Philosophy and Religion

Michel Foucault's work has profoundly affected the teaching of such diverse disciplines as literary criticism, criminology, and gender studies. Arguing that definitions of abnormal behavior are culturally constructed, Foucault explored the unfair division between those who meet and those who deviate from social norms.Foucault's deeply visual sense of scenes such as ritual public executions, lends

“What is Structuralism? How is it possible? And once the structures of Structuralism have been discovered, how is Poststructuralism possible?”Thus begins Don Palmer's STRUCTURALISM AND POSTSTRUCTURALISM FOR BEGINNERS. If Nobel or Pulitzer ever made a prize for making the most difficult philosophers and ideas accessible to the greatest number of people, one of the leading candidates would certainly

SARTRE FOR BEGINNERS is an accessible yet sophisticated introduction to the life and works of the famous French philosopher, Jean Paul Sartre. Sartre was a member of the French underground during WWII, a novelist, a playwright, and a major influence in French political and intellectual life.The book opens with a biographical section, introducing the significant events in the life of the man who co

The Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard was one of the most original thinkers of the 19th Century – and one of the most enigmatic men who ever walked the Earth.Philosophically, Kierkegaard was the “bridge” that led from Hegel to Existentialism.Kierkegaard abhorred Hegel's abstract, Know-it-all idealism that tried to capture reality in a few words. Kierkegaard's attack on social and religious comp

EXISTENTIALISM FOR BEGINNERS is an entertaining romp through the history of a philosophical movement that has had a broad and enduring influence on Western culture. From the middle of the Nineteenth Century through the late Twentieth Century, existentialism informed our politics and art, and still exerts its influence today. Tracing the movement's beginnings with close-up views of seminal figures

Deconstruction is so labyrinthine (and rumored to be fatal) that it's become the monster that murdered philosophy. When Jacques Derrida, the father of deconstruction, uses buzz-words such as “phallogocentrism” and “transcendental signified,” humanities students and aspiring philosophers may get weak in the knees.Following up on the success of DERRIDA FOR BEGINNERS, Jim  Powell's DERRIDA FOR BEGINN

Jacques Lacan is probably the most influential psychoanalyst since Freud (of the roughly 20,000 psychoanalysts in the world, about half are 'Lacanians') yet most people know nothing about him. The 10,000 analysts who use Lacan's ideas work mostly in France, Spain, Italy, and South America. To the rest of the world, including England and America, Lacan is a genius-in-waiting, due to be 'discovered'

The world-renowned Zen monk argues for a more mindful, spiritual approach to environmental protection and activism—one that recognizes people and planet as one and the same   While many experts point to the enormous complexity in addressing issues ranging from the destruction of ecosystems to the loss of millions of species, Thich Nhat Hanh identifies one key issue as having the pot

The Five Mindfulness Trainings (also referred to as “Precepts”)—not to kill, steal, commit adultery, lie, or take intoxicants—are the basic statement of ethics and morality in Buddhism. Zen Master and peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh argues eloquently for their applicability in our daily lives and on a global scale. Nhat Hanh discusses the value and meaning of each precept, offering insi

Path of Compassion is a collection of key stories from Thich Nhat Hanh’s classic Old Path White Clouds, a book celebrating its 20th publishing anniversary this year. It tells the fascinating life story of Prince Siddhartha, who left his family and renounced his carefully guarded life, and after many years of spiritual seeking became the Buddha, the Enlightened One. Far more than th

Never-before-published commentaries and personal reflections of the great Zen master on living in stillness and timelessness Thich Nhat Hanh shares the essence of his lifetime of spiritual seeking in this intimate and poetic work, inspired by the classic text Being Time by thirteenth-century Japanese Master Dogen. Inside the Now begins with an autobiographical reflection in which we hear the voi

This beautifully designed gift book contains many of the best-loved inspirational quotations and passages from Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh. Basic meditation instructions and messages of peace, love, insight, understanding, and compassion accompany two-color illustrations throughout, with blank pages for personal reflections and inspiration. Moments of Mindfulness is a perfect journal for spiritual

Thich Nhat Hanh offers powerful, direct, and uncompromising reflections on Zen thought, mindfulness, and the enlightenment inherent within us all.   One of the key tenets of the Zen school of Mahayana Buddhism is that each one of us is already a Buddha—our enlightenment is inherent within us, and the practice of mindfulness is the tool to bring this truth to our full awareness. Whil

Is it possible that everything we think we know about God and what God wants, is wrong?Could humanity's ideas about all this be the greatest inaccuracies . . . ever? Would it matter if they were? The author of the multi-million-selling Conversations with God series places the question squarely before our world in another blockbuster book that could move our species closer to true spiritual revolut

Buckminster Fuller reminds us, “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the old model obsolete.” This book provides just that model, as well as concrete practices for living it. The model is derived from ancient wisdom traditions, modelled on the pulses, cycles and seasons of our beloved Earth Mother. It deeply grounds the reader

In his most important book since Taking the Quantum Leap, Fred Alan Wolf will explain how our understanding of time, space and matter have changed in just the last few years and how with these new ideas we have a glimpse into the "mind of God." Making comparisons to Hindu Vedic and Judeo-Christian cosmology, Dr. Wolf explains how the universal command of the Deity "Let there be light" now takes on

MORMONISM FOR BEGINNERS is a balanced, richly engaging introduction to the history, tenets, practices, traditions and, yes, debates and controversies of this uniquely American Protestant movement. Designed for the uninitiated or younger members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), this book presents the history of the movement from Joseph Smith to the 21st century along with t

Have you heard the terms 'structuralism' and 'deconstruction' and 'postmodernism' but aren't really sure what they mean? Have you taken a whole course on literary criticism, but are still feeling lost? Here's the book you need to sort it all out - and enjoy doing so!In LITERARY THEORY FOR BEGINNERS, Mary Klages takes you into her classroom, cuts through the jargon and explains the ABCs (and the DE

While attending catechism class as a child, Curt Melliger was taught that if he obeyed the rules all his life he would be allowed to enter a place called Heaven when he died. The priest and nuns described it as a sacred abode up in the clouds that contained all of the very best things in the universe. There was sunshine and blue sky, pretty flowers and double rainbows, peace and happiness, ringing

SPIRITUAL GOLD is a wonderful book about past lives. It shares the treasures of a soul's journey through time and introduces us to angels and inner guides. The past life memories in the book have been retrieved through regression and stretch back over 10,000 years. They include hearing Jesus speak, and reveal his lost teachings of reincarnation - they take us to other worlds and unravel the secret