Figuring the Self consists of twelve essays which present, discuss, and assess the principal accounts of the self in classical German philosophy, focusing on the period around 1800 and covering Kant, Fichte, Hölderlin, Novalis, Schelling, Schleiermacher, and Hegel.
Narrating the Self examines the historical formation of modern Japanese literature through a fundamental reassessment of its most characteristic form, the 'I-novel, ' an autobiographical narrative thought to recount the details of the writer's personal life thinly veiled as fiction. Closely analysing a range of texts from the late nineteenth century through to the present day, the author argues that the 'I-novel' is not a given form of text that can be objectively identified, but a historically constructed reading mode and cultural paradigm that not only regulated the production and reception of literary texts but also defined cultural identity and national tradition. Instead of emphasising, as others have, the thematic and formal elements of novels traditionally placed in this category, she explores the historical formation of a field of discourse in which the 'I-novel' was retroactively created and defined.
Contributions originally presented at a conference held in Munich in 2007.
This book is the second of a planned three-volulme systematic theology under the title, Confessions of a Heretic. Volume One, which has the subtitle, Philosophical Considerations, was published by Archway in 2024. The project now turns to Theological Considerations, with the forthcoming Volume Three being Ecclesiological Consideration. Organized into three Parts, Volume Two focuses on the theological endeavor, and the doctrines distinctive to Christianity, namely, the Trinity, Jesus Christ, sin, and salvation. Based on the foundational distinctions and defintions explicated in Volume One, the current volume seeks to ask what the philosophcial considerations imply for basic traditional understandings and terminology of Christian theology, including that of Jesus of Nazareth, his crucifixion and resurrection. The project as a whole adopts a trinitarian structure, with this second volume focused on “God the Son”, or, as here termed, ‘God’ the Perfector. The argument is that Christian Theology needs to shift from an anthropocentric to a theocentric approach, recognzing human beings simply as creatures, and having the courage to face what that entails. Yet doing so necessitates ...
I wrote How Did I Teach Myself Fear? To unblock my hidden blocks by admitting and admiring gut gumption I taught myself fear through my childhood surroundings and people of influence. I unlocked my imprisoned impudence to understand, admit, and admire. I taught myself everything in my life.
Christopher Alexander's series of ground-breaking books including A Pattern Language and The Timeless Way of Building have pointed to fundamental truths of the way we build, revealing what gives life and beauty and true functionality to our buildings and towns. Now, in The Nature of Order, Alexander explores the properties of life itself, highlighting a set of well-defined structures present in all order - and in all life - from micro-organisms and mountain ranges to good houses and vibrant communities. In The Phenomenon of Life, the first volume in this four-volume masterwork, Alexander proposes a scientific view of the world in which all space-matter has perceptible degrees of life and sets this understanding of order as an intellectual basis for a new architecture. With this view as a foundation, we can ask precise questions about what must be done to create more life in our world - whether in a room, a humble doorknob, a neighbourhood, or even in a vast region. He introduces the concept of living structure, basing it upon his theories of centers and of wholeness, and defines the fifteen properties from which, according t his observations, all wholeness is built. Alexander...
Praise for First Edition: `This book is highly recommended to a wide range of people as a clear and systematic introduction to phenomenological psychology... the book has set the stage for possible new colloquia between the phenomenological and other approaches in psychology' - Changes `As a trainee interested in matters existential, I have been put off in the past by the long-winded and confusing texts usually available in academic libraries. Thankfully, here is a text that remedies that situation... [it] provides a readable and insightful account' - Clinical Psychology Forum 'Spinellis classic introduction to phenomenology should be essential reading on all person-centred, existential and humanistic trainings, and any other counselling or psychotherapy course which aims to help students develop an in-depth understanding of human lived-experience. This book is sure to remain a key text for many years to come' - Mick Cooper, Senior Lecturer in Counselling, University of Strathclyde 'This is by far the most monumental, erudite, comprehensive, authoritative case that Existentialism and Phenomenology (a) have a rightful place in the academy; (b) are tough-minded bodies of thought;...
