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The main texts used in the St. John's Program. They are sorted by class, and then by subject.

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Program Books

FEAR AND TREMBLING & REPETITION TR. HONG

FEAR AND TREMBLING & REPETITION TR. HONG

By: Kierkegaard, Søren
$34.00
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Presented here in a new translation, with a historical introduction by the translators, Fear and Trembling and Repetition are the most poetic and personal of Søren Kierkegaard's pseudonymous writings. Published in 1843 and written under the names Johannes de Silentio and Constantine Constantius, respectively, the books demonstrate Kierkegaard's transmutation of the personal into the lyrically religious.


Each work uses as a point of departure Kierkegaard's breaking of his engagement to Regine Olsen--his sacrifice of "that single individual." From this beginning Fear and Trembling becomes an exploration of the faith that transcends the ethical, as in Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son Isaac at God's command. This faith, which persists in the face of the absurd, is rewarded finally by the return of all that the faithful one is willing to sacrifice. Repetition discusses the most profound implications of unity of personhood and of identity within change, beginning with the ironic story of a young poet who cannot fulfill the ethical claims of his engagement because of the possible consequences of his marriage. The poet finally despairs of repetition (renewal) in the ethical sphere, as does his advisor and friend Constantius in the aesthetic sphere. The book ends with Constantius' intimation of a third kind of repetition--in the religious sphere.

FEAR AND TREMBLING TR. HANNAY

FEAR AND TREMBLING TR. HANNAY

By: Kierkegaard, Soren
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Writing under the pseudonym of "Johannes de slientio, " Kierkegaard uses the form of a dialectical lyric to present his conception of faith. Abraham is portrayed as a great man, who chose to sacrifice his son, Isaac, in the face of conflicting expectations and in defiance of any conceivable ethical standard. The infamous and controversial 'theological suspension of the ethical' challenged the contemporary views of Hegel's universal moral system, and the suffering individual must alone make a choice 'on the strength of the absurd'.
FEDERALIST ED. ROSSITER with Constitution

FEDERALIST ED. ROSSITER with Constitution

By: Jay, John
$7.95
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A DOCUMENT THAT SHAPED A NATION

An authoritative analysis of the Constitution of the United States and an enduring classic of political philosophy.


Written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay, The Federalist Papers explain the complexities of a constitutional government--its political structure and principles based on the inherent rights of man. Scholars have long regarded this work as a milestone in political science and a classic of American political theory.

Based on the original McLean edition of 1788 and edited by noted historian Clinton Rossiter, this special edition includes:

● Textual notes and a select bibliography by Charles R. Kesler
● Table of contents with a brief précis of each essay
● Appendix with a copy of the Constitution cross-referenced to The Federalist Papers
● Index of Ideas that lists the major political concepts discussed
● Copies of The Declaration of Independence and Articles of Confederation

FIRE NEXT TIME

FIRE NEXT TIME

By: Baldwin, James
$14.00
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A national bestseller when it first appeared in 1963, The Fire Next Time galvanized the nation and gave passionate voice to the emerging civil rights movement. At once a powerful evocation of James Baldwin's early life in Harlem and a disturbing examination of the consequences of racial injustice, the book is an intensely personal and provocative document. It consists of two "letters, " written on the occasion of the centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation, that exhort Americans, both black and white, to attack the terrible legacy of racism. Described by The New York Times Book Review as "sermon, ultimatum, confession, deposition, testament, and chronicle...all presented in searing, brilliant prose, " The Fire Next Time stands as a classic of our literature.
FIVE BOOKS OF MOSES TR. ALTER Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy

FIVE BOOKS OF MOSES TR. ALTER Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy

By: Alter, Robert
$29.95
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Through a distinguished career of critical scholarship and translation, Robert Alter has equipped us to read the Hebrew Bible as a powerful, cohesive work of literature. In this landmark work, Alter's masterly translation and probing commentary combine to give contemporary readers the definitive edition of The Five Books. Winner of the PEN Center USA Literary Award for Translation and the Koret Jewish Book Award for Translation, a Newsweek Top 15 Book, Los Angeles Times Favorite Book, and San Francisco Chronicle Best Book.
FIVE DIALOGUES: Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Meno, Phaedo TR. GRUBE

FIVE DIALOGUES: Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Meno, Phaedo TR. GRUBE

By: Plato
$12.00
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The second edition of Five Dialogues presents G. M. A. Grube's distinguished translations, as revised by John Cooper for Plato, Complete Works. A number of new or expanded footnotes are also included along with an updated bibliography.

FLOWERS OF EVIL BILINGUAL

FLOWERS OF EVIL BILINGUAL

By: Baudelaire, Charles
$21.95
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Banned and slighted in his lifetime, the book that contains all of Baudelaire's verses has opened up vistas to the imagination and quickened sensibilities of poets everywhere. Yet it is questionable whether a single translator can give adequate voice to Baudelaire's full poetic range. In compiling their classic, bilingual edition of The Flowers of Evil, the late Marthiel and Jackson Mathews chose from the work of forty-one translators to create a collection that is "a commentary on the present state of the art of translation." The Mathews' volume is a poets' homage to Baudelaire as well. Among the contributors are: Robert Fitzgerald, Anthony Hecht, Aldous Huxley, Stanley Kunitz, Robert Lowell, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Karl Shapiro, Allen Tate, Richard Wilbur, Yvon Winters.
FLOWERS OF EVIL TR. HOWARD

FLOWERS OF EVIL TR. HOWARD

By: Baudelaire, Charles
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The celebrated, National Book Award winning, translation of Baudelaire's masterpiece. "It is the English edition to acquire."--Washington Post

Pulitzer Prize winning poet and translator, Richard Howard, gives readers the true voice of Baudelaire in this masterful translation. Charles Baudelaire's 1857 masterwork was scandalous in its day for its portrayals of sex, same-sex love, death, the corrupting and oppressive power of the modern city and lost innocence, Les Fleurs Du Mal (The Flowers of Evil) remains powerful and relevant for our time.

In "Spleen et idéal," Baudelaire dramatizes the erotic cycle of ecstacy and anguish--of sexual and romantic love. "Tableaux Parisiens" condemns the crushing effects of urban planning on a city's soul and praises the city's anti-heroes including the deranged and derelict. "Le Vin" centers on the search for oblivion in drink and drugs. The many kinds of love that lie outside traditional morality is the focus of "Fleurs du Mal" while rebellion is at the heart of "Révolte."

"Howard's achievement is such that we can be confident that his Flowers of Evil will long stand as definitive, a superb guide to France's greatest poet."--The Nation

FLOWERS OF EVIL: (LES FLEURS DU MAL)

FLOWERS OF EVIL: (LES FLEURS DU MAL)

By: Baudelaire, Charles
$27.95
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Known to his contemporaries primarily as an art critic, but ambitious to secure a more lasting literary legacy, Charles Baudelaire, a Parisian bohemian, spent much of the 1840s composing gritty, often perverse, poems that expressed his disgust with the banality of modern city life.

First published in 1857, the book that collected these poems together, Les Fleurs du mal, was an instant sensation--earning Baudelaire plaudits and, simultaneously, disrepute. Only a year after Gustave Flaubert had endured his own public trial for published indecency (for Madame Bovary), a French court declared Les Fleurs du mal an offense against public morals and six poems within it were immediately suppressed (a ruling that would not be reversed until 1949, nearly a century after Baudelaire's untimely death). Subsequent editions expanded on the original, including new poems that have since been recognized as Baudelaire's masterpieces, producing a body of work that stands as the most consequential, controversial, and influential book of poetry from the nineteenth century.

