I Used to Know That: Philosophy: Stuff You Forgot From School

I Used to Know That

by Lesley Levene

I Used to Know Philosophy covers centuries of philosophical thought. From the Socratic method to structuralism, you'll get an overview of all the major theories, presented in an easy-to-understand and engaging format.

"All are lunatics, but he who can analyze his delusions is called a philosopher."

-Ambrose Bierce, Epigrams

If a tree falls and no one hears it, does it make a sound? I Used to Know Philosophy examines this and many other related questions. Spanning over some two-and-a-half thousand years of philosophical thought, this book covers the main highlights, from Pythagoras and Heraclitus, to Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, to Descartes, Kierkegaard, Marx, and Sartre. From the Socratic method to structuralism, you'll get an overview of all the major theories, presented in an easy-to-understand and engaging format. This lively, fun-to-read compendium explains how philosophy began and uncovers the thinkers and movements that have used it in both brilliant and frightening ways. It

So if you ever paused to wonder about the origin of the phrase "platonic love" or why Nietzsche came to believe that "God is dead," this is the book for you. It will refresh and enlighten you, and it may even make you stop and reflect on the larger questions of life. Because after all, as Socrates said, "the unexamined life is not worth living."

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction

176 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2011

Reviews

[Lisa Verhelst · Rating 2 out of 5]

In the spirit of Natalie Portman: "Here is an overview of the all male, almost all white and western thinkers."

[Glenn Proven · Rating 3 out of 5]

Does everything it promises to do, but not much more.

Starts with a short bio and work of Thales and ends with Jacques Derrida. There is a glossary, some basic philosophic exercises and a bibliography. All in less than 180 pages. If I was cramming for a Jeopardy audition this is the book I’d use about Philosophy.

My problem with this book and one’s like it is, what do I do now? Do I pick a philosophy I agree with and follow up on that philosopher’s writings or do I read the arguments of a contradictory philosophy to see their approach and a view I’m missing?

So I’m stuck at the crossroads of being a reader or a student. Ah well, that’s my dilemma.

[Rudy Gutierrez · Rating 4 out of 5]

I took my time reading this book as Philosophy should be taken in as wisdom and not just volume. Good read and plenty of tidbits to spurt out in conversations to make you look like a well read scholar.

[Dante'S Inferno · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmmm, what to say? The title really is true, what one would learn in school if they took philosophy, the only philosophers that exist are men it seems. I liked the little quips added here and there. If you want a small overview of the known philosophers, then yea sure give it a read.

[Lindsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

a very brief and at times almost comically simple summaries of the lives of philosophers from the Greeks to more modern times. It would serve as a good review or a good introduction to philosophy

[Jo Dunn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Francis Scott Key (F. Scott) Fitzgerald was the namesake and second cousin three times removed of the author of the United States' National Anthem. Harper Lee (To Kill a Mockingbird) grew up next door to Truman Capote (In Cold Blood). Did you know that? I didn't know that - not until I read I Used to Know That: Stuff You Forgot From School.

High school was, for me, filled with innumerable (dry and boring) little factoids that whizzed into one ear, bypassed my brain, and flew out the other! Lesley Levene's book has pumped new life, wit and humor into the stuff I forgot -or, more likely, never knew - from school!

I REALLY enjoyed this book. It encouraged me to dig a little deeper - Google was my friend throughout! The book challenged me to revisit learning opportunities I'd managed to avoid for over fifty years - math/science! This book held my interest and it kept my brain engaged - I can't ask for more than that!

There are other I Used to Know That . . books in this Reader's Digest series: My Grammar and I Or Should That Be Me?, Spilling the Beans on the Cat's Pajamas, Easy as Pi; I hope to read them all!

[Tim · Rating 2 out of 5]

The entire book is more or less a series of brief biographies, mostly featuring book titles, put on a timeline. The occasional bits of content from a particular philosopher's works are almost comically oversimplified. The worst, however, is the prevalent inclusion of terrible "Reader's Digest" jokes and the overriding view that the target audience can never possibly comprehend any of what is being said, with pitiful subsequent attempts at humor based on this view.

[Fu Sheng Wilson Wong · Rating 3 out of 5]

A brief compilation of biographies of philosophers and their works, spanning from the early Greeks (such s Parmeneides) to the Renaissance (such as Nicollo Machiavelli) to those of modern times (such as Bertrand Russell and Karl Popper). A decent starting point if you'd like to know more about a particular philosopher.