Sex in your seventies, a google search, begins this humorous story about senior single relationships. Kayla comes up with the idea that without a partner she is at a disadvantage. She goes online over a one year period in search of a compatible companion in spite of the many self-doubts and second thoughts that arise from a persistent, outspoken inner voice that criticizes her unmercifully. Follow her journey as she meets five potential companions telling about each encounter as it takes place (yes, the author did the research herself). Along the way, she bumps into many surprises and learns a few things about herself as well as online dating. Find out how Kayla turns her mundane existence into a more fulfilling life as she looks forward to the future. The sand in the hourglass may be running out but paradoxically, living for her is gearing up rather than winding down.
The Story of My Life by Clarence Darrow: The Story of My Life is an autobiography by Clarence Darrow, a renowned American lawyer and civil libertarian. In this book, Darrow reflects on his personal and professional journey, discussing his legal career, notable cases, and his perspectives on justice and society. Key Points: Legal career and landmark cases: Darrow recounts his experiences as a lawyer, highlighting some of the most significant cases he handled throughout his career. He provides insights into his defense strategies, his commitment to defending the rights of the accused, and his tireless efforts in advocating for social justice. Views on justice and society: The book delves into Darrow's philosophical and social beliefs, exploring his thoughts on criminal justice, the death penalty, and the flaws of the legal system. Darrow offers a critical analysis of societal issues and shares his ideas on reform and progress. Personal reflections and influences: Darrow provides glimpses into his personal life, discussing the events and individuals that shaped his worldview. He reflects on his upbringing, education, and the intellectual currents of his time, offering readers a...
Psychoanalysis enjoyed an enormous popularity at one time, but has recently fallen out of favor as new psychiatric medications have dominated the treatment of mental illness and a new interest in the brain and neuroscience begins to dominate the theory as to the cause and cure of mental illness. How do we distinguish between the brain, the mind and the self? In his new book, Arnold Goldberg approaches this question from a psychoanalytic perspective, and examines how recent research findings can shed light on it. He repositions psychoanalysis as an interpretive science that is a different activity to most other sciences that are considered empirical. Giving clear coverage of the various psychoanalytic models of the mind and the self, Goldberg examines how these theories fare against neuroscientific evidence, and what implications these have for psychoanalytic clinical practice. The Brain, the Mind and the Self: A psychoanalytic road map sets up evidence-based, robust psychoanalytic theory and practice that will give psychoanalysts, social workers and practicing psychologists a valuable insight into the future of psychoanalysis. Arnold Goldberg, M.D. was born and raised in Chicago...
Beautifully composed, elegantly written and constructed, this is a primary text of Islamic spirituality, by one of the most significant Muslim European voices of our age. A book to be returned to again and again.-Adam B. Seligman, Boston UniversityThe Mosque is an extended meditation on the spiritual aspects of the Islamic tradition-a dimension of Islam unfamiliar to most Western readers.
Originally published in 1993. This book explores the process by which individuals reconstruct the meaning and significance of past experience. Drawing on the lives of such notable figures as St Augustine, Helen Keller and Philip Roth as well as on the combined insights of psychology, philosophy and literary theory, the book sheds light on the intricacies and dilemmas of self-interpretation in particular and interpretive psychological enquiry more generally. The author draws upon selected, mainly autobiographical, literary texts in order to examine concretely the process of rewriting the self. Among the issues addressed are the relationship of rewriting the self to the concept of development, the place of language in the construction of selfhood, the difference between living and telling about it, the problem of facts in life history narrative, the significance of the unconscious in interpreting the personal past, and the freedom of the narrative imagination. Alpha Sigma Nu National Book Award winner in 1994
This study explores the relationship between the individual person (the self), the divine, and other people in the writings of the apostle Paul and the Roman Stoic Epictetus. It does so by examining self-involving actions expressed with reflexive pronouns (myself, yourself, etc.) in various kinds of sentences: for example, “Examine yourself” and “You do not belong to yourself.” After situating the topic within the fields of linguistics and ancient Greek, the study then examines the reflexive constructions in Epictetus’s Discourses, showing that reflexive texts express fundamental aspects of his ethic of rational self-interest in imitation of the indwelling rational deity. Next, the investigation examines the 109 reflexive constructions in Paul, providing an exegesis of each reflexive text and then synthesizing the results. Paul’s reflexive phrases are essential statements of his theology and ethics, expressing an interconnected narrative Christology, narrative apostolic identity, and narrative ethic. Most importantly, the study finds that for Epictetus, concern for others is a rational means to self-realization, whereas for Paul, concern for others is a community ethic ...
