Transcendence for Beginners

Carlisle, Clare

$18.95

Adding to cart… The item has been added
Author
Carlisle, Clare
Publish Date
04/07/2026
Book Type
Paperback
Publisher Name
NYRB
Subtitle
Life Writing and Philosophy
Number of Pages
144
ISBN-13
9798896230144
Subject
Western Philosophy
SKU
9798896230144

Description

A lyrical work of philosophy that draws from the work of Spinoza, George Eliot, biographers, memoirists, and more to examine how wisdom and goodness are transmitted by individual human lives.

Transcendence for Beginners is an innovative book about philosophy and life writing, exploring how each practice might complement the other and so contribute to a greater understanding of human existence. In six short chapters, guided by a pantheon of exemplars drawn from European and Indian traditions as well as her own experience as a biographer and philosopher, Clare Carlisle examines how deep, genuine wisdom and goodness are transmitted by individual lives.

Animated by the spirit of enquiry and the desire to share its rewards, Transcendence for Beginners is a generous, enlivening work by one of the UK’s most original thinkers.