Philosophy, Logic, & Ethics

Looking Backward: 2000-1887 (1888) is a utopian science-fiction novel by Edward Bellamy. In 1887, Bellamy was a relatively unknown journalist and author from Massachusetts. However, after Looking Backward was published in 1888, he became famous. The novel is now considered the second best-selling American 19th-century novel after Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852). Like Stowe’s novel, it owed its popularity to an urgent call for social change—in this case, labor reform. The novel follows... Read Looking Backward Summary

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Man’s Search for Meaning (1946) is a memoir and work of nonfiction concerned with psychotherapy. The author, Victor Frankl, was born in 1905 and later became a psychiatrist in Vienna—an occupation that for some time protected him despite the fact that he was Jewish. When he was offered the opportunity to obtain a visa and escape to America, he chose to stay in Nazi-occupied Austria to be near his aging parents. Inevitably, he and his family were... Read Man's Search for Meaning Summary

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Many Lives, Many Masters: The True Story of a Prominent Psychiatrist, His Young Patient, and the Past-Life Therapy That Changed Both Their Lives is a new-age, self-help memoir written by American psychiatrist Dr. Brian L. Weiss. Originally published on July 15, 1988, by Touchstone, the book covers a portion of Weiss’s career in which he conducts therapy sessions with Catherine, a patient with symptoms of fear and anxiety. After putting Catherine under trance with hypnotic... Read Many Lives, Many Masters Summary

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Martin Eden is a 1909 novel by American author Jack London. Known for his stories of adventure and use of naturalism and realism, London authored more than 50 books, including Call of the Wild and White Fang, before his untimely death at age 40. London wrote Martin Eden at the height of his literary career, inspired by his own disillusionment with fame and literary critics. Although the protagonist’s individualist principles are at odds with London’s... Read Martin Eden Summary

“Master and Man” is a short story, written in Russian, by Leo Tolstoy in 1895—a period of the author’s life often considered distinct from the early periods of his most famous novels. Having disowned these previous works, the 67-year-old began writing stories on ethical-religious themes. Set in post-reform Russia, when serfdom was abolished and capitalistic forms of work were redefining social life, “Master and Man” is also a commentary on the effects of the new... Read Master and Man Summary

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Meditations is a collection of prose philosophical reflections and exercises composed in Koine Greek by Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, who lived from 121-180 and ruled from 161-180. Though the precise dating of his compositions is unknown and they are not believed to be presented in chronological order, at least some of the books were written while he was on military campaign in the north of Europe during his reign. Scholars are generally in consensus that... Read Meditations Summary

Meditations on First Philosophy is a philosophical treatise by René Descartes. Originally published in Latin in 1641, the text would go on to influence European and global philosophical traditions. In this work, Descartes argues for the existence of God and the immortality of the soul. Two of its major contributions to philosophy are mind/body dualism and the famous phrase “I think, therefore, I am.” The book comprises six meditations wherein Descartes seeks to doubt all... Read Meditations on First Philosophy Summary

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Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus (1992) is a self-help and personal development book by American author John Gray. The book is designed to help couples improve their relationships by accepting how different men and women are. Although the book was initially met with critical acclaim, it has lost popularity due to critiques about sexist content and the book’s worldview. Although this is Gray’s best-known work, Gray has published many similar books concerned... Read Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus Summary

Mencius is a philosophical text based on the thought and teachings of fourth-century BCE Confucian Chinese philosopher Mencius, or Mengzi. According to the latest scholarship, written in the late fourth century BCE by Mencius’s disciples from notes on what Mencius said, it details conversations he had with various kings, rulers, and officials. These discussions cover a range of topics, from moral and political philosophy to human nature and selfhood. The following guide uses the translation... Read Mencius Summary

One of the founding documents of Western philosophy, Plato’s Meno recounts a dialog on the nature of virtue between Socrates and his pupil Meno, a rising star among the leaders of ancient Greece. They discuss how virtue can be recognized, where it comes from, and whether it can be taught.Meno takes place in 402 BCE in Athens; Plato, Socrates’s most famous student, in 385 BCE wrote down his recollection of the conversation. It offers a... Read Meno Summary