We often hear that selves are no longer formed through producing material things at work, but by consuming them in leisure, leading to 'meaningless' modern lives. This important book reveals the cultural shift to be more complex, demonstrating how people in postindustrial societies strive to form meaningful and moral selves through both the consumption and production of material culture in leisure. Focusing on the material culture of food, the book explores these theoretical questions through an ethnography of those individuals for whom food is central to their self: 'foodies'. It examines what foodies do, and why they do it, through an in-depth study of their lived experiences. The book uncovers how food offers a means of shaping the self not as a consumer but as an amateur who engages in both the production and consumption of material culture and adopts a professional approach which reveals the new moralities of productive leisure in self-formation. The chapters examine a variety of practices, from fine dining and shopping to cooking and blogging, and include rare data on how people use media such as cookbooks, food television, and digital food media in their everyday life. This ...
Dr. Stephen J. Briggs presents his education and compassion as a medical physician and writer within the Lordas Ministry. Raised in a warm and friendly town known as Titusville, Pennsylvania, he felt the pain of losing his mother to cancer when at the young age of thirteen years old. Rebuilding his life from that day forward, he married and divorced, having been gifted with four wonderful children during the twenty-one years of marriage. His drive to serve and enlighten people lead him through the education of Psychology, Sociology, and several studies in English, among many other subjects to establish and maintain research presentable to aid others in there quest for aself improvement.a His extensive efforts gained him high honors at his graduation and were an important application in his research concerning the many varieties of people, their race, creed, culture, religion, customs and methods of expressing their emotions. His love for fellow human beings echoed in his heart the need to present avenues of improvement that could be utilized by the many that read and meditated on his findings and how the presented knowledge could effect the readeras life personally.
Empower Your Life Despite All of Your Problems What if shame, guilt, inadequacy, low self-esteem and painful memories of your past failures no longer plagued your mind? What if you could take full control of your life and achieve the goals and success you always yearned for with just a few easy habits? "When we tell ourselves something is too hard, or easy, or that we are successes or failures, it's self-talk." Six years ago, the prevailing thought in Michal's mind was: "It's impossible." His life attitude was "just get by," and his mind was eroded by the memories of his failures. Today, he is a bestselling author who liberated his wife from her day job, and spends most of his days empowering fellow authors and millions of readers around the globe. In "Power Up Your Self-Talk," he shares the simplest techniques that helped him and his readers to overcome the sneaky (and often brutal) self-sabotage of the mind. In this book you will learn: Why you failed so many times despite your best intentions (and how to change this) How to instantly elevate your mood to escape obstinate dark thoughts Which elephant in the room self-help gurus fail to address in most of their teachings How to...
"For more than a quarter of a century, those in search of an introduction to Buddhist moral thought have turned and returned to this little volume which includes a remarkable range of information on Buddhist history, thought and practice as background for understanding the fundamental issues of Buddhist ethics."--Back cover.
