The Pursuit of Love: The Meaning in Life

By Irving Singer

Book Overview

"Love is not merely a contributor--one among others--to a meaningful life. In its own way it may underlie all other forms of meaning."--from the Introduction In his widely acclaimed trilogy The Nature of Love, Irving Singer traced the development of the concept of love in history and literature from the Greeks to the twentieth century. Now in a sequel to his previous work, Singer explores a different approach. A "systematic mapping" of the various facets of love, the present volume is an extended essay that offers a philosophical and psychiatric theory of his own. Rich in insight into literature, the history of ideas, and the complexities of our being, The Pursuit of Love is a thought-provoking inquiry into fundamental aspects of all human relationships. " The Pursuit of Love is a unique achievement in that it demonstrates the relation between love, value, and meaning. It is overall a work of great wisdom that I found to be illuminating and personally enriching."--Arnold H. Modell, M.D., Professor of Clinical Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0801847923
• ISBN13: 9780801847929
• Release Date: April 1994
• Publisher: The Johns Hopkins University Press
• Length: 200 Pages
• Weight: 1.04 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.5" x 1.0" x 6.5"

Customer Reviews

A Dialectic

A dialectic of philosophers', psychologists', and imaginative writers' opinions about love and sexuality, Singer's book accomplishes a philosopher's aim -- examine the logic (faults and benefits) of Freud, Sartre, St Augustine, Bergson, and Spinoza among others, on the subject, reaching the author's distinct opinion. The scope includes country, family, self, and humanity (102, 113); appraisal and bestowal; empathy, sympathy, and compassion (111); changing love (45); libido, eroticism, and imagination; religion's association with power, knowledge, and goodness (119); and autonomy underlaying happiness.