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Need educational/non-fiction book suggestions and also help deciding

  1. #1
    GGG victim of incest [my veinlike two-fold aepyornidae]
    I want to read some John Locke. I know they're pretty different texts but should I get Essay 'Concerning Human Understanding' or 'Two Treaties'? Leaning towards Two Treaties but they both sound good. I have only read small segments of his writing before.

    I need two or three other books to get free shipping.
  2. #2
    GGG victim of incest [my veinlike two-fold aepyornidae]
    why are all the gay books on sale
  3. #3
    aldra JIDF Controlled Opposition
    I dunno, I queued up 'The Management of Savagery' and 'Power and Primacy', fuck knows if I'll ever get through them
  4. #4
    GGG victim of incest [my veinlike two-fold aepyornidae]
    Reading a 900 page textbook now about the history of China from 1600-present.

    It's actually pretty interesting how long China has had essentially the same attitude for hundreds and hundreds of years.

    Mostly tho I've been using it to prop up my harmonica with a hanger so I can play two instruments at once.
  5. #5
    gadzooks Dark Matter [keratinize my mild-tasting blossoming]
    While John Locke's formulation of empiricism was an absolutely pivotal part of the great philosophical conversation, if I had to offer any personal recommendation regarding what to focus on if interested in the history of epistemological thought I would be more inclined to recommend some kind of book that is a tad broader in scope, but specific enough to focus on, say, a history of philosophical thought covering Locke, Descartes, and ultimately Kant.

    To kinda summarize it all into a nutshell, you have the historical tradition of rationalism started (essentially) with Plato and picked up by Descartes ~2 millenia later in France, and the historical tradition of empiricism started (essentially) with Aristotle and picked up by Locke ~2 millenia later in Britain.

    Kant then came along and synthesized the two into one single theory of human knowledge. Basically, instead of us being innate blank slates that learn from experience (Locke et al.) or "rational" entities entirely bestowed with all the faculties needed to understand everything using pure reason alone (Descartes et al.), we are born with fundamental conceptual categories that allow us to make sense of our experiences.

    I mean, if you wanna read Locke, go for it I guess, but as someone with a (hobbyist) scholarly interest in epistemology, and having read a fair bit into the topic (and also have a minor in philosophy as well), I would personally recommend going for secondary resources that give a broader scope and cover the historical developments leading up to Kant.
  6. #6
    gadzooks Dark Matter [keratinize my mild-tasting blossoming]
    But that's when it comes to Locke's epistemological thought (Essay Concerning Human Understanding).

    For his political thought, I don't really have an opinion about how important/worthwhile his original writings are.
  7. #7
    GGG victim of incest [my veinlike two-fold aepyornidae]
    Oh I ended up getting his second treatise. His work was not just pivotal in philosophy, but in the founding of America as a country. More his first treatise than second tho, as its pretty much just a criticisn of monarchy.

    I'm very much enjoying it tho. I'll posst more about it when I'm not on this shit phone
  8. #8
    Speedy Parker Black Hole
    Originally posted by GGG I want to read some John Locke. I know they're pretty different texts but should I get Essay 'Concerning Human Understanding' or 'Two Treaties'? Leaning towards Two Treaties but they both sound good. I have only read small segments of his writing before.

    I need two or three other books to get free shipping.

    I recommend anything by Sinterosa. His work is the purest from of fiction.
  9. #9
    gadzooks Dark Matter [keratinize my mild-tasting blossoming]
    Originally posted by GGG Oh I ended up getting his second treatise. His work was not just pivotal in philosophy, but in the founding of America as a country. More his first treatise than second tho, as its pretty much just a criticisn of monarchy.

    I'm very much enjoying it tho. I'll posst more about it when I'm not on this shit phone

    Locke happened to have a very huge influence on the world in two totally different arenas:
    1. Epistemology (outlined in his Essay Concerning Human Understanding).
    2. Politics (outlined in his Two Treatises of Government).

    Which of his works you're gonna wanna read will depend entirely on which contribution you want to learn more about.

    I don't know much about his politics other than, like you mentioned, he was one of the founding grandfathers of America.

    But because you mentioned Essay Concerning Human Understanding, I thought I'd give my thoughts on his epistemology.

    If you ever do decide you want to explore his contributions in that department as well, hit me up fam. Not a lot of people wanna talk epistemology outside the confines of esoteric academia.
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