Listen free for 30 days
-
Schopenhauer: Philosophy in an Hour
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 18 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: Politics & Social Sciences, Philosophy
Add to basket failed.
Add to wishlist failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Listen with a free trial
Buy Now for £1.99
No valid payment method on file.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
Nietzsche: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy has always been dangerous for philosophers; Friedrich Nietzsche made it dangerous for everyone. His ideas presaged a collective madness which was to ravage Europe throughout the first half of the 20th century, drawing a chilling parallel with the insanity that gripped Nietzsche towards the end of his life. His philosophy is one of aphorisms and penetrating psychological insights, his major concept being the Will to Power - a notion that he saw as the basic impulse for all our acts. Viewing Christianity as a subtle perversion of this concept Nietzsche is famous for his pronouncement that ‘God is dead’.
-
-
Disappointed
- By Kuleshov on 14-01-17
-
Kant: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to this succinct account of the philosophy of Kant in just one hour. Immanuel Kant taught and wrote prolifically about physical geography yet never travelled farther than forty miles from his home in Königsberg. Appropriately, his philosophy strenuously denies that all knowledge is derived from experience, insisting instead that all experience must conform to knowledge. Kant’s aim was to restore metaphysics.
-
-
Good Intro to Kant
- By Amazon Customer on 11-07-18
-
Hegel: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to a succinct account of the philosophy of Hegel in just one hour. With Hegel philosophy became very difficult indeed – even the great man himself conceded that ‘only one man understands me, and even he does not.’ His dialectical method produced the most grandiose metaphysical system known to humanity, and included absolutely everything, its most vital element being the dialectic of the thesis, antithesis and synthesis.
-
-
Self congratulatory nonsense
- By Paul Towlson on 17-10-19
-
Descartes: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to this succinct account of the philosophy of Descartes in just one hour. Descartes was the first modern philosopher. His scepticism led him to doubt all certainties, until finally he arrived at his famous maxim 'I think therefore I am'. He would also apply his rationalism with great effect in science and mathematics, conceiving a scheme for scientific method and inventing Cartesian co-ordinates in geometry.
-
-
Lacking philosophy
- By Callum on 24-03-22
-
Plato: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to this succinct account of the philosophy of Plato in just one hour. Plato is still seen by many as the greatest of all philosophers, inspiring many of the finest thinkers through the ages. Indeed, many see all later philosophy as nothing but attempts to answer the questions he raised. He founded the Academy, the world’s first university, in 387 BC and taught that the physical world is not reality but rather a reproduction of the true source.
-
-
Good introduction for beginners to Philosophy.
- By Matt on 28-07-15
-
Dewey: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Read a succinct account of the philosophy of John Dewey in just one hour.In early twentieth-century America John Dewey was regarded as the foremost philosopher of his age – no mean feat when his colleagues included the likes of Russell, Wittgenstein and Heidegger. Dewey produced a distinctly American philosophy, essentially different from that of his European contemporaries – his pragmatic theory of ‘instrumentalism’ or ‘experimentalism’, relying on modern experimental methods to prove truth and reality.
-
Nietzsche: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy has always been dangerous for philosophers; Friedrich Nietzsche made it dangerous for everyone. His ideas presaged a collective madness which was to ravage Europe throughout the first half of the 20th century, drawing a chilling parallel with the insanity that gripped Nietzsche towards the end of his life. His philosophy is one of aphorisms and penetrating psychological insights, his major concept being the Will to Power - a notion that he saw as the basic impulse for all our acts. Viewing Christianity as a subtle perversion of this concept Nietzsche is famous for his pronouncement that ‘God is dead’.
-
-
Disappointed
- By Kuleshov on 14-01-17
-
Kant: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to this succinct account of the philosophy of Kant in just one hour. Immanuel Kant taught and wrote prolifically about physical geography yet never travelled farther than forty miles from his home in Königsberg. Appropriately, his philosophy strenuously denies that all knowledge is derived from experience, insisting instead that all experience must conform to knowledge. Kant’s aim was to restore metaphysics.
-
-
Good Intro to Kant
- By Amazon Customer on 11-07-18
-
Hegel: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to a succinct account of the philosophy of Hegel in just one hour. With Hegel philosophy became very difficult indeed – even the great man himself conceded that ‘only one man understands me, and even he does not.’ His dialectical method produced the most grandiose metaphysical system known to humanity, and included absolutely everything, its most vital element being the dialectic of the thesis, antithesis and synthesis.
-
-
Self congratulatory nonsense
- By Paul Towlson on 17-10-19
-
Descartes: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to this succinct account of the philosophy of Descartes in just one hour. Descartes was the first modern philosopher. His scepticism led him to doubt all certainties, until finally he arrived at his famous maxim 'I think therefore I am'. He would also apply his rationalism with great effect in science and mathematics, conceiving a scheme for scientific method and inventing Cartesian co-ordinates in geometry.
-
-
Lacking philosophy
- By Callum on 24-03-22
-
Plato: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to this succinct account of the philosophy of Plato in just one hour. Plato is still seen by many as the greatest of all philosophers, inspiring many of the finest thinkers through the ages. Indeed, many see all later philosophy as nothing but attempts to answer the questions he raised. He founded the Academy, the world’s first university, in 387 BC and taught that the physical world is not reality but rather a reproduction of the true source.
-
-
Good introduction for beginners to Philosophy.
- By Matt on 28-07-15
-
Dewey: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Read a succinct account of the philosophy of John Dewey in just one hour.In early twentieth-century America John Dewey was regarded as the foremost philosopher of his age – no mean feat when his colleagues included the likes of Russell, Wittgenstein and Heidegger. Dewey produced a distinctly American philosophy, essentially different from that of his European contemporaries – his pragmatic theory of ‘instrumentalism’ or ‘experimentalism’, relying on modern experimental methods to prove truth and reality.
-
Spinoza: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonthan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Read a succinct account of the philosophy of Spinoza in just one hour.Spinoza’s brilliant metaphysical system was derived neither from reality nor experience. Starting from basic axioms (assumptions), by means of a series of geometric proofs he built a universe which was also God – one and the same thing, the classic example of pantheism.
-
-
Spinoza: A biography in an hour
- By Nox music on 07-06-21
-
Kierkegaard: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to a succinct account of the philosophy of Kierkegaard in just one hour.Although Kierkegaard was not a philosopher in the academic sense, he produced what many people expect of philosophy. He didn’t write about the world, he wrote about life – how we live and how we choose to live, particularly focussing on the individual and the notion of his (or her) existence.
-
-
Very good
- By Christopher on 13-12-13
-
Leibniz: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Read a succinct account of the philosophy of Leibniz in just one hour.Leibniz was the first great German philosopher to produce an all-embracing philosophical system. He came to the remarkable conclusion that space and time do not exist – they are mere superstitious assumptions. Only things exist and only God is able to see things as they truly are – from a perspectiveless viewpoint. Yet the infinite of ultimate objects that make up the world (‘monads’) are not material: they are metaphysical and thus not subject to the laws of cause and effect.
-
-
Outstanding
- By Ruth on 01-07-20
-
Heidegger: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
One of the two major philosophical traditions of the 20th century was linguistic analysis, derived largely from Wittgenstein. The other, diametrically opposed, came from Heidegger, and its fundamental question was: ‘What is the meaning of existence?’ For Heidegger, this was not a query that could simply be ‘analysed away’ - it was beyond the reach of logic or reason. This was the primary ‘given’ of every individual life. To confront it, Heidegger needed to develop an entirely new form of philosophy. Here is a concise, expert account of Heidegger’s life and philosophical ideas that is entertainingly written and easy to understand.
-
-
Just a biography
- By G.F.P. on 10-04-16
-
Marx: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Karl Marx's philosophical critique of capitalism and his solution of communism directly led to the formation of the communist state in the Soviet Union. Whilst this great venture has now all but completely failed, Marx’s philosophy has proved to be arguably the most influential of the 20th century; the influence of Marxism can be seen in subjects as diverse as the infamous policies of Joseph Stalin to many of the progressive humanitarian reforms of the 20th century. The audiobook is an expert account of Marx’s life and philosophical ideas - entertainingly written and above all easy listening.
-
-
A biased biography of Marx
- By Broken English on 12-07-19
-
Derrida: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to this succinct account of the philosophy of Derrida in just one hour. Jacques Derrida’s ‘deconstructionism’ is nothing less than an effort to destroy all ‘writing’ by demonstrating its inevitable falsehood. The writer writes but does not know what he is writing. Derrida argues that all texts have their own hidden agenda and contain their own metaphysical assumptions – the writer’s very language inevitably distorts what he thinks and writes.
-
-
good
- By ian mcintosh on 27-04-20
-
Locke: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to this succinct account of the philosophy of Locke in just one hour. Much of Locke’s thought we would now regard as common sense. One of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers; his philosophy was to lay the foundations of empiricism with its belief that our knowledge of the world is based on experience. Locke’s work introduced the idea of liberal democracy – a concept that has become the shibboleth of Western civilisation.
-
-
The Civil War wasn't "basically" one thing
- By PridesPurge on 24-10-20
-
Berkeley: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonthan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to a succinct account of the philosophy of Berkeley in just one hour.Berkeley’s philosophy denies the existence of matter. According to his work, there is no material world, only our own experience. So when you don’t see something, it isn’t there. Then how does the world persist? Because it is supported by the continuous perception of an all-seeing God. Berkeley’s ideas appear to take empiricism to a ludicrous extreme. But is this quite so absurd as it seems?
