The Therapy of Desire: Theory and Practice in Hellenistic Ethics

The Epicureans, Skeptics, and Stoics practiced philosophy not as a detached intellectual discipline but as a worldly art of grappling with issues of daily and urgent human significance. In this classic work, Martha Nussbaum maintains that these Hellenistic schools have been unjustly neglected in recent philosophic accounts of what the classical "tradition" has to offer. By examining texts of philosophers such as Epicurus, Lucretius, and Seneca, she recovers a valuable source for current moral and political thought and encourages us to reconsider philosophical argument as a technique through which to improve lives. Written for general readers and specialists, The Therapy of Desire addresses compelling issues ranging from the psychology of human passion through rhetoric to the role of philosophy in public and private life.

Author: Martha C. Nussbaum
Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Published: 05/22/2018
Series: Princeton Classics #33
Pages: 584
Weight: 1.5lbs
Size: 8.40h x 5.40w x 1.70d
ISBN: 9780691181028
Revised Edition