An invitation and guide for leaders “to cast a courageous and imaginative vision, to lead resiliently, and to be present and steady in times of deep anxiety.” Ed Friedman’s genius was to see the individual in the family in the larger group, bringing the wisdom of his experience as a therapist and rabbi to the field of organizational leadership. A timeless bestseller, A Failure of Nerve still astonishes in this new edition with its relevance and continues to transform the lives of leaders everywhere—business, church, family, schools—as it has for more than 20 years: Offers prescient guide to leadership in the age of “quick fix.” Provides ways to recognize and address organizational dysfunction. Emphasizes “strength over pathology” in these anxious times. “The age that is upon us requires differentiated leadership that is willing to rise above the anxiety of the masses. We need leaders who will have the ‘capacity to understand and deal effectively’ with the hive mind that is us. This is, in Friedman's words, ‘the key to the kingdom.’ I am grateful for this accessible new edition.” ―C. Andrew Doyle, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Texas
Situating privacy within the context of political philosophy, this book highlights the way in which struggles concerning the meaning of privacy have always been political. Different conceptions of privacy are here shown to involve diverse assumptions about ontology: our conceptions of self, culture, society and communication. Privacy theory’s debt to Locke, Kant or Mill, and what is at stake in their conceptual frameworks, is examined. The extent to which the term "privacy" has been used to the detriment of - and to create - weaker parties in marriage, in the workplace and now as citizens (or non-citizens) and consumers, as well as employees, is also demonstrated. In contrast, Janice Richardson pursues the relevance of Floridi’s philosophy of information, before turning to her application of Spinoza, the philosopher of communication, in order to outline a more useful framework through which to think about privacy today. The book will be of interest to those working in political philosophy, feminist philosophy, law, the philosophy of information, sociology, media, and cultural studies.
""Stories bear the truth of the human condition, and the human condition is the story of our becoming; but not until we solve the riddle of our becoming will literature resolve the issue of the human condition. This makes literature endlessly fascinating, because every writer speaks to their place in the enan-tiodromiac process of man's becoming, which Jung called "individuation," and in their stories they stake out the geography of man's soul-whether it be the happy country of one's being, the unhappy country of one's non-being, or that miserable place of being stuck between two countries-the no-man's land of one's soul."" Chapter 18: The Dust on a Butterfly's Wings
Break free from the self-help cycle and join the world of successful leaders. IN THIS GAME CHANGING BOOK YOU WILL LEARN: - How self doubt, procrastination and indecision create a cycle of self-help addiction - Why people invest in self-help books, courses, events and come out still feeling unaccomplished - How you can make your fears your friend and achieve anything your heart desires - The importance of always taking responsibility for what happens in your life - How much abundance there is in this world and that there is enough money, love and happiness for everyone to have a lifetime supply - How to go from a consumer to a creator - The art of taking action, because without action nothing gets done - How to become accountable so you avoid putting things off - The power of decisiveness and how to avoid feeling overwhelmed - The secret to getting high and staying high (without drugs) - Why you have already won - How the real hero, that you have searched so long and hard for, is you.
New Understandings of Twin Relationships takes an experience-based approach to exploring how twin attachment and estrangement are critical to understanding the push and pull of closely entwined personal relationships. Based on the research expertise of each of the authors (all identical twins in their own right), and vignettes from twins across the globe, this book describes the inner workings of the twin-world, showing how the twin-world creates experiences that are often more intense and intricately textured than those in the singleton-world. Chapters debunk myths surrounding twinship and analyze the developmental stages of the twin relationship as well as the effect of being a twin on one’s mental health from different perspectives. The authors articulate how attachment, separation anxiety, loneliness, estrangement, and the subjective experience of the twin and non-twin "other" impact behavior, thinking, and feeling. Through its careful study of the many psychological challenges that twins face throughout their lifetime, this text will help psychologists, scholars, clinicians, and twins themselves attain a deeper understanding of all interpersonal relationships.
Travels with the Self uses a hermeneutic perspective to critique psychology and demonstrate why the concept of the self and the modality of cultural history are so vitally important to the profession of psychology. Each chapter focuses on a theory, concept, sociopolitical or professional issue, philosophical problem, or professional activity that has rarely been critiqued from a historical, sociopolitical vantage point. Philip Cushman explores psychology’s involvement in consumerism, racism, shallow understandings of being human, military torture, political resistance, and digital living. In each case, theories and practices are treated as historical artifacts, rather than expressions of a putatively progressive, modern-era science that is uncovering the one, universal truth about human being. In this way, psychological theories and practices, especially pertaining to the concept of the self, are shown to be reflections of the larger moral understandings and political arrangements of their time and place, with implications for how we understand the self in theory and clinical practice. Drawing on the philosophies of critical theory and hermeneutics, Cushman insists on...
