{"product_id":"the-meaning-of-life-a-very-short-introduction-paperback","title":"The Meaning of Life: A Very Short Introduction - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eTerry Eagleton\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe phrase \"the meaning of life\" for many seems a quaint notion fit for satirical mauling by Monty Python or Douglas Adams. But in this spirited \u003cem\u003eVery Short Introduction\u003c\/em\u003e, famed critic Terry Eagleton takes a serious if often amusing look at the question and offers his own surprising answer. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eEagleton first examines how centuries of thinkers and writers--from Marx and Schopenhauer to Shakespeare, Sartre, and Beckett--have responded to the ultimate question of meaning. He suggests, however, that it is only in modern times that the question has become problematic. But instead of tackling it head-on, many of us cope with the feelings of meaninglessness in our lives by filling them with everything from football to sex, Kabbala, Scientology, \"New Age softheadedness,\" or fundamentalism. On the other hand, Eagleton notes, many educated people believe that life is an evolutionary accident that has no intrinsic meaning. If our lives have meaning, it is something with which we manage to invest them, not something with which they come ready made. Eagleton probes this view of meaning as a kind of private enterprise, and concludes that it fails to holds up. He argues instead that the meaning of life is not a solution to a problem, but a matter of living in a certain way. It is not metaphysical but ethical. It is not something separate from life, but what makes it worth living--that is, a certain quality, depth, abundance and intensity of life. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eHere then is a brilliant discussion of the problem of meaning by a leading thinker, who writes with a light and often irreverent touch, but with a very serious end in mind. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout the Series: \u003c\/strong\u003eCombining authority with wit, accessibility, and style, \u003cstrong\u003eVery Short Introductions\u003c\/strong\u003e offer an introduction to some of life's most interesting topics. Written by experts for the newcomer, they demonstrate the finest contemporary thinking about the central problems and issues in hundreds of key topics, from philosophy to Freud, quantum theory to Islam.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTerry Eagleton\u003c\/strong\u003e is Professor of Cultural Theory and John Rylands Fellow at the University of Manchester. His literary criticism includes \u003cem\u003eLiterary Theory: An Introduction, Heathcliff and the Great Hunger\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eAfter Theory\u003c\/em\u003e. He has also written a novel, \u003cem\u003eSaints and Scholars\u003c\/em\u003e, several plays and a memoir, \u003cem\u003eThe Gatekeeper\u003c\/em\u003e. He divides his time between Manchester, Dublin and Derry.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 128\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.3 x 6.87 x 4.44 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eIllustrated:\u003c\/strong\u003e Yes\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e June 30, 2008\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51758696825120,"sku":"9780199532179","price":12.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/fa04c4b95bfd20ea03a258934431f048.webp?v=1780133004","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/the-meaning-of-life-a-very-short-introduction-paperback","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}