Acclaimed translator and poet Aaron Poochigian tackles this revolutionary text with an ear attuned to Baudelaire's lyrical innovations--rendering them in "an assertive blend of full and slant rhymes and fluent iambs" (A. E. Stallings)--and an intuitive feel for the work's dark and brooding mood. Poochigian's version captures the incantatory, almost magical, effect of the original--reanimating for today's reader Baudelaire's "unfailing vision" that "trumpeted the space and light of the future" (Patti Smith).

An introduction by Dana Gioia offers a probing reassessment of the supreme artistry of Baudelaire's masterpiece, and an afterword by Daniel Handler explores its continued relevance and appeal. Featuring the poems in English and French, this deluxe dual-language edition allows readers to commune both with the original poems and with these electric, revelatory translations.

FOUR CHINESE CLASSICS: TAO TE CHING, ANALECTS, CHUANG TZU, MENCIUS

FOUR CHINESE CLASSICS: TAO TE CHING, ANALECTS, CHUANG TZU, MENCIUS

$24.95
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Discover four seminal masterworks of Chinese thought--Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching, the Analects of Confucius, the Chuang Tzu, and the Mencius--presented in one volume for the first time in nearly two centuries.

Award-winning translator David Hinton offers fresh insights on the most influential texts on Taoism, Zen Buddhism, Chinese philosophy, and more.

Hinton's award-winning experience translating a wide range of ancient Chinese poets makes these books sing in English as never before. But these new versions are not only inviting and immensely readable--they also apply much-needed consistency to key philosophical terms in these texts, lending structural links and philosophical rigor heretofore unavailable in English. Breathing new life into these classics, Hinton's new translations will stand as the definitive texts for our era.

Perhaps the most broadly influential spiritual text in human history, Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching is the source of Taoist philosophy, which eventually developed into Ch'an (Zen) Buddhism. Equally influential in the social sphere, Confucius' Analects is the source of social wisdom in China. The Chuang Tzu is the wild and wacky prose complement to the Tao Te Ching. And with its philosophical storytelling, the Mencius adds depth and complexity to Confucius' vision.

FOUR TEXTS ON SOCRATES REVISED Euthyphro, Apology, Crito; Aristophanes Clouds

FOUR TEXTS ON SOCRATES REVISED Euthyphro, Apology, Crito; Aristophanes Clouds

By: Plato
$14.50
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This book offers translations of four major works of ancient Greek literature which treat the life and thought of Socrates, focusing particularly on his trial and defense (the Platonic dialogues Euthyphro, Apology of Socrates, and Crito) and on the charges against Socrates (Aristophanes' comedy the Clouds). This is the only collection of the three Platonic dialogues which also includes the Clouds, a work that is fundamental for understanding the thought of Socrates in relation to the Athenian political community and to Greek poetry. Thomas G. West's introduction provides an overview of the principal themes and arguments of the four works. There are extensive explanatory notes to the translations.
FRENCH FOR READING KNOWLEDGE 2nd edition

FRENCH FOR READING KNOWLEDGE 2nd edition

By: Palmeri, Joseph
$47.00
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FRESHMAN LAB SOURCEBOOK 1 2023-2024

$15.00
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FRESHMAN MUSIC MANUAL 2014-2021

$16.00
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FROGS TR. HENDERSON

FROGS TR. HENDERSON

By: Aristophanes
$12.00
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This is an English translation of Aristophanes' popular comedy in which the god Dionysus seeks to bring the great dramatist Euripides from Hades, where he encounters another great Classical playwright, Aeschylus. Includes background material on the historical and cultural context of this work, suggestions for further reading, and notes. The Focus Classical Library provides close translations with notes and essays to provide access to understanding Greek culture and the roots of contemporary thought.
FUNDAMENTAL WISDOM MIDDLE WAY TR. GARFIELD

