So, the summer’s coming to an end, and that’s kind of a bummer.
There’s not a lot I can do about that. But maybe I can brighten up your day with some new reading material.
What have I got for you this month? I’ve got a couple of books on Epicurean philosophy and history. And some things to go along with those books.
Read on to find out…
Stephen Greenblatt – The Swerve
Greenblatt tells the story of the 15th century rediscovery of the lost ancient poem De Rerum Natura, by Roman Epicurean poet Lucretius.
In telling this story, Greenblatt weaves together many things: the intellectual situation of early Renaissance Italy, the rigidity of the Catholic Church, the scandals of the papacy, and the European hunger for an intellectual spark. He also touches on how Lucretius influenced the world after the discovery – the development of his ideas and Epicurean philosophy in later centuries.
As far as it goes, the book works well. It summarizes Epicurean philosophy adequately for a general audience. And it does touch on the broad influence of the Lucretian text. Readers interested in these issues can use Greenblatt’s book as a starting point.
Ernest Owens – The Case for Cancel Culture
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the relationship between culture and politics. There’s a great opportunity for a book that lays out cancel culture – what it is and how it could make a valuable contribution to that debate.
And this book isn’t it. Owens takes a big swing and comes up with a big miss.
He never adequately tells us what ‘cancel culture’ is. Rather, he just sort of moves around and makes the term mean whatever he needs it to mean in particular situations. One minute, cancel culture is cultural critique. And the next minute it’s the Boston Tea Party.
Ultimately, Owens defends a form of cancel culture that amounts to apolitical cultural critique or tired PMC politics. He ends the book by endorsing some kind of Silicon Valley dystopian digital future. And he does a much better job explaining why, e.g., Justin Timberlake is ‘problematic’ than at actually explaining how these things impact the lives of ordinary people.
I’d recommend passing on this book.
Kieran Setiya – Life is Hard
Setiya wrote his last book on midlife, which I wrote about earlier. As with that book, in this one he applies lessons from philosophy to practical life problems.
Setiya divides this book into chapters based on clusters of problems. Each one flows to the next. And it goes reasonably well. He’s at his most effective when he brings his personal experience with chronic pain to bear on issues, notably to a discussion of disability. And he’s at his least effective when he tries to discuss broader issues of justice and injustice.
On the whole, Setiya gives sensible, practical advice. I learned some thing about grief and loneliness by reading this book. And Setiya deserves praise for focusing on life problems we have a hard time discussing.
The absurdity of life, for instance.
Catherine Wilson – How to Be an Epicurean
Wilson is a veteran philosopher and emerita professor of philosophy. And she offers a practical guidebook for applying Epicureanism to our lives. She hits all the various components of Epicurean philosophy and brings them together. And this includes the broad range of Epicurean ideas on epistemology, political philosophy, as well as the expected material on atomism and ethics.
Wilson shines when she’s offering practical advice on the ‘hits’ of Epicurus and Lucretius – avoiding the fear of death, seeking pleasure and avoiding pain (as an individual), cultivating friendships and prudence, and so on. I think she even did a great job discussing atomism in a contemporary context.
Wilson struggles, however, when she’s discussing political philosophy or modern philosophy based on Epicurus and Lucretius. At several points, she talks about modern hedonists or utilitarians as Epicureans, even though they hold very different views about pleasure. And so, while some of this material – e.g., the material on social justice or politics – might offer good advice, it’s hard to see it as Epicurean.
