The Book of Dead Philosophers by Simon Critchley Knopf Doubleday (10 February 2009) Amazon I wish we had this book when I studied philosophy during my VCE and undergrad years. The ones assigned -- aside from all the photocopied extracts of Plato and Nietzsche -- I'd honestly forgotten until I was drafting this post. Sophie's … Continue reading The Book of Dead Philosophers
Tag: writing
King of All Excuses
Front cover for the "King of All Excuses" single. Image via Elektra Records. "Everyone is lying -- about what they make, about how confident they feel, about how hard they work, about how well things are going. Stop comparing yourself to these lies. Stop thinking about them at all." -Ryan Holiday The fourth and final … Continue reading King of All Excuses
The Diary of Jane
Breaking Benjamin in 2006. L-R: Mark James Klepaski, Benjamin Burnley, Aaron Fink, and Chad Szeliga. Image via Hollywood Records. "The Stoic tells himself that although the situation may appear frightening, the truly important thing in life is how he chooses to respond." -Donald Robertson "The Diary of Jane" was the lead single from Breaking Benjamin's … Continue reading The Diary of Jane
On Grief and Reason
On Grief and Reason: Essays by Joseph Brodsky Farrar, Straus & Giroux, Inc. (10 April 1997) Amazon A posthumously published collection of Joseph Brodsky's essays, On Grief and Reason is a series of meditations on literature as a moral and civilising force. For Brodsky, poetry is something that sharpens perception, preserves individual freedom, and is … Continue reading On Grief and Reason
How to Live
How to Live: Or, a Life of Montaigne in One Question and Twenty Attempts at an Answer by Sarah Bakewell Other Press (20 September 2011) Amazon Michel de Montaigne is one of my favourite philosophers ever, and How to Live by Sarah Bakewell is one of my favourite biographies. It's not just a conventional cradle-to-grave … Continue reading How to Live
10,000 Days and Cultural Capital
Cover art for 10,000 Days by Alex Grey. Image via Volcano II/Tool Dissectional. "Although the art world is frequently characterised as a classless scene where artists from lower-middle-class backgrounds drink champagne with high-priced hedge-fund managers, scholarly curators, fashion designers and other 'creatives,' you'd be mistaken if you thought the world was egalitarian or democratic. Art … Continue reading 10,000 Days and Cultural Capital
Vicarious
Music video for "Vicarious." Image via Volcano II and Tool Dissectional. "Nature has gone to great lengths to hide our subconscious from ourselves. Why?" -Robert Wright "Vicarious" was the lead single from Tool's 2006 album, 10,000 Days. It is one of their most recognised songs, and probably the one that truly cemented the band in … Continue reading Vicarious
Where’d You Go
Single artwork for "Where'd You Go." Image via Machine Shop/Warner Bros. Records. "When we were children, we used to think that when we were grown-up we would no longer be vulnerable. But to grow up is to accept vulnerability... To be alive is to be vulnerable." -Madeleine L'Engle The fourth and final single from Fort … Continue reading Where’d You Go
Everything Changes
Cover art for the "Everything Changes" single. Image via Flip/Atlantic Records. "Consider the lives led once by others, long ago, the lives to be led by others after you, the lives led even now, in foreign lands. How many people don't even know your name. How many will soon have forgotten it. How many offer … Continue reading Everything Changes
Coming Undone
CD single artwork for "Coming Undone." Image via Virgin/EMI. "The world breaks everyone, and afterward many are strong at the broken places. But those that will not break it kills." -Ernest Hemingway "Coming Undone" was the second single from Korn's seventh album, See You on the Other Side. Released on 21 February 2006, it reached … Continue reading Coming Undone
Lawrence Deveney 