FUNDAMENTAL WISDOM MIDDLE WAY TR. GARFIELD

By: Nagarjuna
$19.95
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The Buddhist saint Nāgārjuna, who lived in South India in approximately the second century CE, is undoubtedly the most important, influential, and widely studied Mahāyāna Buddhist philosopher. His many works include texts addressed to lay audiences, letters of advice to kings, and a set of penetrating metaphysical and epistemological treatises. His greatest philosophical work, the Mūlamadhyamikakārikā--read and studied by philosophers in all major Buddhist schools of Tibet, China, Japan, and Korea--is one of the most influential works in the history of Indian philosophy. Now, in The Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way, Jay L. Garfield provides a clear and eminently readable translation of Nāgārjuna's seminal work, offering those with little or no prior knowledge of Buddhist philosophy a view into the profound logic of the Mūlamadhyamikakārikā.
Garfield presents a superb translation of the Tibetan text of Mūlamadhyamikakārikā in its entirety, and a commentary reflecting the Tibetan tradition through which Nāgārjuna's philosophical influence has largely been transmitted. Illuminating the systematic character of Nāgārjuna's reasoning, Garfield shows how Nāgārjuna develops his doctrine that all phenomena are empty of inherent existence, that is, than nothing exists substantially or independently. Despite lacking any essence, he argues, phenomena nonetheless exist conventionally, and that indeed conventional existence and ultimate emptiness are in fact the same thing. This represents the radical understanding of the Buddhist doctrine of the two truths, or two levels of reality. He offers a verse-by-verse commentary that explains Nāgārjuna's positions and arguments in the language of Western metaphysics and epistemology, and connects Nāgārjuna's concerns to those of Western philosophers such as Sextus, Hume, and W
An accessible translation of the foundational text for all Mahāyāna Buddhism, The Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way offers insight to all those interested in the nature of reality.
GENERAL PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORY

GENERAL PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORY

By: Freud, Sigmund
$16.99
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In fifteen essays, sigmund freud explains his most controversial theories exposing the darkest corners of the human psyche.

Best known for his research into the unconscious mind, Sigmund Freud challenged the mores of conventional American society during the early twentieth century. This collection presents many of Freud's revolutionary ideas, showing how his theories changed the way people think about their emotions and actions, opening a rich dialogue about the methods and science of the brain.

In a series of essays written between 1911 and 1938, readers follow Freud through clear explanations of how neurology and psychology influence our actions and govern personality traits and emotions, including the libido, narcissism, mourning, repression, dreams, paranoia, and melancholy.

This volume illustrates how Freud was not afraid to venture into unknown areas of the human mind and that he was superbly equipped to expose its secrets. Exploring the hypotheses of the most controversial psychologist of the twentieth century, in his own words, may help us understand our own behaviors.

GITA GOVINDA LOVE SONG OF DARK LORD TR. STOLER-MILLER

GITA GOVINDA LOVE SONG OF DARK LORD TR. STOLER-MILLER

$36.00
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Jayadeva's dramatic lyrical poem Gitagovinda is one of the most important works in Indian literature and a source of religious inspiration in both medieval and contemporary Vaishnavism. Revealing an intense earthly passion to express the complexities of divine and human love, its songs are an important part of Indian devotional music and literature.

The twentith anniversary edition of the renowned translation by noted scholar Barbara Stoler MIller brings this classic to a new generation of readers and offers fresh insights for those familiar with the text.

GO DOWN MOSES W/ THE BEAR

GO DOWN MOSES W/ THE BEAR

By: Faulkner, William
$17.00
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"I believe that man will not merely endure: he will prevail. He is immortal, not because he alone among creatures has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance." --William Faulkner, on receiving the Nobel Prize

Go Down, Moses is composed of seven interrelated stories, all of them set in Faulkner's mythic Yoknapatawpha County. From a variety of perspectives, Faulkner examines the complex, changing relationships between blacks and whites, between man and nature, weaving a cohesive novel rich in implication and insight.