You know who you are, right? Of course you do, you’re you! But what if who you think you are is actually holding you back, closing off exciting opportunities that are right in front of you, and preventing you from achieving your best potential? This book explores the concept of self-narrative, or the stories that we tell ourselves about who we are and our place in the world. In this book, I explore how understanding our own self-narratives and challenging them can enable you to change how you think about yourself and open up those opportunities that you could be missing. Using examples from my own journey, I provide a process that you can follow to increase your own self-awareness, understand what your self-narrative says and how it impacts your daily life, and gives a template on how to make changes to your narrative. We are powerful storytellers, telling ourselves our most impactful story of all. By understanding and changing your story you can make real positive change in your life. Use your own story to learn, grow and achieve what you want.
This anger workbook is unique. It is the official guide for Pathways to Peace, a program which provides self-help anger management and violence prevention instruction for individuals and communities. Anger is a drug which often turns into a full-blown addiction. This pattern of anger abuse is reinforced socially. People learn to abuse anger from the examples of parents, peers, the media. The book helps people to un-learn these destructive patterns. It shows chronically angry people how to replace their anger habit with peaceful alternatives and respond to their anger triggers in non-violent ways. This workbook will help the reader: --Discover how he learned his or her anger pattern --Find new, nonviolent ways to experience personal power --Learn to change abusive and violent behaviors --Focus on values and goals that support a nonviolent rage-free lifestyle --Identify and change negative attitudes and beliefs that keep a person stuck --Avoid relapsing back into angry behavior --Maintain recovery from chronic anger and rage The workbook is easy to understand. Each of the eighteen chapters includes personal stories and questions for the reader.
Freedom and its internal relation to reason is fundamental to Descartes’ philosophy in general, and to his Meditations on First Philosophy in particular. Without freedom his entire enquiry would not get off the ground, and without understanding the rôle of freedom in his work, we could not understand what motivates key parts of his metaphysics. Yet, not only is freedom a relatively overlooked element, but its internal relation to reason has gone unnoticed by most studies of his philosophy. Self, Reason, and Freedom: A New Light on Descartes’ Metaphysics, by defending freedom’s internal relation to reason, sheds new light on Descartes’ metaphysics and restores the often dismissed Fourth Meditation to the core of his metaphysics as he conceived it. Implicit in that relation is a rejection of any authority external to reason. Andrea Christofidou shows how this lends strength and explanatory force to Descartes’ enquiry, and reveals his conception of the unity of the self and of its place in the world. Self, Reason, and Freedom: A New Light on Descartes’ Metaphysics is essential reading for students and scholars of Descartes and anyone studying seventeenth-century...
It is our hope that this collection will give readers a sense of the type of metaphysical investigations that are now being carried out by thinkers in the Western nations. We also hope that the reader's curiosity will be peaked so that further inquiry will follow.
What is sociology really about? Allan Johnson's answer goes to the heart of sociology as a way of thinking and explains why it's important that we understand it, use it, live it, and pass it on. Johnson takes us into every nook and cranny of social life, from the meaning of "I love you" to the ravages of social oppression.
Life in the Market Ecosystem, the second book inthe Nature of Liberty trilogy, confronts evolutionary psychology head on. It describes the evolutionary psychologists’ theory of gene-culture co-evolution, which states that although customs and culture are not predetermined by anyone’s genetic makeup, one’s practice of a custom can influence the likelihood of that person having children and grandchildren. Therefore, according to the theory, customs count as evolutionary adaptations. Extending that theory further, as entire systems of political economy—capitalism, socialism, and hunter-gatherer subsistence—consist of multiple customs and institutions, it follows that an entire political-economic system can likewise be classified as an evolutionary adaptation. Considering that liberal-republican capitalism has, insofar as the system has been implemented, done more to reduce the mortality rate and secure human fertility than other models of societal structure, it stands to reason that liberal-republican capitalism is itself a beneficent evolutionary adaptation. Moreover, as essential tenets of Rand’s Objectivism—individualism, observation-based rationality, and peaceable...
