Pascal's Pensées - Exploring Faith Reason and Existentialism: Reflections from Pascal's Pensées

Blaise Pascal

Summary

In "Pascal's Pens√©es," Blaise Pascal presents a profound exploration of faith, reason, and the human condition, blending philosophical reflection with poignant personal insights. Written in a fragmented style, the work comprises a series of notes and thoughts that Pascal intended for an unfolding defense of Christianity. This literary approach mirrors the complexity of human thought and the paradoxes intrinsic to belief, encapsulating the tension between rationality and existential anxiety characteristic of the 17th-century philosophical landscape, particularly amidst the rise of empiricism and skepticism following Descartes. Blaise Pascal was not only a philosopher but also a mathematician and physicist, whose diverse intellectual pursuits greatly informed his theological reflections. His early life was steeped in the rigorous study of mathematics, while later experiences, including a moment of spiritual conversion, shifted his focus toward exploring the interplay of faith and reason. These contrasting dimensions of his life fueled the contemplative richness found in "Pens√©es," highlighting his quest for genuine understanding amidst the tumult of human experience. Ultimately, "Pascal's Pens√©es" is a must-read for anyone grappling with questions of faith and existence. This timeless work resonates across disciplines'Äîphilosophy, theology, and literature'Äîoffering a penetrating examination of human nature and the divine. Readers will find themselves challenged and encouraged to reflect deeply on their own beliefs and the complexity of life.

Available since: 11/19/2019.

Print length: 352 pages.

Other books that might interest you

Democracy in America: Volumes 1&2

Alexis de Tocqueville

"Democracy in America" represents a world classic of the political thought which examines the democratic revolution that had taken place worldwide at the time. The main focus of this two volume book is an analysis of why republican representative democracy has succeeded in the United States. Tocqueville discuses on the future of democracy in the United States as well as possible threats and dangers to democracy.  
Alexis Charles Henri Clérel, Viscount de Tocqueville (1805-1859)was a French political scientist, historian and diplomat.  He was best known for his works "Democracy in America" and "The Old Regime and the Revolution". Tocqueville was active in French politics, first under the July Monarchy and then during the Second Republic which succeeded the February 1848 Revolution.

Show book

The Mysterious Romance of Murder...

David Lehman

Why do we keep returning to Agatha Christie's ingenious puzzles and Raymond Chandler's hard-boiled murder mysteries? What do spy thrillers teach us, and what accounts for the renewed popularity of morally ambiguous noirs? In The Mysterious Romance of Murder, the poet and critic David Lehman explores a wide variety of outstanding books and movies—some famous (The Maltese Falcon, Double Indemnity), some known mainly to aficionados—with style, wit, and passion. 
 
 
 
Lehman revisits the smoke-filled jazz clubs from the classic noir films of the 1940s, the iconic set pieces that defined Hitchcock's America, the interwar intrigue of Eric Ambler's best fictions, and the intensity of attraction between Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, Robert Mitchum and Jane Greer, Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman. He also considers the evocative elements of noir—cigarettes, cocktails, wisecracks, and jazz standards—and offers five original noir poems (including a pantoum inspired by the 1944 film Laura) and ironic astrological profiles of Barbara Stanwyck, Marlene Dietrich, and Graham Greene. Written by a connoisseur with an uncanny feel for the language and mood of mystery, espionage, and noir, The Mysterious Romance of Murder will delight fans of the genre and newcomers alike.

Show book

Emily Wilding Davison - The...

Lucy Fisher

Emily Wilding Davison was the most famous suffragette to die in the battle for women's rights, after colliding with the King's horse at the Epsom Derby in 1913, but who was she, and how did she end up dying for her cause?
Her notorious final act of protest has for decades obscured her extraordinary life. Now, one hundred years on from the first British women winning the vote, this new biography reveals the story of the respectable governess who pivoted towards vandalism and violence in pursuit of female enfranchisement.
Times journalist Lucy Fisher draws on the suffragette's own words, contemporary press reports and academic scholarship to paint a vivid picture of Davison's unusual tale and tragic finale.

Show book

Literature and the New Culture...

Deborah Appleman

Can educators continue to teach troubling but worthwhile texts? 
 
 
 
Our current "culture wars" have reshaped the politics of secondary literature instruction. Due to a variety of challenges from both the left and the right—to language or subject matter, to potentially triggering content, or to authors who have been canceled—school reading lists are rapidly shrinking. For many teachers, choosing which books to include in their curriculum has become an agonizing task with political, professional, and ethical dimensions. 
 
 
 
In Literature and the New Culture Wars, Deborah Appleman calls for a reacknowledgment of the intellectual and affective work that literature can do, and offers ways to continue to teach troubling texts without doing harm. Rather than banishing challenged texts from our classrooms, she writes, we should be confronting and teaching the controversies they invoke. Her book is a timely and eloquent argument for a reasoned approach to determining what literature still deserves to be read and taught and discussed.

Show book

Triple Your Reading Memory and...

Kam Knight

Do you wish you could read a 200+ page book in a day, remember 80% of what you learn, or keep your attention on an activity for hours at a time, no matter how difficult and boring? 
Most people assume these skills are for the mentally gifted or those who go through a rigorous academic training. 
The truth is, faster reading, stronger memory, and higher concentration are within your reach. In fact, you already have this ability, you’re just not using the correct approach.

Show book

There's Nothing Like This - The...

Kevin Evers

Singer-songwriter. Trailblazer. Mastermind. The Beatles of her generation. From her genre-busting rise in country music as a teenager to the economic juggernaut that is the Eras Tour, Taylor Swift has blazed a path that is uniquely hers. But how exactly has she managed to scale her success—multiple times—while dominating an industry that cycles through artists and stars like fashion trends? How has she managed to make and remake herself time and again while remaining true to her artistic vision? And how has she managed to master the constant disruption in the music business that has made it so hard for others to adapt and endure? 
 
 
 
In There's Nothing Like This, Kevin Evers, a senior editor at Harvard Business Review, answers these questions in riveting detail. With the same thoughtful analysis usually devoted to iconic founders, game-changing innovators, and pioneering brands, Evers chronicles the business and creative decisions that have defined each phase of Swift's career. 
 
 
 
Mixing business and art, analysis and narrative, and pulling from research in innovation, creativity, psychology, and strategy, There's Nothing Like This presents Swift as the modern and multidimensional superstar that she is—a songwriting savant and a strategic genius.

Show book