Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: Plato, Not Prozac! Applying Philosophy to Everyday Problems by Lou Marinoff, Colleen Kapklein ISBN: 0-06-019328-X Publisher: HarperCollins Pub. Date: August, 1999 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $23.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.45 (20 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: An Interesting Read
Comment: Paraphrasing the fly leaf... This book describes a way of dealing with the challenges we all face in life from time to time: relationships, being a good parent, career changes, coping with loss, etc..
My comment is that it describes a way of dealing with the challenges of life that is neither "wishy-washy," like so much of the pop-psychology-self-help press, nor as dramatic as thinking that one must be "in need of help" just because one has a tough problem.
Acknowledging the appropriateness of seeking psychological therapy when needed, the author suggests there is also a source (i.e., the collected wisdom of thinkers from antiquity to present) from which we can find philosophy-based insights to help us deal with the more typical crises in our lives.
Rating: 4
Summary: You can't judge this book by its title
Comment: The author of Plato, Not Prozac!, Lou Marinoff PH.D, accomplishes three things with this book. 1) He gives the layman just enough beginner's-philosophy to be effective while holding the reader's interest. 2) He extolls the benefits of "Philosophical Practice" and explains where psychiatry and Psychology can not, or should not, be applied. 3) He gives real-life examples of how some very basic philosophy has helped people cope with everyday life. A fresh and very real approach to self-help and mental health counceling.
Some may be offended by frank and direct discussion. Such as Psychiatry and Psychology's attempts to label a "misguided philosophy" as a mental disease. An alleged motive is to get insurance companies to pay for treatment.
The author suggests that a person whos condition is not brought on by a physical disease, genetics, an accident, or drug abuse may be suffering from a misguided philosophy of life. Hence, there are thousands of years of brilliant philosophical works to draw from. And to assist a patient, a Philosophical Pratitioner is less concerned with childhood conditioning than with helping the patient find a comfortable philosophical view point and get on with life.
A reference made by another reviewer of the book pointed to page 38 where the author is quoted "...no one needs to learn to feel emotion..." Perhaps the sentence could have been written "...most people do not need to be taught how to feel emotion..." But in context, I feel the sentence as-written is fair. The chapter in question is dealing with the author's description of a simple process that can be used as a self-help tool. Earlier in the book the author suggests this process is helpful to those with philosophical issues and not deaper mental illnesses -- as the inability to feel emotion may be.
According to the author, religion and science are rediscovering philosophy whereby even the Pope has more than symbolically endorsed some previously banned philosophical and scientific works, including assisting in his doctoral thesis.
The book is written to appeal to anyone who has tried other means of finding their "way" and have returned feeling something is still missing. This book may even re-affirm your feelings for life in general.
Rating: 5
Summary: The unexamined life is not worth living.
Comment: What a fantastic book! I just wish that it had existed when I was much younger- it would have saved me a great deal of time on my own personal journey.
I always thought that intelligent, truly educated, individuals naturally applied the great wisdom teachings to their daily lives. I mean, that is why we are here isn't it? We truly come to obtain wisdom through philosophy (the love of wisdom) by applying it in the struggle of earthly life. I didn't realize that this had come to be rare and exceptional in the modern world. There is even a name for it now- philosophical practice. What a marvelous concept- students of philosophy helping each other to apply the lessons of the perennial teachings in their daily lives. Of course you can do it alone, as I did, but the author points out that it is nice to have a knowledgeable second party to make sure that you didn't miss something- and that you are truly applying reason and not rationalization.
The use of case studies for specific problem areas is quite informative: seeking a relationship, maintaining a relationship, ending a relationship, family life and strife, work, midlife crisis, the reason for morals and ethics, finding meaning and purpose, and gaining from loss.
The way that individual philosophers and their ideas are introduced is quite well done (theme, refrain, greatest hits, and a thumbnail abstract of their core ideas.) The basics of their systems are outlined nicely, which helps in deciding which to pursue later. I was amazed that so many of the great thinkers that that I had painstakingly discovered over the years were included.
If you would like to delve a little deeper into the various philosophers without tackling the source works I recommend _Basic Teachings of the Great Philosophers_ by S.E. Frost.
 |
Title: The Big Questions: How Philosophy Can Change Your Life by Lou Marinoff ISBN: 1582342539 Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Pub. Date: 16 May, 2003 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
 |
Title: What Would Aristotle Do? Self-Control Through the Power of Reason by Elliot D. Cohen ISBN: 1591020700 Publisher: Prometheus Books Pub. Date: May, 2003 List Price(USD): $21.00 |
 |
Title: Socrates Cafe: A Fresh Taste of Philosophy by Christopher Phillips ISBN: 039332298X Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company Pub. Date: April, 2002 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
 |
Title: If Aristotle Ran General Motors by Tom Morris ISBN: 0805052534 Publisher: Henry Holt & Company, Inc. Pub. Date: 15 November, 1998 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
 |
Title: Six Questions of Socrates: A Modern-Day Journey of Discovery through World Philosophy by Christopher Phillips ISBN: 0393051579 Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company Pub. Date: January, 2004 List Price(USD): $23.95 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