Christine M. Korsgaard presents a compelling new view of humans' moral relationships to the other animals. She defends the claim that we are obligated to treat all sentient beings as what Kant called "ends-in-themselves". Drawing on a theory of the good derived from Aristotle, she offers an explanation of why animals are the sorts of beings for whom things can be good or bad. She then turns to Kant's argument for the value of humanity to show that rationality commits us to claiming the standing of ends-in-ourselves, in two senses. Kant argued that as autonomous beings, we claim to be ends-in-ourselves when we claim the standing to make laws for ourselves and each other. Korsgaard argues that as beings who have a good, we also claim to be ends-in-ourselves when we take the things that are good for us to be good absolutely and so worthy of pursuit. The first claim commits us to joining with other autonomous beings in relations of moral reciprocity. The second claim commits us to treating the good of every sentient creature as something of absolute importance. Korsgaard argues that human beings are not more important than the other animals, that our moral nature does not make us...
Collected in entirety for the very first time, this study reflects more than 25 years of close contact with the Sufi Masters of Central Anatolia, with much of that time spent in the presence of the peerless Sufi teacher Mr. Ahmet Kayhan. Out of the author's association with this personality has emerged this in-depth look at the famous and mysterious Oral Tradition of Sufism. Topics covered include the concepts of compassion and mercy, universality, ethics, faith, charity, destiny, death and the afterlife, and more. Combining the rigor of anthropology with the devotion of a disciple, this book faithfully lays bare the comprehensive teachings of the man who may be the Sufi Saint of the Age.
Based on extensive research, The Tidal Model charts the development of this model of care, outlining its theoretical basis and including clinical examples to show the benefits of encouraging the client's greater involvement in their treatment.
This book examines the public assertion of self by men and women in England, France and Germany from the Renaissance to Romanticism.
Give yourself the gift of self-forgiveness—you deserve it. Many people who’ve experienced trauma tend to blame themselves. This tendency to self-blame often begins in childhood and is carried into adulthood, and can manifest in a number of emotional and behavioral problems such as anxiety, depression, addiction, and feelings of guilt and shame. You’ve probably tried to quiet your critical inner voice through avoidance and distraction, only to have the negative self-talk return time and time again to sabotage your self-esteem and interfere with your day-to-day life. Fortunately, you possess the power to forgive yourself and discover your inner strength. With this workbook as your guide, you’ll learn proven-effective skills that integrate self-forgiveness with acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), compassion-focused therapy (CFT), functional analytic psychotherapy (FAP), and relational frame theory (RFT). You’ll develop the self-compassion and self-acceptance needed to overcome the sense of shame and guilt that’s keeping you from a meaningful, purposeful life. You’ll also gain a new perspective on your life's story, empowering you to get in touch with your values...
The Poetics of Philosophy is my attempt to hear what academic philosophy attempts to silence, namely, how reason resonates with madness. It is thus a stinging of the great steed of academia in order to recover and re-experience what otherwise would be repressed by the exigencies of bureaucratic-commodity life in the late capitalist world. An analysis of Plato’s principal dialogues with a view towards developing the author’s conception of thinking, knowing, and loving, it incorporates the insights of Heidegger, Nietzsche, and Derrida. Provoking the world mind to reflect upon its phenomenological possibility for Being dispersed within its daily routines or business, the book argues for the metaphysicality of physical reality articulated through the narrative trope of fractal dialectical logic. The present volume’s more general implications extend the insights of the author’s previous work in the area of social science. I refer to the possibility for world communist revolution, which is predicated on communism’s thorough ridding itself of its naïve materialist perspective, the relics of a Newtonian Universe, and its embracing of a fractal-dialectical logic (or similar)...