Metaphysical Animals

Author: Clare Mac Cumhaill
Publisher: Anchor
ISBN: 1984898981
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 417

Book Description
A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR • A vibrant portrait of four college friends—Iris Murdoch, Philippa Foot, Elizabeth Anscombe, and Mary Midgley—who formed a new philosophical tradition while Oxford's men were away fighting World War II. The history of European philosophy is usually constructed from the work of men. In Metaphysical Animals, a pioneering group biography, Clare Mac Cumhaill and Rachael Wiseman offer a compelling alternative. In the mid-twentieth century Elizabeth Anscombe, Mary Midgley, Philippa Foot, and Iris Murdoch were philosophy students at Oxford when most male undergraduates and many tutors were conscripted away to fight in the Second World War. Together, these young women, all friends, developed a philosophy that could respond to the war’s darkest revelations. Neither the great Enlightenment thinkers of the past, the logical innovators of the early twentieth century, or the new Existentialist philosophy trickling across the Channel, could make sense of this new human reality of limitless depravity and destructive power, the women felt. Their answer was to bring philosophy back to life. We are metaphysical animals, they realized, creatures that can question their very being. Who am I? What is freedom? What is human goodness? The answers we give, they believed, shape what we will become. Written with expertise and flair, Metaphysical Animals is a lively portrait of women who shared ideas, but also apartments, clothes and even lovers. Mac Cumhaill and Wiseman show how from the disorder and despair of the war, four brilliant friends created a way of ethical thinking that is there for us today.

Metaphysical Animals

Author: Clare Mac Cumhaill
Publisher: Anchor
ISBN: 0385545711
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 417

Metaphysical Animals

Author: Clare Mac Cumhaill
Publisher: Random House
ISBN: 1473573092
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 323

Book Description
WINNER OF THE HWA NON-FICTION CROWN AN IRISH TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW NOTABLE BOOK A FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD Elizabeth Anscombe: defiantly brilliant, chain-smoking, trouser-wearing Catholic and (eventual) mother of seven. Philippa Foot: pathalogically discreet, quietly rebellious granddaughter of a US president. Mary Midgley: witty scholar and careful observer of humans and animals alike. Iris Murdoch: aspiring novelist and Francophile with the power to seduce (almost) anyone. Written with expertise and flair, Metaphysical Animals is a vivid portrait of the endeavours and achievements of these four remarkable women. As undergraduates at Oxford during the Second World War, they shared ideas (as well as shoes, sofas and lovers). From the disorder and despair of war, they went on to breathe new life into philosophy, creating a radically fresh way of thinking about freedom, reality and human goodness that is there for us today. 'Evocative and sparkling' New York Times 'A triumph' Mail on Sunday

Animal Speak

Author: Ted Andrews
Publisher: Llewellyn Worldwide
ISBN: 0738717630
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 400

Book Description
Open your heart and mind to the wisdom of the animal world. Animal Speak provides techniques for recognizing and interpreting the signs and omens of nature. Meet and work with animals as totems and spirit guides by learning the language of their behaviors within the physical world. Animal Speak shows you how to: Identify, meet, and attune to your spirit animals Discover the power and spiritual significance of more than 100 different animals, birds, insects, and reptiles Call upon the protective powers of your animal totem Create and use five magical animal rites, including shapeshifting and sacred dance This beloved, bestselling guide has become a classic reference for anyone wishing to forge a spiritual connection with the majesty and mystery of the animal world.

The Women Are Up to Something

Author: Benjamin J. Bruxvoort Lipscomb
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0197541070
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 361

Book Description
Résumé éditeur : This book tells two intertwined stories, centered on twentieth-century moral philosophers Elizabeth Anscombe, Mary Midgley, Philippa Foot, and Iris Murdoch. The first is the story of four friends who came up to Oxford together just before WWII. It is the story of their lives, loves, and intellectual preoccupations; it is a story about women trying to find a place in a man's world of academic philosophy. The second story is about these friends' shared philosophical project and their unintentional creation of a school of thought that challenged the dominant way of doing ethics. That dominant school of thought envisioned the world as empty, value-free matter, on which humans impose meaning. This outlook treated statements such as “this is good” as mere expressions of feeling or preference, reflecting no objective standards. It emphasized human freedom and demanded an unflinching recognition of the value-free world. The four friends diagnosed this moral philosophy as an impoverishing intellectual fad. This style of thought, they believed, obscured the realities of human nature and left people without the resources to make difficult moral choices or to confront evil. As an alternative, the women proposed a naturalistic ethics, reviving a line of thought running through Plato, Aristotle, and Aquinas, and enriched by modern biologists like Jane Goodall and Charles Darwin. The women proposed that there are, in fact, moral truths, based in facts about the distinctive nature of the human animal and what that animal needs to thrive."

