Deep Thought: 42 Fantastic Quotes That Define Philosphy

by Gary Cox

As Douglas Adams points out, if there is no final answer to the question "what is the meaning of life?" 42 is as good or bad an answer as any other. Indeed, 42 quotes might be even better! Gary Cox guides us through 42 of the most misunderstood, misquoted, provocative, and significant quotes in the history of philosophy, providing witty and compelling commentary along the way.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction

Audible Audio

First published November 19, 2015

About the author

Gary Cox is a British philosopher and biographer and the author of several books on Jean-Paul Sartre, existentialism, general philosophy, ethics and philosophy of sport.

Reviews

[zweefteef · Rating 4 out of 5]

I could see why the author’s opinion clearly coming back in his writing and criticism on certain philosophers and their quotes could be annoying to people who want an introduction to philosophy so that is definitely what i do not think this book is. it is definitely more of a personal work of cox but i am not in the slightest bothered by this because it is clear from the start that this is not objectively written and his criticism is quite comforting because it’s similar to my philosophical views and i found that i really enjoyed reading this because of the subjective writing style.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was looking for a simple introduction to philosophy and unfortunately this is not it. For each quote there is a short biography of the philosopher, and a longer explanation of and commentary on the quote itself. So far so good. However the author has a clear agenda (I'll let you find it out for yourself) and I have a rule that anyone who insults their opponents can't be wholly trusted. So I still need to find an introduction to philosophy that is just what it says on the tin. Penguin Introductions or something similar here we come.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

As the title indicates, in Deep Thought, Gary Cox has provided 42 quotes, arranged in alphabetical order, that introduce the reader to some significant ideas in Western philosophical thought. The quotes are diverse and thought-provoking although the diversity of philosophers is limited. For each quote, Cox provides some historical and cultural context and insightful commentary. Sometimes, the quotes are over-analysed, leading to a bit of repetition. That’s to be expected, given that the alphabetic list invites dipping into the contents rather than a reading from cover to cover. Cox is an engaging and witty writer who is adept at introducing and explaining sometimes complex ideas. The book is surprisingly accessible and engaging. If you are interested in philosophy or looking for a fascinating introduction to philosophy, this may be what you are looking for.

[Dkettmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent survey book of western philosophy. Only a bit of HHGTTG lip service at the start but that wasn't the main attraction anyways. Book is fun and grounded so never felt bait 'n switched.

I've listened to some huge Western Philosophy books/courses before and this one covers almost as much material in half the length of some of them. A great intro, I would certainly recommend to someone wanting to dip their toes in to the subject. If I had to nit pick it did strike me as a bit pronoun deficient in that every example given was he/him/his but I think this is more indicative of where modern writing has (rightfully) gone and not the book's burden.

I would love to read a book of 42 more quotes, the ones selected are wonderful and even the tangential headings were very apropos. I loved learning biographical facts about the giants that I had not picked up before. I also enjoyed the overview of how specific thinker's output has been parsed over the years by later generations.

[Steve Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read a lot of these kinds of philosophy books, often for teaching purposes. This is by far one of the best (the other is probably "The Philosophy Gym" by Stephen Law)--it's an excellent overview of the main issues and thinkers of Western philosophy. But most importantly, Cox can make the complex understandable . . . for example I FINALLY understand Anslem's ontological argument for the existence of God, which I couldn't for years. (It's a failed argument, but at least I now get what he's saying). 5/5

[Rebecca Haslam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Don't get me wrong, I love a good quote now and again and the ones featured in this book, together with a little background about those who created them, certainly have their place in history, but even for me, this book rather overwhelmed my quote ratio for the year. It's not exactly a fun read, but for anyone interested in philosophy or history in various forms regarding authors of some of the most famous/popular quotes this should go down rather well.

[Henry Davies · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not so cohesive to read, could be better if it was sectioned into themes rather than just alphabetical, don't want to have to keep flicking back to certain quotes early in the book to remember something highlighted later in the book. Also doesn't go into much of the philosophy, rather summarises the philosophers life a bit and then a brief summary of their philosophy. An alright book as a waypoint for finding other philosophy books though. But focuses nearly entirely on just western philosophy.

[Jason Mack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great method of presenting an overview of philosophical topics. Some of the quotes i was familiar with (if only vaguely) but this allowed him to "start where the learner is" and show me how they interrelated with other philosophical subjects.
Gary Cox has other writings which were similarly enlightening for me.

[Fabian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid introduction to philosophy. It's also easy enough to read casually and deep enough to leave you satisfied or hungry for more.

[Bob · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brilliant idea, well executed, but including Douglas Adams is deeply absurd & unfortunate. Mostly great selection, although it's a shame that the representative medieval & analytic selections are so direly focused on the god question when both traditions have so many more interesting questions. The Locke, Leibniz, & Voltaire quotations are poor. It's a shame to go w/ the Marx quotation he did instead of the many more interesting Marx ones. One of the Nietzsche quotations, about the death of god, was probably unavoidable, but there are so many more interesting Nietzsche quotations. Organizing the quotations alphabetically rather than chronologically makes it needlessly difficult to teach. Would love to see companion volumes, especially for eastern & late continental philosophies

[Louise Armstrong · Rating 5 out of 5]

I kept finding ideas that had been explored in SF novels, so I wasn't wasting my youth, I was learning philosophy!!!

He's a very clear and lucid writer. I'd look out for more of his books.

[Jeffrey Debris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I noticed this book shortly after finishing "Meditiations" by Marcus Aurelius as a recommendation from Goodreads. Since I like quotes a lot I decided to order this lovely little book with 42 Fantastic Quotes, as the cover says. I was not disappointed by the contents and writing style of Gary Cox.

This book is a great way to explore some of the greatest minds in philosophy and our world's history over the past millennia. It gives you a brief glimpse of many great philosophers, a short biography and an extensive explanation of the quotes. Cox is very capable of explaining them, shining light on them from several sides.

One of my main concerns when I started reading was that a lot of quotes seemed to be concerned with the existence of God and religion. Although Cox is most certainly not advocating that we should believe in God, it did seem to be a main theme of the book for a while. I'm glad this shifted to more existentialist issues and quotes at a later point.

If you're interested in philosophy, then consider this book as a nifty introduction to the wonderful world of philosophy. I've already added a bunch of other books from some of the great minds mentioned in this book, mainly the existentialist philosophers, but I'll also be checking Plato out. That dude had it figured out pretty much for all of us, and if you're capable of writing something that still stands after 2,500 years, then I believe I need to absorb that knowledge as well.