To elaborate, some time ago I watched the film 'The Great Debaters', I was greatly intrigued by the wealth of knowledge that the characters had as well as the varying sources that they used to explore their debates and points from law, facts and even poetry to explore humanity in its being.
This is quite a broad request but I have always loved to learn things and I remember how fun it was to look for the symbolism of text like poems during GCSE English, I feel that my thirst for knowledge was stunted as I struggle with attention (ADHD) but I have discovered how useful audible and speechify can be. (It doesn't have to be on audible, it has just sparked something in me that I thought was snuffed out long ago)
I don't necessarily have a niche I would like to explore, I would love to approach any text recommended to me, fiction or non fiction, old or new etc and if anyone has any 'tips' in regards to different places I can explore and widen this knowledge, I would appreciate it. Also books that explore the meaning of other books would be helpful. Or even some other subreddits I could post to, to pose a similar question to this one.
Much appreciated to anyone that has taken the time out of their day to try to understand what I am looking for!
by HydraSiren
4 Comments
If you don’t have a specific thing you’re looking to explore, I recommend reading philosophy from other cultures. I assume you’re raised in a Western education system, since your English seems native so check out translated Eastern philosophy like those from Chinese philosophers or those from Muslim cultures.
You’ll find their ways of thinking and assumptions very different and give you a new meta-knowledge or perspective and not just specific information.
Non-fiction:
“Thinking, Fast and Slow” by Daniel Kahneman. A deep dive into the dual systems of thought that drive our decisions, blending psychology and behavioral economics.
“Meditations” by Marcus Aurelius. An insight into Stoic philosophy and personal ethics.
“The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History” by Elizabeth Kolbert. An examination of the ongoing extinction event caused by human activity and its implications for the future.
Sophie’s World by by Jostein Gaarder is a good overview of lots of different philosophical traditions.
The BBC has a book called ‘The Nation’s Favourite Poems’ which might be a good place to start too with poetry.
I suggest these so you can try a bit of lots of things and see what speaks to you 🙂
I have two for you; they’re both non-fiction, one is about numbers and one is about the history of the periodic table. They’re awesome because you learn a lot and the chapters don’t really build on each other so if one chapter doesn’t appeal to you you can just skip it and read the next one.
The Disappearing Spoon (periodic table)
Here’s Looking at Euclid (all kinds of random stuff about numbers)