What do you think?
Rate this book
اختفاء الكائن البشري - أرواح غافلة
يدرس الكتاب الذي يمكننا أن نصنفه ضمن مدرسة النقد الثقافي بوضوح، مسألة اختفاء الإنسان أو بالأحرى إخفاؤه عبر البحث في أفكار نخبة من مفكري القرن التاسع عشر مثل فرويد وماركس ونيتشه وبعض مفكري القرن العشرين مثل بودريار وديريدا، وعبر دراسة الأعمال الأدبية لإدغار ألن بو وأوسكار وايلد وييتس ودوستويفسكي وبلزاك وهـ. ج. ويلز، فضلاً عن تحليل الإنجازات العلمية لداروين وأديسون ولوميير وأغلب إنجازات علماء القرن التاسع عشر وإسهاماتهم في تغريب الإنسان وخلق أشباحٍ له أزاحته جانباً وتصدرت هي المشهد.
إنه يعرض الثمن المخيف الذي ندفعه عندما لا نناقش فرضيات وتوجهات حياة وموت الناس الآخرين من الأقليات والفقراء والمشردين والملونين والهامشيين ومن يعدون من الأعداء ومن يعدون من الغرباء.
إنه يعرض الثمن المخيف الذي ندفعه عندما لا نناقش فرضيات وتوجهات حياة وموت الناس الآخرين من الأقليات والفقراء والمشردين والملونين والهامشيين ومن يعدون من الأعداء ومن يعدون من الغرباء.
- GenresPhilosophy
421 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 1, 2009
8 people are currently reading
159 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
October 13, 2011
I really, really, really wanted to give this one a one star review, but there were enough cute stories about the 19th century I just couldn't do that. Give me a chuckle or two, and I'll never one star a review.
Still, I have no idea how this mess was published by anything but a vanity press. To call this load of twaddle incoherent is probably the fairest summation, but it actually goes far beyond that, almost to the point it seemed the author was going out of his way to say absolutely nothing in as many words as possible.
Take the subtitle: "The Disappearance of the Human Being." If you're throwing that out front, hadn't you better define the term "human being," somewhere along the line? Well, Sanders doesn't. Huh? I suppose we get something of a negative definition in the sense that human beings don't go to Coney Island, don't think very highly of Thoreau, don't eat hot dogs and may or may not undergo psychotherapy, depending upon where you are in the book. They also apparently admire Marx, Emerson and Freud, well sort of.
Alternatively, since human beings started "disappearing" at the beginning of the 19th century, presumably somewhere along the line in human history human beings predominated. Or, perhaps all or most of humanity prior to 1800 could be so classed? Sanders never says. In fact, I cannot recall one instance where Sanders actually says so-and-so was a "human being," and so-and-so was not. He certainly looks down his nose at the developer of amusement parks at Coney Island, but the reader simply does not know whether Sanders classifies this individual as a "disappeared" human being or not.
Finally, to perhaps go out on a bit of a logical limb, what does Sanders think these "disappeared" human beings should be classified as? Untermensch? Lumpenproletariat? Simply sub-human? Kulaks? Who knows? Since he never addresses the issues I've previously raised, he certainly never reached this point. Perhaps because he realized where it would lead him, at a minimum to re-education camps, and quite likely to gulags, concentration camps and all that fun stuff.
It is truly strange to read a book that not only fails to prove its thesis, it actually never really gets around it at all.
One last point: Sanders out and out lies when he discusses Harry Houdini. Far from being a proponent of "spiritualism," Houdini spearheaded the movement to debunk it. See here. Sanders ignores this. All of it. I can't even say he did so to not let a few inconvenient facts get in the way of an interesting theory, since as previously noted, the theory is not only not proven, it is also not even addressed.
Still, I have no idea how this mess was published by anything but a vanity press. To call this load of twaddle incoherent is probably the fairest summation, but it actually goes far beyond that, almost to the point it seemed the author was going out of his way to say absolutely nothing in as many words as possible.
Take the subtitle: "The Disappearance of the Human Being." If you're throwing that out front, hadn't you better define the term "human being," somewhere along the line? Well, Sanders doesn't. Huh? I suppose we get something of a negative definition in the sense that human beings don't go to Coney Island, don't think very highly of Thoreau, don't eat hot dogs and may or may not undergo psychotherapy, depending upon where you are in the book. They also apparently admire Marx, Emerson and Freud, well sort of.
