The Middle Way: Finding Happiness in a World of Extremes

by Lou Marinoff

Today, our global village is filled with strife, caused primarily by extremists of every kind, all unwilling to compromise. But there is a better way—a middle way—where we might discover common ground for peace, both personally and universally. Lou Marinoff, professor of philosophy and author of Plato, not Prozac , reveals the ABCs of finding that spiritually rich Aristotle, Buddha, and Confucius. Each of these wise men knew that extremism destroys happiness, health and harmony, and shared the supremely important notion that the main purpose of our existence is to lead a good life, here and now. In three sections, Marinoff examines the contemporary world and shows how the “Middle Way” provides solutions to our most pressing problems. Part One looks at civilizational dynamics that drive both cooperation and conflict across borders, and introduces each of the ABCs. The second segment focuses on some notorious extremes—including political polarization, and simmering religious, tribal, gender, cultural, and economic divides—and how the ABCs can reconcile them. And the third, final section enlightens us on how we all can apply the ABCs to the betterment of our own lives and humanity as a whole. A short list of recommended readings accompanies each chapter, along with illustrations, maps, and eye-opening charts.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, Self Help

640 pages, Hardcover

First published December 1, 2006

About the author

Lou Marinoff is Professor of Philosophy at The City College of New York, founding President of the American Philosophical Practitioners Association (APPA), and an internationally bestselling author.

Reviews

[Mike Angelillo · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first section (170 or so pages) of this book is a dicussion of the the ABCs of the middle way; Aristotle, Buddha and Confucius. The concept is that the Western philosphy of Aristotle (individual fulfillment as a necessary condition of societal harmony) and the Eatern of Confucius (societal harmony as a necessary condition of individual fulfillment) are brought together and harnessed by the Buddha's teachings of the middle way. The middle way is put forth by the author as the path through a world that is becoming increasing directed by extremists.

Outside of one small section where the author claims to see the image of Buddha in graphical representations of chaos theory, I found this first part to be interesting, well argued and of great value. I am very much an advocate of the middle way of thinking and am weary of extremists of both sides in our politcal system.

The next section deals with the examination of extremists in every walk of life (politics, science, race relations etc...)
This is where things start to turn. I was expecting a well reasoned discussion of how the middle way provides a better solution to the problems we face at home and abroad. But instead you get 400 pages of:

"To media leaders, from Pat Robertson and Rush Limbaugh to Al Franken and Michael Moore, the consuming masses are like herds of credulous sheep, who daily and unsuspectingly graze their poisoned pastures."

Now do I believe that the above mentioned people add more harm than good to the political discourse, yes. But this "extreme middle" (as the author puts it) language is also rather meaningless.

Here is another...

"When the light of common good is permitted to fail, the lurking spectors of common ill will stalk its lengthening shawdows, and make ready to haunt the approaching dark night of a nation's divided soul."

Oh please...these words belong in a Deaf Pedestrians song ("Oh We.......We the Sheeple!") and this goes on seemingly forever on every topic possible.

Much time is spent exposing extremist events that are so blatently evident that it becomes of waste of time. Wow!!! both Nazi German and Stalinist Russia were bad for humanity. The Catholic Church and Islamic fundamentalists have both been guilty of suppressing scientific inquiry?!?! huh...who'd a thunk it?

There are a few good items in this section but it is far outweighed by hyperbole.

So after these 400 pages how many are dedicated the the solution that the ABCs can bring?? TEN!!! TEN lousy pages! That's all.

If it wasn't for the first part of this book I'd give it -2 stars. That being said, I really did enjoy and got a lot out of the first section. Maybe somebody can build off that and write about a true middle way of political and social theory that is practically applicable to the issues we face today.

[Anthony Louis Garavito · Rating 5 out of 5]

El nuevo texto de Marinoff nos envuelve en el pensamiento atemporal de tres grandes filósofos de la antigüedad, Aristóteles, Buda y Confucio enseñando sus criterios, aportes y puntos de vista a todos los sectores de la vida humana.

El autor nos encamina a un “viaje relámpago” a la denominada “Aldea Global” en su dinámica de civilizaciones, vista desde el espacio orbital filosófico, Término acuñado por consecuencia de la Globalización, en la cual las fronteras u obstáculos entre los diversos pueblos del mundo están quedando tácitamente en desuso; demostrando la interdependencia de todos los seres humanos, así como su dignidad y conectividad común. Por lo tanto, nos explica y demuestra con argumentos rigurosos los extremos que están presentes en el mundo actual, entre ellos, los extremos políticos, profanos y sagrados, tribales, extremos de Pandora, cognitivos, educacionales, económicos, terroristas, entre otros.

