A Small Treatise on the Great Virtues: The Uses of Philosophy in Everyday Life

by André Comte-Sponville

Book Overview

In this graceful, incisive book, writer-philosopher Andr Comte-Sponville reexamines the classical virtues to help us understand "what we should do, who we should be, and how we should live." In the process, he gives us an entirely new perspective on the value, relevance, and charm of the Western ethical tradition. Drawing on thinkers from Aristotle to Simone Weil, by way of Aquinas, Kant, Rilke, Nietzsche, Spinoza, and Rawls, among others, Comte-Sponville...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0805045562
• ISBN13: 9780805045567
• Release Date: September 2002
• Publisher: Picador USA
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 0.79 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.4" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

Wow

For people who read De Botton's "Consolation of Philosophy" this book would be so similar to it but in fact this one is at least ten times better!It is a collection of Essays on 'all' virtues.It is rich with smart comments by the author who was inspired by small philosophies of people like Aristotle, Spinoza etc...Truly, this book is a must have and before you have it make sure you have a highlighter or a large notebook as there's plenty you never ever heard before! Enjoy. ( I am jelaous of you for not being able to read this book again for the first time ) :)

Life transforming

This is a remarkable book. We have stopped asking the question "How should we live" except in religious contexts and in looking at tough intractible problems. This book steps back and looks at what 2400 years of thinking has lead us to believe about the right way to behave. Why be polite? What is loyalty? What is courage? The price of the book is worth it for the last chapter alone, which talks about the virtue of love.

A non-philosopher must read

I have just recently become interested in philosophy and wanted something not too in depth, yet intellectually stimulating. This book was particularly good for me because it didn't go into much detail about the foundations of the concepts discussed, it just gave an in-depth applicable discussion on 11 or so important virtues in life. I found the frequent references to other philosophers helpful as well because I am new to the subject and now am familiar with the basic ideas of different philosophers.

A thinking man's self-help book

This book is apparently very popular in France and continental Europe. It deserves equal success in North America. It is a collection of essays that explore 18 virtues. Love, Politeness, Fidelity, Tolerance, Humor among them and drws his, very readable and humorous, analysis from his own experience and from the great philosophers of all time ranging from Aristotle to Aquinas, Kant, Nietzche and Rielke to mention a few from memory. The virtues are also arranged according to an order. He starst with politeness, which he considers to be almost a virtue, to Love, the ultimate virtue. In many ways I was reminded of Alain de Botton's excellent Consolations of Philosophy. Indeed, it is equally good but interestingly different. Read them both. Also a warning to those who seek absolute truths: There aren't any to be found here, and that's part of the charm and its appeal to free-thinkers.

A fresh outlook on western values and civilization

I have read the book in French and attended various meetings/panel discussions where the book was discussed. Look forward to the English edition.The author's motivation and approach are quite interesting. Motivation: He once made a statement to the effect that "now that places of prayer are empty and supermarkets are full, I wanted to find out whether western society has still something worth living for" (I am quoting from memory). Approach: A book of practical philosophy.The book addresses both points brilliantly. It brushes up all "Virtues" that made mankind more human. It builds up crescendo from small virtues like politeness to love "Agape". All his arguments are written clearly and are well referenced. He uses a charming sometimes quite humoristic style, which makes this book quite pleasant to read. Each chapter covers one virtue and they are all well constructed and linked together. I find the chapter on what makes humor a virtue quite interesting and rather surprising particularly as it comes towards the end, just before love. Definitely a good book to have in every home if we agree with the author's motivations.