On Human Nature

Reading this book makes it abundantly clear how Schopenhauer earned the nickname the great pessimist. ("We have been taking a look at the depravity of man , and it is a sight which may well fill us with horror. But now we must cast our sight on the misery of his existence; and then when we have done......more

The thread tying together all of the essays in this little volume is that the whole of humanity is contained in any one of its parts, so much so that if all men were killed but one, all of what constitutes humanity will survive so long as he does. This notion is the foundation on which his whole ana......more

Orijinal dilinde okusam daha fazla anlardım herhalde. Çeviri başka ne kadar kötü olabilirdi acaba? Yarım bırakmak istemediğim için tamamladım ama kitaba yazık oldu.......more

"Man is at bottom a savage, horrible beast. We know it, if only in the business of taming and restraining him which we call civilisation. Hence it is that we are terrified if now and then his nature breaks out. Wherever and whenever the locks and chains of law and order fall off and give place to an......more

While I don't necessarily agree with all of Schopenhauer's ideas (though with most of them, I do), his capacity to dissect human motives and character is astounding. I have to give it 5 stars for the "food-for-thought" factor alone.......more