En consecuencia, nos alerta y previene de dichos extremos; dando las sugerencias que tienen los filósofos ABC ante estas situaciones que generan sufrimiento innecesario, violencia y discordia en la humanidad, acuñando un término clave denominado: “El camino medio”. Dicho camino, arguye el autor, es el que necesita seguir la sociedad para lograr el bienestar, paz y libertad tanto individual como colectivamente, puesto los extremismos de cualquier índole han demostrado históricamente que solo hacen daño.

Puede que tras la lectura de este libro se adquiera una nueva óptica: con una conciencia más profunda de nuestra interconectividad humana, de la transitoriedad y fragilidad de todas nuestras empresas, de las pérdidas y el sufrimiento innecesarios causados por la adhesión a los extremismos y de la grandeza de la capacidad del espíritu humano para la comprensión, la compasión y la caridad, capacidades que todos los seres humanos compartimos.

En efecto, luego de que el autor nos orienta hacia un viaje de todas las facetas culturales de Oriente y Occidente; concluye su obra explicando cómo importar las enseñanzas de los Tres filósofos y como exportarlos a nuestro entorno, es decir, los problemas personales, cotidianos, porque como decía Gandhi “sé el cambio que quieres ver en el mundo”, la transformación de todo el mundo comienza en uno mismo. Tenemos la clave para la mejora del patrimonio humano, la lámpara que ilumina el camino medio, también somos dueños del genio que habita esta lámpara y que hace que todo sea posible, incluidas las enseñanzas de los filósofos ABC, este genio es la fuerza de voluntad.

[Wouter · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first 170 pages are extraordinary and kept me clogged into the reading chair without wanting to think about anything else. And then part 2 came along... Lou describes extremes in the world in all broad aspects of living and society, from economics to politics and religion. Some parts are educative and allows the user to learn something, but most parts are just proof of his miscontent with those extremes which tend to drag on for way too long. The last chapter defines a nice conclusion and I would recommend this book to anyone interested in a bit of philosophy for those first 170 pages but I'd also had to tell them to stop reading after that.

[Vicente Orjales Galdo · Rating 4 out of 5]

El libro está bien, independientemente de que se comulguen con todas las ideas que comparte el autor. El mayor problema que le encuentro es que el título poco o nada tiene que ver con el contenido. Tiene más de política e historia contemporánea que de filosofía. En cualquier caso recomiendo su lectura.

[Flavio Almeida · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic! A powerful 10,000 overview of the main challenges we face as a global village. Beyond a deep analysis of global dilemas and extremism, Marinoff offers the combined wisdom of The ABCs as a path of reconciliation and progress. Bravo!

[Miles Derek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Self-help for the academic-minded, Part I of Lou Marinoff's THE MIDDLE WAY provides a brief introduction to the life philosophies of Aristotle, Buddha, and Confucius. Part II is a lengthy exploration of the current cultural extremes operating in the globalized world, with explanations of how these ABCs might mitigate such imbalances. And Part III offers a practical, albeit somewhat brief outline of how to apply this "middle way" to one's own life in order to find personal happiness and fulfillment. While important in arguing the larger thesis that "[w]e are all nodes in a global network, and so each one of us can exert a palpable influence by applying the ABCs to reconcile extremes we encounter on a daily basis, starting on those within ourselves" (xiii), Part II is quite detailed and those readers looking more for the quick how-to of Marinoff's method might read Part I for the theory and then skip to Part III for the practice, returning later selectively to Part II as time and interest allow. However, that being said, Part II is far from superfluous--well worth its 400-plus pages--and as a whole the work succeeds in being of both sociological and philosophical value.

[Richard Hansen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Though I enjoyed Marinoff's focus on the Middle Way as a life-guiding philosophy, I began to become annoyed with his constant paranoia regarding the American university system (the American Gulag) and the "dangerous" proliferation of postmodernism, amongst other topics. It seems that he could have written two books: one on the Middle Way and another critiquing postmodern Western civilization. Regardless of this, I would recommend this book for its fine synthesis of the respective philosophies of three great Middle Way thinkers: Aristotle, Buddha and Confucius.

[Héctor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Es un libro dividido en 2 partes (una sobre ética y otra sobre política) y un pequeño resumen final.

Pros:
-La primera parte describe una interesante reflexión de cómo el "camino medio" de Buda puede reconciliar las aparentemente opuestas filosofías de Aristóteles y Confucio.

-El resumen del final es conveniente.

Cons:

-La parte de la política es demasiado larga y bastante imparcial, aunque tiene un toque interesante de dinamita intelectual (sobretodo respecto a la polarización de opiniones)

5 de 10

[Πέτρος Παπαγεωργίου · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started reading this years ago, but never finished it. I found I disagreed on so much. It is a book of philosophy for the rich and comfortable. I found the middle way is not the solution for everything. sometimes you just have to be extreme or absolute.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

about half way through.... loving it, and in a world of extremes, I would recommend it to anyone that wants to look at and contemplate the middle way

[Gary D. · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were three or four paragraphs that I liked.