Essays and Aphorisms (Penguin Classics)

If you buy this you're surely aware of Schopenhauer anyway and don't need to hear my opinion of this pessimistic (realistic) genius who saw the world as it was and made a huge contribution to c19 philosophy, although some of his views are clearly of their time. This is a beautiful edition, small enough to travel with, substantial enough to justify the price.

Any philosopher can write so that the average reader can't understand what they are saying. Even Nietzsche managed it, In fact many did so intentionally, addressing themselves to other philosophers and academics. Schopenhauer, on the other hand, is a brilliantly lucid writer and natural born communicator. He reads as pacey and gripping as a good novel, but without talking down to his readers. JG Ballard said human beings can't handle reality for too long at a stretch.Schopenhauer was on message 200 years before him. When you consider when he wrote, even in translation his work is modern and never flinches from delivering some hard truths we may prefer to shy away from. Philosophical writing developed in Germany as a direct result of the genius of Goethe, whose work covered every other sphere of writing. German writers had to explore philosophy as a outlet for their writing. If they wrote novels or poetry, they could only be rated as second rate Goethes. England and France produced great novelists. Germany produced philosophers. That's the key to how good Schopenhauer is...he's a great writer who chose philosophy as his theme, i.e. writer first. OK, feminists don't like him, but then they wouldn't, would they? They don't like anything but themselves, especially reality.

Half way through the book. Really nice selection of works. Great read.

Bit of a mixed bag this - it's a compilation of snippets from Schopenhauer's essays. Forget the introduction though by Hollingdale - he overemphasises Schopenhauer's pessimism due to his own Nietzschean proclivities.

Schopenhauer's thoughts are preceded by the translator's introduction. This contains interesting background material. But beware: the introduction is a rather dismissive attempt to rationalise or "explain" the roots of Schopenhauer's world view. Do not be distracted by this - Hollingdale may well be a fine translator but he is not the philosophical genius that Schopenhauer was.

This book is excellent and honest. It has a great ring or truth about it. It is believable and a great ridicule of life and society. Down to earth and readable.

what an idiot schopenhauer was. quite clever, and he had some nice ideas about music, and the will to life, but really, what an idiot.

A Penguin classic. It is published by Penguin so you can be reasonably confident that you'll get the correct version.

I could never get into the rest of Schopehauer's stuff, but this material reads great - it feels more like casual insights than anything systematic, and some of it is pretty hilariously awful, but most of it is brilliant. Every time I pick it up for five minutes at a time I'm left with something significant to chew on.

brilliant

Excelente libro, la edición me gustó mucho aunque la letra e impresión podrian ser mejores. No tenia plastico protector por lo que tenia algunas orillas raspadas.

book arrived 1 day later, but its all good, thank you!

great