Modern thought

Nine chapters of short, numbered sections question the ideas of truth and morality that most people take for granted. One line warns that whoever fights monsters should take care not to become a monster.

4h 28m reading time

A short essay argues that time alone in nature can show us truths we cannot learn from books. Walking across an empty field, Emerson feels he becomes a transparent eyeball that sees all and is nothing.

1h 6m reading time

A study of religion that looks for its roots in the beliefs and ceremonies of Aboriginal Australian clans. Durkheim argues that when people worship their gods, they are also honoring their own society.

11h 16m reading time

These lectures examine how novels work, from storytelling to the people who fill their pages. Forster distinguishes between flat and round characters, showing why some surprise us while others remain familiar.

3h 19m reading time

Three essays trace how ideas of good and evil developed through conflict and changing social values. One essay links guilt to debt, drawing on an old connection between the German words.

3h 32m reading time

This nonfiction book explains how public relations shapes public opinion through organized campaigns. Its examples include soap-carving contests used to promote a soap brand.

2h 15m reading time

This extended essay examines the conflict between human desires and the demands of living together. A comparison with Rome imagines the mind as a city where every past building still stands.

1h 51m reading time

This essay examines whether actions should be judged by the happiness they produce. Mill compares a dissatisfied Socrates with a satisfied fool to explain why some pleasures matter more.

1h 50m reading time

This short essay examines religious belief through human wishes and fears. Freud debates an imagined opponent who challenges his hope that people can live without religion.

1h 15m reading time

This practical guide examines common causes of unhappiness and habits that can make life more enjoyable. Its chapter on boredom argues that a happy life still needs stretches of quiet and routine.

3h 49m reading time

These six lectures examine how a public forms and how democracy can work in a complex society. Dewey challenges Walter Lippmann's doubts about ordinary citizens' ability to take part in government.

3h 37m reading time

A wandering teacher named Zarathustra questions human values through speeches, stories, and songs. His first public speech unfolds before a crowd waiting to watch a tightrope walker.

8h 4m reading time