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bluestjuice's review against another edition
2.0
There was nothing wrong with this book, but it was kind of bland and insipid. I don't think Hall distilled anything especially pithy about Aristotle's life advice that made it extra applicable or insightful to the modern reader, and her personal anecdotes and somewhat heavy referential nods to modern film and television exemplars left me unmoved. I would have done better to read Aristotle myself and glean my own tidbits of wisdom. Which I will probably get around to doing one day soon now.
martysuter's review against another edition
4.0
This Aristotle guy has some pretty good ideas for living a good life ;-) Enjoyed the stroll down memory lane of Plato's star pupil, his ethics, and how they relate to modern living. Loved all the cross-references to classic Greek literature, too. The messages in this book have applicability for just about everyone....highly recommended!
nevadaishome's review against another edition
3.0
This is a respectable introduction to Aristotle, I learned many things I previously didn’t know about his life. Too many life-coachy platitudes. Her take on suicide is not tactful.
Here are some claims in the book I didn’t find absolutely convincing:
Aristotle would approve of the author posing as. Jehovah’s Witness to get around U.S. vaccination paperwork
Aristotle would have been an environmentalist
Aristotle wouldn’t have liked Marvel movies
(Also, the twice appearing typo): Aristotle died in 32 BCE (cor. 322)
Here are some claims in the book I didn’t find absolutely convincing:
Aristotle would approve of the author posing as. Jehovah’s Witness to get around U.S. vaccination paperwork
Aristotle would have been an environmentalist
Aristotle wouldn’t have liked Marvel movies
(Also, the twice appearing typo): Aristotle died in 32 BCE (cor. 322)
palindromephd's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars. An interesting and reflection-provoking read based in Aristotle's recommendations in a variety of sectors (job applications, moral issues, leisure time, death, etc.) of life still applicable today.
I did find it somewhat dry in parts (even having read the Nicomachean Ethics myself) and was frustrated with the lack of flow between sections - many of which just seemed thrown in wherever for fun (such as the bit on birds?).
I enjoyed the parts where the author develops concrete examples from her own life with regards to how Aristotlean thinking helped her address moral issues in her life and wish more of that had happened. In addition, bringing in modern perspectives on some ideas was interesting but it should have been done either more consistently across all topics or not at all.
I did find it somewhat dry in parts (even having read the Nicomachean Ethics myself) and was frustrated with the lack of flow between sections - many of which just seemed thrown in wherever for fun (such as the bit on birds?).
I enjoyed the parts where the author develops concrete examples from her own life with regards to how Aristotlean thinking helped her address moral issues in her life and wish more of that had happened. In addition, bringing in modern perspectives on some ideas was interesting but it should have been done either more consistently across all topics or not at all.
scottacorbin's review
2.0
I've been reading *Pagans and Christians in the City* by Steven Smith lately and one of the central premises of the book is that paganism, far from being finally subjected with the rise of Christendom, instead was pressed underground but occasionally reared its head at various times and places. Thus, following TS Eliot, the future will either be a revival of something like a Christian society or "modern paganism."
The book is certainly interesting in the way in which it challenges the dominant secularization thesis popularized by Charles Taylor, et al. But I found it to be especially illuminating when reading Edith Hall's recent book *Aristotle's Way: How Ancient Wisdom Can Change Your Life*.
Some parts popularization of Aristotle, some parts pop psychology, Hall writes about how Aristotelian ethics—in opposition to various other recently popularized ancient ethical systems like stoicism or epicureanism—is a way to live a good, whole life.
This is fine as far as it goes. The fascinating thing is the way in which Hall uses Aristotle's ethical wisdom for contemporary use. For instance, Hall confusingly uses Aristotle's potentiality-act distinction to argue for abortion (pitting the fetus's potentiality *against* the mother's potentiality, and talking about the fetus as "potential human"). She also makes various unnecessary digs at Christianity when her book may have been more interesting if she had explored the reception and transmission of Aristotle through the Christian tradition. Instead, she laments the loss of Aristotle's work on comedy in his *Poetics* through an illusion to Umberto Eco's *The Name of the Rose* and a dour medieval monk who hates fun.
The chief value of this book for me as a Christian who appreciates Aristotle, is the beauty and wisdom of the Christian tradition in taking pagan wisdom and "perfecting" it by grace. Aristotle is of some benefit, but the Scriptures are all the more. The additional, parallel value of this book is just what a truly pagan ethics might like look with the continued diminishment of the "Christian canopy" over Western society. I was intrigued by Smith's thesis in *Pagans and Christians in the City* at first, but after reading Hall's *Aristotle's Way* I'm more convinced that it might actually be true.
The book is certainly interesting in the way in which it challenges the dominant secularization thesis popularized by Charles Taylor, et al. But I found it to be especially illuminating when reading Edith Hall's recent book *Aristotle's Way: How Ancient Wisdom Can Change Your Life*.
Some parts popularization of Aristotle, some parts pop psychology, Hall writes about how Aristotelian ethics—in opposition to various other recently popularized ancient ethical systems like stoicism or epicureanism—is a way to live a good, whole life.
This is fine as far as it goes. The fascinating thing is the way in which Hall uses Aristotle's ethical wisdom for contemporary use. For instance, Hall confusingly uses Aristotle's potentiality-act distinction to argue for abortion (pitting the fetus's potentiality *against* the mother's potentiality, and talking about the fetus as "potential human"). She also makes various unnecessary digs at Christianity when her book may have been more interesting if she had explored the reception and transmission of Aristotle through the Christian tradition. Instead, she laments the loss of Aristotle's work on comedy in his *Poetics* through an illusion to Umberto Eco's *The Name of the Rose* and a dour medieval monk who hates fun.
The chief value of this book for me as a Christian who appreciates Aristotle, is the beauty and wisdom of the Christian tradition in taking pagan wisdom and "perfecting" it by grace. Aristotle is of some benefit, but the Scriptures are all the more. The additional, parallel value of this book is just what a truly pagan ethics might like look with the continued diminishment of the "Christian canopy" over Western society. I was intrigued by Smith's thesis in *Pagans and Christians in the City* at first, but after reading Hall's *Aristotle's Way* I'm more convinced that it might actually be true.
annarella's review against another edition
4.0
A very interesting book that turn ancient Greek philosophy into advice and lessons for everyday life.
I really enjoyed it, it was well written, and the philosophical part was well researched and clear.
Recommended!
Many thanks to Random House UK and Netgalley for this ARC
I really enjoyed it, it was well written, and the philosophical part was well researched and clear.
Recommended!
Many thanks to Random House UK and Netgalley for this ARC
wgibson624's review
5.0
This book feels like the equivalent of a freshman college course, but please don't misunderstand me, this is one of its strengths. It covers a broad swath of Aristotle's writings while never taking the reader too far into the deep end. This is an excellent book for those looking for an introduction to Aristotle or just a refresher on his philosophies. It definitely inspired me to look further and deeper into both his life and philosophy.