Animal Rights and Wrongs

Author: Roger Scruton
Publisher: A&C Black
ISBN: 9780826494047
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 226

Book Description
In this acclaimed book, Scruton takes the issues relating to vivisection, hunting, animal testing and BSE and places them in a wider framework of thought and feeling. Now available in paperback

Persons, Animals, Ourselves

Author: Paul F. Snowdon
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191056804
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 272

Book Description
The starting point for this book is a particular answer to a question that grips many of us: what kind of thing are we? The particular answer is that we are animals (of a certain sort)—a view nowadays called 'animalism'. This answer will appear obvious to many but on the whole philosophers have rejected it. Paul F. Snowdon proposes, contrary to that attitude, that there are strong reasons to believe animalism and that when properly analysed the objections against it that philosophers have given are not convincing. One way to put the idea is that we should not think of ourselves as things that need psychological states or capacities to exist, any more that other animals do. The initial chapters analyse the content and general philosophical implications of animalism—including the so-called problem of personal identity, and that of the unity of consciousness—and they provide a framework which categorises the standard philosophical objections. Snowdon then argues that animalism is consistent with a perfectly plausible account of the central notion of a 'person', and he criticises the accounts offered by John Locke and by David Wiggins of that notion. In the two next chapters Snowdon argues that there are very strong reasons to think animalism is true, and proposes some central claims about animal which are relevant to the argument. In the rest of the book the task is to formulate and to persuade the reader of the lack of cogency of the standard philosophical objections, including the conviction that it is possible for the animal that I would be if animalism were true to continue in existence after I have ceased to exist, and the argument that it is possible for us to remain in existence even when the animal has ceased to exist. In considering these types of objections the views of various philosophers, including Nagel, Shoemaker, Johnston, Wilkes, and Olson, are also explored. Snowdon concludes that animalism represents a highly commonsensical and defensible way of thinking about ourselves, and that its rejection by philosophers rests on the tendency when doing philosophy to mistake fantasy for reality.

Animal Spirit Guides

Author: Steven D. Farmer, Ph.D
Publisher: Hay House, Inc
ISBN: 1401932126
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 482

Book Description
AN EASY-TO-USE HANDBOOK FOR IDENTIFYING AND UNDERSTANDINGYOUR POWER ANIMALS AND ANIMAL SPIRIT HELPERS After the publication of his best-selling book Power Animals, many people inquired about the meaning of spirit animals that were not contained in that work. In Animal Spirit Guides, Dr. Farmer provides concise, relevant details about the significance of more than 200 animals that may come to you in physical or symbolic form as guides and teachers. With each animal listed, you’ll find general meanings of the visitation; practical ways that they can help you as spirit guides; and how, as your power animal, they reflect characteristics that you possess. You’ll also find a "whom-to-call-on" section that will tell you which animal spirit guide to call on for any specific purpose.

Spirit & Dream Animals

Author: Richard Webster
Publisher: Llewellyn Worldwide
ISBN: 0738730904
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 264

Book Description
Have you ever dreamt about a bird, wolf, lion, or some other creature and wondered what it meant? From the cheerful bluebird to the courageous tiger, the animals in our dreams often have specific messages that can guide us on our life paths. Once you know your totem animal, you can call upon it for healing, protection, strength, wisdom, and spiritual guidance. In Spirit & Dream Animals, bestselling author Richard Webster will teach you simple and fun techniques to identify and connect with your spirit animal. Lucid Dreaming Astrology Numerology Pendulum Divination Meditation Dancing You'll also learn about animal symbolism in various cultures, the shamanic tradition, and how to recall your dreams more easily and vividly. This handy book also features an alphabetical dream-animal dictionary. With it, you can quickly look up the symbolic meanings of more than 150 creatures—including pets and domestic, wild, and legendary animals.

Animal Lessons

Author: Danielle MacKinnon
Publisher: Llewellyn Worldwide
ISBN: 0738752932
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 168

Book Description
Develop a deeper, more positive relationship with the animals in your life and become a better person using Animal Lessons. All around you, animals are acting as therapists, trainers, mentors, and gurus—if you pay attention. They want to guide you toward the next step in your personal evolution, and this first-of-its-kind book shows you how to understand and benefit from them. Having worked deeply and intuitively with animals for nearly twenty years, Danielle MacKinnon has a wealth of wisdom that she shares through helpful tools and techniques, client stories, and her step-by-step process for personal growth through animal guidance. With an open heart and mind, you'll develop a new awareness and stronger love of yourself as well as the wise creatures in your life. Praise: "MacKinnon, a psychic medium, blends personal stories with tips and tools aimed at helping readers discover a deeper relationship with their pets. Animals, she writes, often act as therapists, trainers, mentors, and gurus, and can offer lessons on love, patience, happiness, and gratitude."—Publishers Weekly