-
Wittgenstein: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to this succinct account of the philosophy of Wittgenstein in just one hour. Ludwig Wittgenstein saw himself as ‘the last philosopher’. In his view, philosophy in the traditional sense was finished. A superb logician, Wittgenstein distrusted language and sought to solve the problems of philosophy by reducing them to the purest form of logic. Everything else - metaphysics, aesthetics, ethics, finally even philosophy itself - was excluded.
-
-
Biography not philosophy
- By Daniel N. on 26-06-18
-
St Augustine: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Augustine’s Confessions details his personal struggles with morality, his spiritual crisis and the conversion to Christianity that ultimately led him to his major contribution to philosophy: the fusion of the doctrines of Christianity and Neoplatonism. This provided Christianity with a strong intellectual backing by tying it to the Greek tradition of philosophy. Augustine also produced important philosophic ideas of his own, including theories of time and subjective knowledge that anticipated by many centuries the work of Kant and Descartes.
-
-
Hilarious delivery
- By belinda on 19-04-16
-
Rousseau: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to this succinct account of the philosophy of Rousseau in just one hour. In Rousseau we encounter a walking ego, a naked sensibility - his arguments are both deeply stirring and deeply inconsistent. Yet whilst his contemporaries Kant and Hume may have been superior academic philosophers, the sheer power of Rousseau’s ideas was unequalled in his time. It was he who encouraged the introduction of both liberty and irrationality into the public domain, lamenting how ‘man is born free but everywhere he is in chains’. This audiobook is an expert account of Rousseau’s life and philosophical ideas - entertainingly written and above all easy to listen to. Also included are selections from Rousseau’s work, suggested further reading, and chronologies that place Rousseau in the context of the broader scheme of philosophy.
-
-
insightful
- By Eager on 19-04-16
-
Machiavelli: Philosophy in an Hour
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to this succinct account of the philosophy of Machiavelli in just one hour. Niccolò Machiavelli’s work remains misunderstood - synonymous with wicked scheming and underhand politics - nearly 350 years after his death. His philosophy of statecraft was scientific and highly rational, leaving sentiment, and ultimately morality, to one side.
-
-
Excellent
- By Bapir on 10-07-15
Editor reviews
Summary
Philosophy for busy people. Listen to a succinct account of the philosophy of Schopenhauer in just one hour.
Arthur Schopenhauer, the ‘philosopher of pessimism,’ makes it clear that he regards the world and our life in it as a bad joke. However, if the world is indifferent to our fate it doesn’t thwart us deliberately – its façade is supported by what Schopenhauer calls the universal Will. He saw this as a force that is blind and without purpose, bringing on all our misery and suffering. Schopenhauer taught that our only hope is to liberate ourselves from the terrible power of the Will and from the trappings of individualism and egoism that are at its mercy.
This audiobook is an expert account of Schopenhauer’s life and philosophical ideas – entertainingly written and above all easy listening. Also included are selections from Schopenhauer’s work, suggested further reading, and chronologies that place Schopenhauer in the context of the broader scheme of philosophy.
Critic reviews
More from the same
What listeners say about Schopenhauer: Philosophy in an Hour
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
- Richard Fairley
- 09-08-17
Diatribe
The writer, Paul Strathern, obviously thought the purpose of this series was to provide biographies of the philosophers concerned - as biography rather than philosophical explanation this is. Strathern patently loathes Schopenhauer and this is nothing more than a sarcastic diatribe and character assessment.
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Alan J Power
- 23-03-14
One miserable philosopher..
Would you consider the audio edition of Schopenhauer: Philosophy in an Hour to be better than the print version?
The audio has the advantage of being delivered by an accomplished orator. A really enjoyable listen.
What was one of the most memorable moments of Schopenhauer: Philosophy in an Hour?
Can't pick out one bit. The whole experience was like wading through a swimming pool of miserable treacle. Schopenhauer is so miserable, so fatalistic and misanthropic I needed to take a shower after having listened to his analysis, lest I become infected with his pessimism. Despite the depression, I strangely enjoyed myself.
What does Jonathan Keeble bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?
His delivery is perfect. It felt like he was talking just to me about someone he actually knew on personal terms.
Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
Disgusted but educated.
Any additional comments?
Schopenhauer is a pessimistic old soul, but we can at least thank him for giving birth to psychoanalysis. Freud, often cited as the originator behind the idea of the subconscious, can thank this wild-haired German philosopher for asserting the notion with his idea of world as representation and will. Freud definitely read Schopenhauer and would have been fascinated by his licentious lifestyle and his odd relationship with his father who committed suicide long before the thinker flourished.
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Terry
- 08-08-19
More of a Biography
Quite a good listen, but more of a biography than a philosophical discourse. The view on Schopenhauer feels slightly bias, but is reasonable.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- ian
- 17-03-19
Well worth it
Easy, entertaining, descriptive and sharp.
A very enjoyable listen. Since fifteen words are ridiculously required by some imbecile I might as well speak nothing as a lie than lie about the truth.