GODEL'S PROOF

GODEL'S PROOF

By: Newman, James R
$14.95
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An accessible explanation of Kurt Gödel's groundbreaking work in mathematical logic

In 1931 Kurt Gödel published his fundamental paper, "On Formally Undecidable Propositions of Principia Mathematica and Related Systems." This revolutionary paper challenged certain basic assumptions underlying much research in mathematics and logic. Gödel received public recognition of his work in 1951 when he was awarded the first Albert Einstein Award for achievement in the natural sciences--perhaps the highest award of its kind in the United States. The award committee described his work in mathematical logic as "one of the greatest contributions to the sciences in recent times."

However, few mathematicians of the time were equipped to understand the young scholar's complex proof. Ernest Nagel and James Newman provide a readable and accessible explanation to both scholars and non-specialists of the main ideas and broad implications of Gödel's discovery. It offers every educated person with a taste for logic and philosophy the chance to understand a previously difficult and inaccessible subject.

New York University Press is proud to publish this special edition of one of its bestselling books. With a new introduction by Douglas R. Hofstadter, this book will appeal students, scholars, and professionals in the fields of mathematics, computer science, logic and philosophy, and science.

GORGIAS TR HAMILTON & JONES

GORGIAS TR HAMILTON & JONES

By: Plato
$10.00
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The classic political dialogue, as relevant today as in Plato's time

Taking the form of a dialogue between Socrates, Gorgias, Polus and Callicles, Gorgias debates perennial questions about the nature of government and those who aspire to public office. Are high moral standards essential or should we give our preference to the pragmatist who gets things done or negotiates successfully? Should individuals be motivated by a desire for personal power and prestige, or genuine concern for the moral betterment of the citizens? These questions go to the heart of Athenian democratic principles and are more relevant than ever in today's political climate.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

GORGIAS TR. NICHOLS

GORGIAS TR. NICHOLS

By: Plato
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The struggle which Plato has Socrates recommend to his interlocutors in "Gorgias" - and to his readers - is the struggle to overcome the temptations of worldly success and to concentrate on genuine morality. Ostensibly an enquiry into the value of rhetoric, the dialogue soon becomes an investigation into the value of these two contrasting ways of life. In a series of dazzling and bold arguments, Plato attempts to establish that only morality can bring a person true happiness, and to demolish alternative viewpoints.
GORGIAS TR. ZEYL

GORGIAS TR. ZEYL

By: Plato
$12.00
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This is an excellent translation. It achieves a very high standard of accuracy and readability, two goals very difficult to attain in combination when it comes to such a master of prose and philosophical argument as Plato. Because of this the book is suitable for courses at all levels in philosophy, from introductory courses on Plato, or problems in Philosophy, to graduate seminars. --Gerasimos Santas, Teaching Philosophy

GORGIAS, MENEXENUS, PROTAGORAS

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Presented in the popular Cambridge Texts format are three early Platonic dialogues in a new English translation by Tom Griffith that combines elegance, accuracy, freshness and fluency. Together they offer strikingly varied examples of Plato's critical encounter with the culture and politics of fifth and fourth century Athens. Nowhere does he engage more sharply and vigorously with the presuppositions of democracy. The Gorgias is a long and impassioned confrontation between Socrates and a succession of increasingly heated interlocutors about political rhetoric as an instrument of political power. The short Menexenus contains a pastiche of celebratory public oratory, illustrating its self-delusions. In the Protagoras, another important contribution to moral and political philosophy in its own right, Socrates takes on leading intellectuals (the 'sophists') of the later fifth century BC and their pretensions to knowledge. The dialogues are introduced and annotated by Malcolm Schofield, a leading authority on ancient Greek political philosophy.
GREAT IMAGE HAS NO FORM, OR ON THE NONOBJECT THROUGH PAINTING

GREAT IMAGE HAS NO FORM, OR ON THE NONOBJECT THROUGH PAINTING

By: Jullien, François
$44.00
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In premodern China, elite painters used imagery not to mirror the world around them, but to evoke unfathomable experience. Considering their art alongside the philosophical traditions that inform it, The Great Image Has No Form explores the "nonobject"--a notion exemplified by paintings that do not seek to represent observable surroundings.

François Jullien argues that this nonobjectifying approach stems from the painters' deeply held belief in a continuum of existence, in which art is not distinct from reality. Contrasting this perspective with the Western notion of art as separate from the world it represents, Jullien investigates the theoretical conditions that allow us to apprehend, isolate, and abstract objects. His comparative method lays bare the assumptions of Chinese and European thought, revitalizing the questions of what painting is, where it comes from, and what it does. Provocative and intellectually vigorous, this sweeping inquiry introduces new ways of thinking about the relationship of art to the ideas in which it is rooted.

GREAT SPEECHES

GREAT SPEECHES

By: Lincoln, Abraham
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For someone who claimed he had been educated by littles -- a little now and a little then -- Abraham Lincoln displayed a remarkable facility in his use of the written word. The simple yet memorable eloquence of his speeches, proclamations and personal correspondence is recorded here in a representative collection of 16 documents.
This volume contains, complete and unabridged, the Address Before the Young Men's Lyceum of Springfield, Illinois (1838), which emphasized a theme Lincoln was to return to repeatedly, namely, the capacity of a people to govern themselves; the House Divided speech at the Republican State Convention in Illinois (1858); the First Inaugural Address (1861), in which he appealed to the people of an already divided union for sectional harmony; the Gettysburg Address (1863), a speech delivered at ceremonies dedicating a part of the Gettysburg battlefield as a cemetery; the Letter to Mrs. Bixby (1864), expressing Lincoln's regrets over the wartime deaths of her five sons; the Second Inaugural Address (March 1865), urging a post-war nation to bind up its wounds and show charity for all; and his Last Public Address (April 11, 1865). New notes place the speeches and other documents in their respective historical contexts.
An invaluable reference for history students, this important volume will also fascinate admirers of Abraham Lincoln, Americana enthusiasts, Civil War buffs and any lover of the finely crafted phrase.
GREEK NEW TESTAMENT KOINE

GREEK NEW TESTAMENT KOINE

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GREEK PARADIGM HANDBOOK

GREEK PARADIGM HANDBOOK

By: Wilford, P T
$18.00
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This is a handy pocket reference of morphological forms for Classical Greek and places the parts of speech in charts/tables for quick reference. This is designed to serve as a source for drill and memorization for students learning Greek. Coil binding makes it possible to lay the book flat or fold it back for easier reading.

GROUNDWORK FOR METAPHYSICS OF MORALS TR. GREGOR

GROUNDWORK FOR METAPHYSICS OF MORALS TR. GREGOR

$25.00
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Published in 1785, Immanuel Kant's Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals ranks alongside Plato's Republic and Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics as one of the most profound and influential works in moral philosophy ever written. In Kant's own words, its aim is to identify and corroborate the supreme principle of morality, the categorical imperative. He argues that human beings are ends in themselves, never to be used by anyone merely as a means, and that universal and unconditional obligations must be understood as an expression of the human capacity for autonomy and self-governance. As such, they are laws of freedom. This volume contains Mary Gregor's acclaimed translation of the work, sympathetically revised by Jens Timmermann, and an accessible, updated introduction by Christine Korsgaard.
GUIDE OF THE PERPLEXED VOL 1

GUIDE OF THE PERPLEXED VOL 1

By: Maimonides, Moses
$38.00
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This monument of rabbinical exegesis written at the end of the twelfth century has exerted an immense and continuing influence upon Jewish thought. Its aim is to liberate people from the tormenting perplexities arising from their understanding of the Bible according only to its literal meaning. This edition contains extensive introductions by Shlomo Pines and Leo Strauss, a leading authority on Maimonides.