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The Cave And The Light; Plato Versus Aristotle, And The Struggle For The Soul Of Western Civilization (2013)

by Arthur Herman(Favorite Author)

3.94 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

0553907832 (ISBN13: 9780553907834)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

Random House

review 1: This is a great approach to an immense subject - Western philosophy. The author manages to make it a page-turner in the best sense of the term. Each chapter flows from the preceding and sets up the next one. Of course, even with the 570 pages, the treatments of landmark developments are quite abbreviated. No apologies, because the developments are all in the context of Plato and Aristotle. There is great depth, however, in the treatment of both Plato and Aristotle. This is perhaps the best attribute of the book. I say perhaps because I will reiterate that Herman is masterful in creating tension in the various stages of thought. He makes the 2,400 years seem compressed, logical, and most importantly relevant. Another important plus to mention is my new interest in ... morereading some of the source materials, particularly William James and Karl Popper. I am also thinking revisiting Aristotle and Plato; why not?So, there it is. Full disclosure: I also enjoyed Bertrand Russell's "History of Western Philosophy", so I clearly have a strong predisposition to the subject matter that could be important for enjoying this book.
review 2: This is a fun read, enjoyably written. Covers an extraordinary amount of ground crisply and with panache. But very much popularized. Chapters sometimes begin with almost farcical “It was a dark and stormy night” ledes, and it is remarkable how many times a philosophical brainstorm had never been conceived of before and changed the world. Also, as one would expect, liberties are taken in order to demonstrate that every philosophical dispute to this day has at its heart Plato vs. Aristotle. Additionally, there are a couple of places where the author, who seems to have his head on pretty straight, surprisingly accepts rather superficial explanations of historical events. But these are really just quibbles. Overall this was a real pleasure and I would definitely recommend it. less

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