Identity Philosophy

This classic work by psychologist and social philosopher Eric Fromm builds upon his previous popular book To Have or to Be? The Art of Being teaches us to avoid the tantalizing illusions of our consumer-driven world by learning to function as a whole person from a state of inner completeness or being. The transition from an identity of having to being creates a state of enlightened psychological and spiritual happiness.

In 2014, Francis Fukuyama wrote that American institutions were in decay, as the state was progressively captured by powerful interest groups. Two years later, his predictions were borne out by the rise to power of a series of political outsiders whose economic nationalism and authoritarian tendencies threatened to destabilize the entire international order. These populist nationalists seek direct charismatic connection to “the people”, who are usually defined in narrow identity terms that offer an irresistible call to an in-group and exclude large parts of the population as a whole.

Discover Simone Weil’s Profound Masterpiece: L’Enracinement Are you searching for a book that delves deeply into the human condition, community, and the essence of belonging? Simone Weil’s L’Enracinement (The Need for Roots) is a timeless classic that speaks directly to the challenges of modern life, offering a profound exploration of the human need for connection and rootedness in a fragmented world. Written during the turmoil of World War II, Weil’s work is a manifesto for rebuilding a society founded on justice, equality, and a true understanding of human dignity. With ...

Named a Best Book of the Year by The Economist, Financial Times, Inc., Prospect Magazine, and The Conversation “The most comprehensive and reasonable story of this shift that has yet been attempted . . . Mounk has told the story of the Great Awokening better than any other writer who has...

Philosophy Explained for Non-Philosophers: Clear Guides to the Ideas That Shape Human Thought Metaphysics Explained for Non-Philosophers: Reality, Existence, Identity, and the Deep Structure of Being is a clear, accessible guide to one of philosophy’s most foundational and challenging fields. Written specifically for curious readers with no formal background in philosophy, this book breaks down complex metaphysical ideas into understandable concepts using plain language, concrete examples, and careful explanations. Rather than relying on abstract jargon, it focuses on the core questions ...

As featured in the Ram Dass documentary film Becoming Nobody, five essential live teaching sessions on audio, presented here in their entirety The game is not about becoming somebody, it’s about becoming nobody. —Ram Dass If you’re a spiritual explorer of any age or tradition, chances are...

Brought to you by Penguin. Modern life encourages us to pursue the perfect identity. Whether we aspire to become the best lawyer or charity worker, life partner or celebrity influencer, we emulate exemplars that exist in the world – hoping it will bring us happiness. But this often leads to a...

Have you heard that language is violence and that science is sexist? Have you read that certain people shouldn't practice yoga? Or been told that being obese is healthy, that there is no such thing as biological sex, or that only White people can be racist? Are you confused by these ideas, and do you wonder how they have managed to challenge the logic of Western society? In this probing volume, Helen Pluckrose and James Lindsay document the evolution of the dogma that informs these ideas, from its coarse origins in French postmodernism to its refinement within activist academic fields.

In this eye-opening account of "metaphysical blindness" in the West, Watts accents the dense exploration of religious philosophy with wry wit that will engage inquiring minds in search of spiritual power and wisdom.

The Book That Knows It’s a Book A Suspiciously Self-Aware Guide to Waking Up Most books about spiritual awakening promise transformation. A better self. A calmer mind. A final breakthrough that will definitely happen if you just keep reading. This book is not so sure. It doesn’t offer enlightenment as a product. It doesn’t hand you a new identity labeled Awake. It doesn’t pretend to be the ultimate authority on your journey of self-discovery. It knows it’s a book. Which makes things slightly awkward. Inside these pages, awareness is explored without performance. The ego is ...

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn Explained: Gulag Archipelago, Soviet Repression, Moral Courage, Spiritual Resistance, Russian Identity, Totalitarianism, and the Fight for Truth and Human Dignity is a powerful and deeply engaging exploration of one of the most important voices of the twentieth century. This book brings together the life, experiences, and major ideas of Solzhenitsyn into a clear and compelling narrative, revealing how his writings exposed the hidden realities of Soviet oppression while offering timeless insights into truth, conscience, and human resilience. From his early years under ...

How did the world arrive at its current, disorienting state of identity politics, and how should the church respond? Historian Carl R. Trueman discusses how influences ranging from traditional institutions to technology and pornography moved modern culture toward an era of "expressive individualism." Investigating philosophies from the Romantics, Nietzsche, Marx, Wilde, Freud, and the New Left, he outlines the history of Western thought to the distinctly sexual direction of present-day identity politics and explains the modern implications of these ideas.

Octavio Paz Explained: Identity, Solitude, Mexican Culture, Surrealism, Language, Time, Love, Politics, and the Search for Meaning in Modern Life is a powerful and accessible deep dive into one of the twentieth century’s most influential thinkers and Nobel Prize winning writers. Blending philosophy, cultural analysis, and poetic insight, this book explores how Paz confronted the biggest questions of human existence: Who are we? Why do we feel alone? And how can we find meaning in a fragmented modern world? Through clear and engaging chapters, you will explore Paz’s groundbreaking ideas ...

What makes something the same over time, even when everything about it changes? The Ship of Theseus paradox has fascinated philosophers, scientists, and storytellers for centuries because it raises one of the most profound questions about identity and existence. Is a ship that has had all of its parts replaced still the same ship? And if so, what does this mean for human beings whose bodies and minds are constantly changing? Ship of Theseus Explained: A Complete Guide to the Paradox of Identity, Change, and Philosophy takes you on a deep yet accessible journey through this timeless puzzle, ...

For centuries, Confucianism was the invisible architecture of Korean life. It molded kings and scholars, governed families, and left its mark on every ritual, law, and custom. Even today, its influence ripples through classrooms, corporate offices, and holiday traditions. To understand Korea—past and present—you must first understand Confucianism. This book takes you on a journey from the stately halls of the Joseon dynasty to the bustling streets of modern Seoul, revealing how an ancient philosophy still beats at the heart of a nation. It’s not a dry academic text—it’s a clear, ...

We all know how identities - notably, those of nationality, class, culture, race, and religion - are at the root of global conflict, but the more elusive truth is that these identities are created by conflict in the first place. In provocative, entertaining chapters, Kwame Anthony Appiah interweaves keen-edged argument with engrossing historical tales and reveals the tangled contradictions within the stories that define us. 

At eighty-two, an unnamed retired solicitor asks a simple question: "What is identity?" The answer launches him into a year-long philosophical investigation that will challenge everything he thought he knew about who he is—and who he might have been. For four decades, he practiced family law in London with quiet competence. He married Fumiko, a Japanese-English designer who built her identity in the hyphen between cultures. He raised Sarah, their daughter, now a doctor in New York exhausted by the demand to be an "Asian-American woman" before she's allowed to be herself. He voted Remain, ...

Jorge Luis Borges Explained: Labyrinths, Time, Identity, Infinity, and the Nature of Reality introduces Borges as a writer who used fiction to test difficult ideas. His stories are brief, but they open onto large philosophical problems: whether time repeats or branches, whether the self remains stable, whether an infinite universe can ever be understood, and whether language reveals reality or distorts it. This guide focuses on the recurring patterns that give Borges’s work its force, including labyrinths, mirrors, libraries, doubles, dreams, paradoxes, and invented worlds that begin to ...

Thomas Mann Explained: Modernism, Moral Conflict, The Magic Mountain, Death in Venice, German Identity, Intellectual Crisis, and the Human Struggle Between Spirit and Life Step into the profound and intellectually rich world of Thomas Mann, one of the most influential literary voices of the twentieth century. This book offers a deep exploration of Mann’s life, major works, and enduring ideas, revealing how his writing captures the tension between tradition and modernity, reason and passion, individuality and society. From the decline of bourgeois culture to the psychological complexities ...

From “perhaps the foremost interpreter of Eastern disciplines for the contemporary West—and an author who ‘had the rare gift of ‘writing beautifully the unwritable’” (Los Angeles Times)—a guide that draws on Chinese Taoism to reexamine humanity’s place in the natural world and...