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The Search for Meaning

A Short History
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( 83 ratings, 12 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The Search for Meaning by Dennis Ford delves into the existential questions that humanity has grappled with for centuries. Without giving away any spoilers, the book explores various philosophical and psychological perspectives on life's purpose and the human quest for understanding. It examines how different cultures and thinkers have approached the meaning of existence, offering readers a broad and insightful overview of our never-ending search for meaning.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you are intrigued by the philosophical quest to understand life's meaning and want to explore various perspectives from psychology and philosophy. It's ideal for those who appreciate a deep dive into existential questions and are open to examining how different cultures and thinkers have addressed the profound question of purpose and significance in human existence.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

Explores eight approaches human beings have pursued over time to invest life with meaning and to infuse order into a seemingly chaotic universe. This book investigates the contributions of the Greeks, Kant, and William James.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

In The Search for Meaning: A Short History, Dennis Ford explores eight approaches human beings have pursued over time to invest life with meaning and to infuse order into a seemingly chaotic universe. These include myth, philosophy, science, postmodernism, pragmatism, archetypal psychology, metaphysics, and naturalism.

In engaging, companionable prose, Ford boils down these systems to their bare essentials, showing the difference between viewing the world from a religious point of view and that of a naturalist, and comparing a scientific worldview to a philosophical one.

Ford investigates the contributions of the Greeks, Kant, and William James, and brings the discussion up to date with contemporary thinkers. He proffers the refreshing idea that in today's world, the answers provided by traditional religions to increasingly difficult questions have lost their currency for many and that the reductive or rationalist answers provided by science and postmodernism are themselves rife with unexamined assumptions.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

The Search for Meaning by Dennis Ford is praised for its ability to distil complex philosophical and psychological concepts into accessible language for general readers. The National Catholic Reporter commends Ford for effectively condensing a large volume of information, making it comprehensible and engaging for non-experts.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780520257931

Publisher: University of California Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 10 September 2007

Country: United States

Imprint: University of California Press

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 20.0mm

Width: 140.0mm

Height: 210.0mm

Weight: 363g

Pages: 313

About the Author

Dennis Ford is the author of Sins of Omission: A Primer on Moral Indifference (1990).

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