First
of all when I use the word philosophy, I don't tend to mean real philosophy,
but more schools of thought. I've got a good text book on real philosophy,
but it's a challenge I can't seem to meet at the moment (I stall about
two chapters into it). I got hold of a copy of Nigel Warburton's 'Philosophy
The Classics' the other week whilst in Devon and it is good enough
so that even I can understand it. I subsequently had another go at my text
book with more success, but I'm not going to lug a book that big around
for a year and so it will have to wait. Robert Pirsig's Lila
and Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance are about the closest
I've ever really got apart from that (both recommended).
I
don't really subscribe to any school of thought/philosophy, there seems
to be a tendency for people to pick-and-mix their own little niche from
various religions and Eastern philosophies, and any thoughts I have on
the subject are a bit too vague to nail down. Taoism is the most useful
Eastern philosophy I've come across (at least it's realistic and fairly
practical) and most of the translated texts are pretty accessible as is
the Tao Of Pooh (and the less useful sequel Te Of Piglet).
I always seem to be reading a book by Henry David Thoreau and Walden
is probably the book out of all the books I've ever read that I'd urge
everyone to read.
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I
was badly introduced to poetry at school and as a kid I doubt you can really
understand much poetry anyway. So playing catch up I've run through Blake
(not really my thing, but I've yet to give it enough time), Dante (great
in places, over my head in others), Kerouac, Ginsberg and my current favourite
Galway Kinnell. |