Alternatively, since human beings started "disappearing" at the beginning of the 19th century, presumably somewhere along the line in human history human beings predominated. Or, perhaps all or most of humanity prior to 1800 could be so classed? Sanders never says. In fact, I cannot recall one instance where Sanders actually says so-and-so was a "human being," and so-and-so was not. He certainly looks down his nose at the developer of amusement parks at Coney Island, but the reader simply does not know whether Sanders classifies this individual as a "disappeared" human being or not.
Finally, to perhaps go out on a bit of a logical limb, what does Sanders think these "disappeared" human beings should be classified as? Untermensch? Lumpenproletariat? Simply sub-human? Kulaks? Who knows? Since he never addresses the issues I've previously raised, he certainly never reached this point. Perhaps because he realized where it would lead him, at a minimum to re-education camps, and quite likely to gulags, concentration camps and all that fun stuff.
It is truly strange to read a book that not only fails to prove its thesis, it actually never really gets around it at all.
One last point: Sanders out and out lies when he discusses Harry Houdini. Far from being a proponent of "spiritualism," Houdini spearheaded the movement to debunk it. See here. Sanders ignores this. All of it. I can't even say he did so to not let a few inconvenient facts get in the way of an interesting theory, since as previously noted, the theory is not only not proven, it is also not even addressed.
September 29, 2009
Every so often I interview an author on my Pathways radio show who presents a unique idea. Professor Barry Sanders is one such person. Observing the culture wars that are being fought in the press, I was surprised from reading his new book to realize to what extent our strong cultural attitudes -- and conflicts -- were formed during a spooky 19th century. I enjoy history when it is made as interesting as this!
Sanders give us the background for our tendency for escapism, wherein we would usually rather imbibe the shadow images of film (via movies and tv) more than we care to FEEL our bodies, our feelings, all of our senses. As a result, he says we have become largely disembodied creatures, losing what he refers to as a "haptic" sense of life (I love learning new words :-).
"Unsuspecting Souls: The Disappearance of the Human Being" is the history of how humanity lost its bearings -- how we had an identity-crisis, if you will -- in and throughout the 19th century. It is an extremely readable and fascinating history of the period, as well as an examination of how the trends that took hold then are still plaguing us now. We have been steadily losing our souls -- i.e. that which defines us as 'human' -- and the process has only been accelerating since 1800, especially since the dawn of moving pictures.
This is the story of the rise of science (and opposing it, fundamentalist strains of religion clinging to the church's "divine order" of things), the industrial revolution with all of its dehumanizing effects, plus a cornucopia of time and labor-saving inventions -- including the clock, rapid transportation, telephone, camera, motion pictures, amusement parks and automatic weapons. Worst of all, we had the experience of violent mass carnage of an extent the world had never seen, taking place right here on American soil, via the Civil War in which the equivalent of what would be 6 million Americans today slaughtered each other.
Meanwhile, the literature of the period reflected the de-souling of human beings, with almost every major author producing works that featured ghosts, the "undead," man-made monsters, etc. as well as popular strains of "spiritualism" arising to promote contact with spirits unseen via seances, psychics, etc. Adding to the hallucinating quality of the period was the synthesis in the west of opium, heroin, cocaine, nitrous oxide, ether -- all of which were extolled by the leading minds of the time as gateways for mystical experiences and the meaning of life -- promoted by the same authors and Sigmund Freud himself.
It is a fascinating period, rendered all the more intriguing by the author's meticulously researched details, presented in the form of true and almost unbelievable vignettes, that reads like an adventure story. What a catalyzing time was this!
This is not a book that can easily be boiled down. It is a profound work that deals with what are essentially spiritual issues. Who (or what) are we? What is the difference between being alive and "having a life" (and how is the concept of "having a life" a natural byproduct of becoming a "human resource," a cog in a soul-crushing machine)? When does human life begin? How can we conquer death by prolonging life (our ongoing preoccupation, as opposed to returning to a celebration of the natural 'human' aspects of life)? What does it mean to be alive? What does it mean to be human? Listen to my Pathways interview (http://www.divination.com/podcasts/bi...) to hear our discussion on these topics!
