ABOUT THIS BOOK
The esteemed French philosopher Pierre Hadot’s final work, now available in English.
With a foreword by Arnold I. Davidson and Daniele Lorenzini.
 
In his final book, renowned philosopher Pierre Hadot explores Goethe’s relationship with ancient spiritual exercises—transformative acts of intellect, imagination, or will. Goethe sought both an intense experience of the present moment as well as a kind of cosmic consciousness, both of which are rooted in ancient philosophical practices. These practices shaped Goethe’s audacious contrast to the traditional maxim memento mori (Don’t forget that you will die) with the aim of transforming our ordinary consciousness. Ultimately, Hadot reveals how Goethe cultivated a deep love for life that brings to the forefront a new maxim: Don’t forget to live.

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
Pierre Hadot (1922–2010) was professor of the history of Hellenistic and Roman thought at the Collège de France. He was the author of many books, including Plotinus, or The Simplicity of Vision. Michael Chase is a senior researcher at the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique–Centre Jean Pépin and adjunct professor of Greek and Roman studies at the University of Victoria. Arnold I. Davidson is Distinguished Professor of Humanities at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem as well as the Robert O. Anderson Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus at the University of Chicago. Daniele Lorenzini is associate professor of philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania.

REVIEWS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Translator’s Introduction
Preface
1. “The Present Is the Only Goddess I Adore”
   Faust and Helen
   The Present, the Trivial, and the Ideal
   Idyllic Arcadia
   Unconscious Health or Conquered Serenity?
   The Philosophical Experience of the Present
   The Tradition of Ancient Philosophy in Goethe
   The Present, the Instant, and Being-There in Goethe
2. The View from Above and the Cosmic Journey
   The Instant and the View from Above
   The View from Above in Antiquity: Peaks and Flight of the Imagination
   The Philosophical Meaning of the View from Above among Ancient Philosophers
   The Medieval and Modern Tradition
   The Various Forms of the View from Above in Goethe
   The View from Above after Goethe
   Aeronauts and Cosmonauts
3. The Wings of Hope: The Urworte
   Daimôn, Tukhê
   Daimôn, Tukhê, Eros, Anankê, and Elpis
   Human Destiny
   Autobiographical Aspects?
   The Caduceus
   Elpis, Hope
4. The Yes to Life and the World
   Great Is the Joy of Being-There (Freude des Daseins)
   Greater Still Is the Joy One Feels in Existence Itself (Freude am Dasein)
   The Yes to Becoming and the Terrifying
   Goethe and Nietzsche
Conclusion
Translator’s Note
Notes
Bibliography
Index