{"product_id":"a-short-history-of-decay-paperback","title":"A Short History of Decay - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eE. M. Cioran\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003eRichard Howard\u003c\/b\u003e (Translator), \u003cb\u003eEugene Thacker\u003c\/b\u003e (Foreword by)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eDissects Man's decadence in a remarkable series of moving and beautiful pieces. \"To miss reading this book would be a deprivation.\"--\u003ci\u003eLos Angeles Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eE. M. Cioran confronts the place of today's world in the context of human history--focusing on such major issues of the twentieth century as human progress, fanaticism, and science--in this nihilistic and witty collection of aphoristic essays concerning the nature of civilization in mid-twentieth-century Europe. Table of Contents: \u003cbr\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eForeword\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDirections for Decomposition\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe Second-Hand Thinker\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFaces of Decadence\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSanctity and the Grimaces of the Absolute\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe D cor of Knowledge\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAbdications\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTouching upon Man's need to worship, the feebleness of God, the downfall of the Ancient Greeks and the melancholy baseness of all existence, Cioran's pieces are pessimistic in the extreme, but also display a beautiful certainty that renders them delicate, vivid, and memorable. Illuminating and brutally honest, \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"When \u003ci\u003eA Short History of Decay\u003c\/i\u003e was published, it tended to polarize readers. Many dismissed it as overly morose and pessimistic, completely out of tune with the obligatory optimism of postwar European culture. Others praised it for precisely these reasons (in his review of the book, Maurice Nadeau proclaimed Cioran 'the one whose arrival has been prepared by all the philosophers of the void and of the absurd, harbinger of bad news par excellence'). The original impact of Cioran's book can still be felt in reading \u003ci\u003eA Short History of Decay\u003c\/i\u003e today.\"--Eugene Thacker, from his Foreword\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 200\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.7 x 8.1 x 5.4 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e November 13, 2012\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51760375431456,"sku":"9781611457360","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/1956240ab9409d9001743b5a34f6c7ff.webp?v=1780178428","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/a-short-history-of-decay-paperback","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}