose ideas shook civilization and helped make us who we are.

Exploring the nature and scope of scientific knowledge, the increased power of nature that science affords and the changes in the lives of human beings that result from new forms of science, this is an insightful and accessible work that sees Russell at his very best.

If in this book harsh words are spoken about some of the greatest among the intellectual leaders of mankind, my motive is not, I hope, to belittle them. It springs rather from my conviction that, if our civilization is to survive, we must break with the habit of deference to great men. Karl Popper, from the PrefaceWritten in political exile during the Second World War and first published in two volumes in 1945, Karl Popper The Open Society and Its Enemies is one of the most influential books ...

The book provides a succinct and issue-centered introduction to the Western philosophy of science, bringing eight focal issues in the field to the fore and augments each topic by incorporating Chinese perspectives.