Sanders give us the background for our tendency for escapism, wherein we would usually rather imbibe the shadow images of film (via movies and tv) more than we care to FEEL our bodies, our feelings, all of our senses. As a result, he says we have become largely disembodied creatures, losing what he refers to as a "haptic" sense of life (I love learning new words :-).
"Unsuspecting Souls: The Disappearance of the Human Being" is the history of how humanity lost its bearings -- how we had an identity-crisis, if you will -- in and throughout the 19th century. It is an extremely readable and fascinating history of the period, as well as an examination of how the trends that took hold then are still plaguing us now. We have been steadily losing our souls -- i.e. that which defines us as 'human' -- and the process has only been accelerating since 1800, especially since the dawn of moving pictures.
This is the story of the rise of science (and opposing it, fundamentalist strains of religion clinging to the church's "divine order" of things), the industrial revolution with all of its dehumanizing effects, plus a cornucopia of time and labor-saving inventions -- including the clock, rapid transportation, telephone, camera, motion pictures, amusement parks and automatic weapons. Worst of all, we had the experience of violent mass carnage of an extent the world had never seen, taking place right here on American soil, via the Civil War in which the equivalent of what would be 6 million Americans today slaughtered each other.
Meanwhile, the literature of the period reflected the de-souling of human beings, with almost every major author producing works that featured ghosts, the "undead," man-made monsters, etc. as well as popular strains of "spiritualism" arising to promote contact with spirits unseen via seances, psychics, etc. Adding to the hallucinating quality of the period was the synthesis in the west of opium, heroin, cocaine, nitrous oxide, ether -- all of which were extolled by the leading minds of the time as gateways for mystical experiences and the meaning of life -- promoted by the same authors and Sigmund Freud himself.
It is a fascinating period, rendered all the more intriguing by the author's meticulously researched details, presented in the form of true and almost unbelievable vignettes, that reads like an adventure story. What a catalyzing time was this!
This is not a book that can easily be boiled down. It is a profound work that deals with what are essentially spiritual issues. Who (or what) are we? What is the difference between being alive and "having a life" (and how is the concept of "having a life" a natural byproduct of becoming a "human resource," a cog in a soul-crushing machine)? When does human life begin? How can we conquer death by prolonging life (our ongoing preoccupation, as opposed to returning to a celebration of the natural 'human' aspects of life)? What does it mean to be alive? What does it mean to be human? Listen to my Pathways interview (http://www.divination.com/podcasts/bi...) to hear our discussion on these topics!
February 6, 2023
يستند المؤلف بيري ساندرز إلى اعتقاد راسخ أن البشر لديهم القابلية على النقد الذاتي المستمر والاندفاع نحو التجدد علينا مرة أخرى أن نفهم أنفسنا بكوننا فاعلين في تشكيل كل من الأفكار السياسية والاجتماعية، ليس من أجل إنقاذ ذواتنا المنفصلة فحسب بل من أجل توسيع وتعميق الوحدة التي نتقاسمها مع الآخرين.
.
وعلى مدى صفحات الكتاب سوف نشهد شهادة ثم تحقيقاً عن هذا الاختفاء الساحق للإنسان في محاولة للإشارة إلى المجرم أو المجرمين الذين تلاعبوا بعقول وأجساد البشر.
.
يدرس هذا الكتاب مسألة اختفاء الإنسان أو بالأحرى إخفاءه عبر البحث في أفكار نخبة من مفكري القرن التاسع عشر مثل فرويد وماركس ونيتشه وبعض مفكري القرن العشرين مثل بودریار و ديريدا وعبر دراسة الأعمال الأدبية لإدغار ألن بو وأوسكار وايلد وييتس ودوستويفسكي وبلزاك وهـ .ج. ويلز فضلاً عن تحليل الإنجازات العلمية لداروين وأديسون ولوميير وأغلب إنجازات علماء القرن التاسع عشر وإسهاماتهم في تغريب الإنسان وخلق أشباح له أزاحته جانباً وتصدرت هي المشهد.
.
.
