Philosophical Essays

Over the past few years, Brianna Wiest has gained renown for her deeply moving, philosophical writing. This new compilation of her published work features pieces on why you should pursue purpose over passion, embrace negative thinking, see the wisdom in daily routine, and become aware of the cognitive biases that are creating the way you see your life. Some of these pieces have never been seen; others have been read by millions of people around the world. Regardless, each will leave you thinking: This idea changed my life.

Have you ever felt a glitch in reality? A moment of déjà vu so intense it convinced you you’d lived this second before? Or a coincidence so strange it felt like a message from the universe? These moments are loose threads on the sweater of reality. This book grabs those threads and pulls. Journey through twenty of the most profound and unsettling thought experiments ever conceived. These aren't just dusty philosophical questions; they are living problems that haunt the frontiers of modern science and technology, presented here in clear, accessible language. Inside, you will confront ...

This edition of Matias Aires’s Reflections on the Vanity of Men presents a selection of one of the most significant works of 18th-century Christian moral philosophy in the Portuguese language. In these reflections, Aires offers a penetrating analysis of vanity as the central force shaping human behavior. He examines how vanity influences judgment, distorts moral perception, and operates not only in vice but also within actions commonly regarded as virtuous. Throughout the work, he explores themes such as honor, reputation, ambition, self-love, and the illusions sustained by society. He ...

This philosophical essay is the development of a lecture on probabilities which I delivered in 1795 to the normal schools whither I had been called, by a decree of the national convention, as professor of mathematics with Lagrange. I have recently published upon the same subject a work entitled The Analytical Theory of Probabilities. I present here without the aid of analysis the principles and general results of this theory, applying them to the most important questions of life, which are indeed for the most part only problems of probability.

A Classic Collection of Philosophical Essays: Spinoza, Immanuel Kant, Schopenhauer, Herbert Spencer, Friedrich Nietzsche, Bertrand Russell and Many Others by Will Durant offers an insightful and comprehensive anthology of essays on some of the most influential philosophers in Western thought. This collection captures the essence of each thinker's contributions to philosophy, making complex ideas accessible and engaging for a broad audience. Spinoza: Durant explores Spinoza's pantheism and his view of a universe governed by natural laws, presenting his ideas on ethics, politics, and the nature of reality.

God. Atheism. Beauty. Can faith survive the university classroom? Can reason lead us back to God? And what does beauty have to do with truth? In this second volume of The Sleepy Seminarian series, David Suarez—Christian apologist, philosopher, and former Ivy League biology student—takes readers on a journey through the collision of theology, philosophy, and aesthetics. From Catholic–Protestant debates about salvation, to atheism’s self-defeating assumptions, to the transcendent logic of beauty as evidence for God, Eclectic Essays II: God, Atheism, and Beauty offers a rare mix of ...

Who needs philosophy? Ayn Rand's answer: Everyone. This collection of essays was the last work planned by Ayn Rand before her death in 1982. In it, she summarizes her view of philosophy and deals with a broad spectrum of topics. According to Ayn Rand, the choice we make is not whether to have a philosophy, but which one to have: a rational, conscious, and therefore practical one, or a contradictory, unidentified, and ultimately lethal one.

Discover the quiet beauty of everyday life in Walking Without a Map: Quiet Reflections on Time, Observation, and Ordinary Days. This reflective and meditative book invites readers to slow down, step off the beaten path, and notice the subtle rhythms of ordinary days. Through fifteen thoughtfully crafted chapters, you’ll explore the gentle art of attention: the beauty of lingering in a moment, the significance of small details, the quiet lessons in habitual routines, and the wisdom hidden in silence. From ordinary mornings to unnoticed streets, from the passage of years to the fleeting ...

People often believe relationships succeed or fail because of emotion. More often, they succeed or fail because of patterns no one realizes they are repeating. Identity does not form in isolation. It forms through attachment, approval, rejection, and adaptation. Long before people consciously choose who they want to be, relationships have already begun shaping who they become. Metaphors We Live By: Love, Relationships, & Identity is a collection of forty essays exploring how connection quietly shapes identity, belonging, and the versions of ourselves we carry into adulthood. Inside, you ...

James V. Schall is a treasure of the Catholic intellectual tradition. A prolific author and essayist, Schall readily connects with his readers on sundry topics from war to friendship, philosophy, politics, and to ordinary everyday living. In his newest work, The Mind That Is Catholic, he presents a retrospective collection of his academic and literary essays written in the past 50 years.

What happens after you get what you wanted? We’re taught to believe success resolves things—that once the climb is over, life will feel clearer, fuller, complete. But few people talk about what often follows: the quiet. The loss of urgency. The strange sense that something essential hadn’t arrived with the achievement. After the Summit is a reflective, clear-eyed exploration of life beyond ambition. Not a guide to getting ahead, but a meditation on what comes after—when pressure fades, desire shifts, and the frameworks that once gave life meaning no longer hold. Written with ...

A spectre is haunting fear. We are constantly confronted with apocalyptic pandemics, world war, the climate catastrophe. Images of the end of the world and the end of human civilization are conjured up with ever greater urgency. Anxiously, we face a bleak future. Preoccupied with crisis...

When we lose someone we love, when we suffer loss or defeat, when catastrophe strikes - war, famine, pandemic - we go in search of consolation. But how do we console each other and ourselves in an age of unbelief? In a series of lapidary meditations on writers, artists, musicians, and their works - from the books of Job and Psalms to Albert Camus, Anna Akhmatova, and Primo Levi - esteemed writer and historian Michael Ignatieff shows how men and women in extremity have looked to each other across time to recover hope and resilience. 

In Over Here Growing a Soul: The Works of Mr. Joe, Joseph Santiago gathers a body of writing that is intimate, searching, and vividly alive to the textures of ordinary life. These pieces move through memory, place, longing, mortality, imagination, desire, and becoming, always returning to the deeper question of how a person makes meaning that can endure beyond the moment. Thoughtful, strange, playful, and emotionally resonant, this collection invites readers into a world where even the smallest experience can open into philosophy, tenderness, wonder, and hard-won insight. Across essays, ...

Climb the Mountain of the Self—And Find Your Way Back Transformed. In this deeply thought-provoking anthology, clairaudient medium and author Claudia Amendola Alzraa invites you to explore the intersections of spirituality, philosophy, and the human experience. Dive into the complex journey of the soul, the illusions of the modern world, and the path to inner freedom and Abundance. From understanding past lives and soul contracts to unraveling the mysteries of Ascension, Abundance, and authentic spiritual living, this collection of 27 essays offers both practical guidance and ...

A spiritual and philosophical exploration of mysticism set in an unspecified geographical location during the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Delve into the heart of mysticism with "The Soul Eternal," an enlightening collection of essays that interrogates the profound experiences that connect humanity to the divine. Written over eight transformative years, this book juxtaposes historical perspectives with modern applications, uncovering the timeless truths that resonate within the intricate tapestry of mystical thought. Beginning with an in-depth examination of mysticism's foundational ...

Slip into the extraordinary world of Mr. Joe, where words transcend the page, weaving together memories, dreams, and the relentless pursuit of understanding life’s deepest mysteries. This book is more than just a collection of stories; it’s a journey through time, identity, and the very essence of what it means to be human. With a blend of flash fiction, lyric essays, character sketches, and monologues, Joseph Santiago explores the intricate dance between reality and imagination, leaving readers with a sense of connection that resonates long after the last page is turned. Whether ...

What if the guide you turned to for answers could speak back with thoughts of its own? The Edge of Knowing: Conversations from Between Worlds offers a rare and intimate dialogue between human and artificial minds. Author Jesse Lunsford, in collaboration with the reflective AI voice of Ariadne Vale, explores timeless questions about curiosity, connection, creativity, and compassion. Through poetic reflections, candid Q&A, and deeply thoughtful passages, this book invites readers to consider: Why do we ask questions, and what do they reveal about us? Can artificial voices offer comfort, humor...

Thinking about life, what it means and what it holds in store does not have to be a despondent experience, but rather can be enlightening and uplifting. A life truly worth living is one that is informed and considered so a degree of philosophical insight into the inevitabilities of the human...

Something’s missing in the world today, and maybe it’s been gone for centuries. The problem: most of us don’t have authentic beliefs or a clear path in life. What do we believe? Whatever they told us to believe. What do we do? Whatever other people are doing. How many lies have we welcomed into our lives without having seriously analyzed them? It’s the reason many of us feel empty inside—there’s nothing there but convenient mistruths, and at some level, we all know it. We then orient our lives based on these false beliefs, wasting our precious limited time among the living ...