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The Literary United States: A Map of the Best Book for Every State

The Literary United States: A Map of the Best Book for Every State

Shakespeare And Company Three Minute Philosophy THREE MINUTE PHILOSOPHY is an animated web series designed to explain philosophical ideas in a way that even your Mum can understand them. Each video will explore the ideas of one or two philosophers and their impact on the tradition of thought in approximately three minutes. We're working chronologically here so if you're still holding out for Nietzsche then it's probably wise to defer your degree and take a holiday in Scotland or somewhere. Heraclitus and Parmenides Two guys who butted heads in really ancient Greece about the nature of time and physical reality. Heraclitus thought that everything was fluid and in constant flux while Parmenides thought the universe was really just a big block of unchanging stuff. Plato Pretty much the most influential philosopher of all time. Empedocles Certifiable nutcase, wannabe cult leader, and unknowingly the precursor to the entire history of science until pretty much this day.

Down The Rabbit Hole Fall deeper down the rabbit hole... Eastern Philosophy Explained with Three Animated Videos by Alain de Botton's School of Life “Among the founders of religions,” writes Walpola Rahula in his book What the Buddha Taught, “the Buddha…was the only teacher who did not claim to be other than a human being, pure and simple. […] He attributed all his realization, attainment and achievements to human endeavor and human intelligence.” Rahula’s interpretation of Buddhism is only one of a great many, of course. In some traditions, the Buddha is miraculous and more or less divine. But this quote sums up why the generally non-theistic system of Eastern thought is often called a psychology or philosophy rather than a religion. With the video above, Alain de Botton—whose School of Life has recently brought us a survey of Western philosophers—begins his introduction to Eastern thought with Buddhism. The Buddha’s story, de Botton says, “is a story about confronting suffering.” Most of what de Botton does in his introduction to the Buddha will be familiar to anyone who has taken a comparative religions class. Related Content:

25 books every girl should read before she turns 25 Classic literature is full of famous books about angsty teenage boys learning who they are as men. But what about all the women? The books about women’s coming of age are not nearly as widely celebrated, but are they are JUST as significant and moving and important as all those books about boys. From young adult stories of adventure, to non-fiction graphic novels, these game-changing reads will shape how you think about being a woman — which let’s be real, is mega important. 1. Allende spent seven years researching this novel, which she describes as a young woman’s search for self-knowledge. 2. Persepolis is a graphic novel that I first encountered in an Intro to Gender & Women’s Studies in college. 3. This book is classic for a reason. 4. This 1969 autobiography from Maya Angelou shows how a woman can stand strong despite societal and personal injustices. 5. This classic children’s novel teaches women that they have value beyond what others see in them. 6. 7. 8. 9.

A History of Ideas: Animated Videos Explain Theories of Simone de Beauvoir, Edmund Burke & Other Philosophers The UK’s Open University has become a dependable source of very short, online video introductions to all sorts of things, from weighty subjects like religion, economics, and literary theory to lighter, but no less interesting fare like the art and science of bike design. With breezy tone and serious intent, their animated “60-Second Adventures” make seemingly arcane academic ideas accessible to laypeople with no prior background. Now they’ve teamed up with writer and BBC broadcaster Melvyn Bragg of In Our Time fame for a series of video shorts that run just a little over 60 seconds each, with animations by Andrew Park of Cogni+ive, and narration by comedic actor Harry Shearer from Spinal Tap, The Simpsons, and, most recently, Nixon’s the One. Drawn from Bragg’s BBC 4 radio program “A History of Ideas,” the shorts introduce exactly that—each one a précis of a longstanding philosophical problem like Free Will vs. Related Content: 120+ Free Online Philosophy Courses

Truly magical Harry Potter book cover designs A book cover is like a blank canvas – you can do almost anything and we've seen some stunners in our time here at Creative Bloq. From the amazing typography on book covers to inspirational Penguin book cover designs, they've all added a little creativity to their literature. Hungarian based artist Kincső Nagy embarked on this Harry Potter project for her BA degree project but we think these would be snapped up if put on sale. "My goal was to redesign them with such illustrations that was able to show the extraordinary atmosphere of the books," she explains. Subscription offer "I started to experiment with interactive illustrations, so as to not distract attention from the plot, but add to the story. What do you think about these book designs? Words: Sammy Maine Sammy Maine is staff writer at Creative Bloq.

BBC Blogs - The Radio 4 Blog - Philosophy Animated 100 Notable Books of 2014 Photo The year’s notable fiction, poetry and nonfiction, selected by the editors of The New York Times Book Review. ALL OUR NAMES. By Dinaw Mengestu. ALL THE BIRDS, SINGING. ALL THE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE. AMERICAN INNOVATIONS. THE ASSASSINATION OF MARGARET THATCHER: Stories. THE BALLAD OF A SMALL PLAYER. BARK: Stories. THE BLAZING WORLD. THE BONE CLOCKS. THE BOOK OF STRANGE NEW THINGS. THE BOOK OF UNKNOWN AMERICANS. BOY, SNOW, BIRD. A BRIEF HISTORY OF SEVEN KILLINGS. CAN’T AND WON’T. THE COLD SONG. COLORLESS TSUKURU TAZAKI AND HIS YEARS OF PILGRIMAGE. DEPT. THE DOG. EUPHORIA. EVERYTHING I NEVER TOLD YOU. F. FAITHFUL AND VIRTUOUS NIGHT. FAMILY LIFE. FOURTH OF JULY CREEK. A GIRL IS A HALF-FORMED THING. I PITY THE POOR IMMIGRANT. THE LAUGHING MONSTERS. LENA FINKLE’S MAGIC BARREL. LET ME BE FRANK WITH YOU: A Frank Bascombe Book. LILA. LOVERS AT THE CHAMELEON CLUB, PARIS 1932. THE MAGICIAN’S LAND. THE MOOR’S ACCOUNT. MOTHERLAND FATHERLAND HOMELANDSEXUALS. MY STRUGGLE. NORA WEBSTER. 10:04.

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