The Therapy of Desire

Book cover of The Therapy of Desire: Theory and Practice in Hellenistic Ethics

Book description

The Epicureans, Skeptics, and Stoics practiced philosophy not as a detached intellectual discipline but as a worldly art of grappling with issues of daily and urgent human significance. In this classic work, Martha Nussbaum maintains that these Hellenistic schools have been unjustly neglected in recent philosophic accounts of what the…

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Why read it?

1 author picked The Therapy of Desire as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Firmin Debrabander

Author

Each chapter in this book wrestles with central themes of Hellenistic Philosophy, which includes Stoicism, but also Epicureanism and Skepticism. The essays are wonderfully written, and deal with pressing eternal problems, such as the political significance of anger, and the nature and pitfalls of physical pleasure. Dr. Nussbaum relates the Stoics and other Hellenistic philosophers to pressing contemporary issues and concerns.

From Firmin's list on stoic themes, influence and inspiration.