وعلى مدى صفحات الكتاب سوف نشهد شهادة ثم تحقيقاً عن هذا الاختفاء الساحق للإنسان في محاولة للإشارة إلى المجرم أو المجرمين الذين تلاعبوا بعقول وأجساد البشر.
.
يدرس هذا الكتاب مسألة اختفاء الإنسان أو بالأحرى إخفاءه عبر البحث في أفكار نخبة من مفكري القرن التاسع عشر مثل فرويد وماركس ونيتشه وبعض مفكري القرن العشرين مثل بودریار و ديريدا وعبر دراسة الأعمال الأدبية لإدغار ألن بو وأوسكار وايلد وييتس ودوستويفسكي وبلزاك وهـ .ج. ويلز فضلاً عن تحليل الإنجازات العلمية لداروين وأديسون ولوميير وأغلب إنجازات علماء القرن التاسع عشر وإسهاماتهم في تغريب الإنسان وخلق أشباح له أزاحته جانباً وتصدرت هي المشهد.
.
May 28, 2019
It is a challenge and a delight to read anything by Barry Sanders.
He knows a lot more than I know. Every paragraph is amplified by his broad knowledge, and by the analogies and contrasts that he is able to explain.
Unsuspecting Souls is a road map to so much that is to be found down the rabbit hole of human culture and history.
Sanders makes the case that our experience and conception of human life has been continuously battered since the arrival of the Industrial Revolution, the emergence of mass production culture, and the shattering development of technology that disrupts human interaction and represses our understanding of the good life.
It’s difficult to read Unsuspecting Souls because, like other Sanders books, it’s so full of facts and connections, and because his writing is undisciplined: it’s difficult to follow Sanders’ exposition because he doesn’t bother winnowing the tangential material.
I read Sanders in short doses, and I learn and I think about what he’s saying.
Read more of my book reviews and poems here:
www.richardsubber.com
He knows a lot more than I know. Every paragraph is amplified by his broad knowledge, and by the analogies and contrasts that he is able to explain.
Unsuspecting Souls is a road map to so much that is to be found down the rabbit hole of human culture and history.
Sanders makes the case that our experience and conception of human life has been continuously battered since the arrival of the Industrial Revolution, the emergence of mass production culture, and the shattering development of technology that disrupts human interaction and represses our understanding of the good life.
It’s difficult to read Unsuspecting Souls because, like other Sanders books, it’s so full of facts and connections, and because his writing is undisciplined: it’s difficult to follow Sanders’ exposition because he doesn’t bother winnowing the tangential material.
I read Sanders in short doses, and I learn and I think about what he’s saying.
Read more of my book reviews and poems here:
www.richardsubber.com
June 3, 2025
توثيق حقيقي لأفعال إنسانية كثيرة مُخجلة في سجل المخلوق الإنساني ذو العقل والقلب، ويؤكد بيري ساندرز أن الحياة الإنسانية المُتفسخة أصبحت في عِداد تحجرها اذ يتسائل بيري ساندرز, في كتابه اختفاء الكائن البشري : متى تبدأ حياة الإنسان ؟ .
حيث يقول : ذلك لأننا غير متأكدين تماماً في هذه الأيام, ماهو أو من هو الإنساني, وما أو من هو الحي؟ وبرأيي إن الكثيرين منا يصعب عليهم معرفة كيفية الشعور بأن يكون حياً !
بعدها يقول بيري ساندرز : ربما من السهل مصادفة الحياة لكن أن نعيش هذه الحياة هو الأمر الذي يبدو صعب المنال .
.
حيث يقول : ذلك لأننا غير متأكدين تماماً في هذه الأيام, ماهو أو من هو الإنساني, وما أو من هو الحي؟ وبرأيي إن الكثيرين منا يصعب عليهم معرفة كيفية الشعور بأن يكون حياً !
بعدها يقول بيري ساندرز : ربما من السهل مصادفة الحياة لكن أن نعيش هذه الحياة هو الأمر الذي يبدو صعب المنال .
.
September 7, 2022
!لم اتفق معه في الكثير من الآراء... لكن ربّما في بعض الأحيان نحتاج مثل هذا الكتاب، لنتجادل معه
August 8, 2011
It was full of interesting facts. But also his theories are amazing!
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews