Great Books of the Western World

Product Information

One of the strengths of Adler's collection lies in its ability to bridge disciplines and facilitate interdisciplinary dialogue. By including works from diverse fields, the canon encourages readers to explore the interconnectedness of ideas, fostering a holistic understanding of Western thought. The interpretive essays accompanying each work provide valuable guidance, context, and insights, making complex texts more accessible to readers.

The series is now in its second edition and contains 60 volumes. ( Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Books_of_the_Western_World)

Vol. 55 - William James, Henri Bergson, John Dewey, Alfred North Whitehead, Bertrand Russell, Martin Heidegger, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Karl Barth The collection is organized chronologically and thematically, covering a wide range of topics, from ancient Greek philosophy to modern scientific treatises. Adler's criteria for inclusion in the canon were based on the enduring relevance and impact of the works, their ability to contribute to intellectual discourse, and their representation of significant ideas and themes in Western civilization.

Syntopicon II: Man, Mathematics, Matter, Mechanics, Medicine, Memory and Imagination, Metaphysics, Mind, Monarchy, Nature, Necessity and Contingency, Oligarchy, One and Many, Opinion, Opposition, Philosophy, Physics, Pleasure and Pain, Poetry, Principle, Progress, Prophecy, Prudence, Punishment, Quality, Quantity, Reasoning, Relation, Religion, Revolution, Rhetoric, Same and Other, Science, Sense, Sign and Symbol, Sin, Slavery, Soul, Space, State, Temperance, Theology, Time, Truth, Tyranny, Universal and Particular, Virtue and Vice, War and Peace, Wealth, Will, Wisdom, and World

Key Features

Listed first are are the materials added from before the 20th century, with their 1990 volume numbers (according to the Wikipedia article):

Because the great bulk of mankind have never had the chance to get a liberal education, it cannot be "proved" that they can get it. Neither can it be "proved" that they cannot. The statement of the ideal, however, is of value in indicating the direction that education should take. [18] Rationale [ edit ]Others thought that while the selected authors were worthy, too much emphasis was placed on the complete works of a single author rather than a wider selection of authors and representative works (for instance, all of Shakespeare's plays are included). The second edition of the set already contained 130 authors and 517 individual works. The editors point out that the guides to additional reading for each topic in the Syntopicon refer the interested reader to many more authors. [17] Difficulty [ edit ] The original editors had three criteria for including a book in the series drawn from Western Civilization: the book must be relevant to contemporary matters, and not only important in its historical context; it must be rewarding to re-read repeatedly with respect to liberal education; and it must be a part of "the great conversation about the great ideas", relevant to at least 25 of the 102 "Great Ideas" as identified by the editor of the series's comprehensive index, the Syntopicon, to which they belonged. The books were chosen not on the basis of ethnic and cultural inclusiveness (historical influence being seen as sufficient for inclusion), nor on whether the editors agreed with the authors' views. [1] For instance, I travel for entirely peaceful purposes and try to be respectful of local customs. In contrast, even though I also try to be respectful of the times and views of the authors I read, there is much greater room for combat with the authors than with the people I meet on my travels. One can wrestle with great authors in a way that one (hopefully) does not do with people of other cultures. When you or your children begin reading The Great Books, you can better join The Great Conversation and discuss the important ideas and topics to humankind. The editors responded that the set contains wide-ranging debates representing many viewpoints on significant issues, not a monolithic school of thought. Mortimer Adler argued in the introduction to the second edition:

Wikipedia has the full list, with links to articles about many of The Great Books and their authors. And a complete comparison of the two sets can be found here. Macdonald, Dwight. "The Book-of-the-Millennium Club". 29 November 1952 with later appendix. The New Yorker . Retrieved 2007-05-29. I also wonder how many of the over 100,000 customers who have by now caved in under the pressure of Mr. Harden and his banner-bearing colleagues are doing much browsing in these upland pastures? Unlike many of my contemporaries, I never write books for my fellow professors to read. I have no interest in the academic audience at all. I'm interested in Joe Doakes. A general audience can read any book I write—and they do. The Book of Prognostics; Of the Epidemics; The Law; On the Sacred Disease (Vol. 10, pp. xiii-26, 44-63, 144, 154-160) Generation of Animals [Book I, Ch. 1, 17-18, 20-23] (Vol. 9, pp. 161-171, 255-256, 261-266, 268-271)APOLLONIUS: On Conic Sections [Book I, Prop. 1-15; Book III, Prop. 42-55] (Vol. 11, pp. 603-624, 780-797) I would go even further than that. The prefix “Great” can actually be unhelpful. It can lead to a kind of snobbism that keeps us from an honest interaction with the work in question. Numerous published works of American educator and philosopher Mortimer Jerome Adler include How to Read a Book (1940) and The Conditions of Philosophy (1965). Mortimer J. Adler (1990). The Great Conversation (2nded.). Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. pp. 33–34 for discussion of new translations, pp. 74–98 for reading plans and guides. ISBN 0-85229-531-6. In 1990, the publishers of the 1952 edition of The Great Books of the Western World produced an revised version. This included some updated translations, substantial additions (mostly from the 20th century), and the deletion of some older works, including: