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The Art of Living (Routledge)
Deception
Most of us think we are about 15 per cent cleverer, nicer, more attractive and better drivers than others think we are. It seems deception begins at home. After all the most convincing liars convince themselves first. Sellers and buyers, parents and children, friends and lovers must conceal from each other the unutterable truth that they don't believe or want the same things. In this book, Ziyad Marar throws a revealing light on the many ways deception is woven into the texture of human our wiring leaves us easily suckered by persuasive illusions, while our contradictory desires (for sex and honesty, money and kindness, for cake and losing weight) force us to cook up self-serving stories. We manage flattering impressions with effortless skill, while pretending our sins and self-indulgences are beyond our control.Drawing on insights from philosophy, psychology and literature, Marar explores the implications for living well in the shadow of Kant's humbling thought that "out of the crooked timber of humanity, no straight thing was ever made".
- GenresPhilosophyNonfiction
160 pages, Paperback
First published August 21, 2008
51 people want to read
About the author
Ziyad Marar
8 books7 followersZiyad Marar is an author and President of Global Publishing at SAGE Publishing.
Marar was born in 1966 in Baghdad, Iraq, then lived in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Beirut, Lebanon before moving with his family to London in the late 1970s.
He attended Exeter University where he obtained a BSc in psychology. He completed an MA in the philosophy and psychology of language from Birkbeck, University of London.
Marar joined SAGE in 1989 and has worked across all aspects of publishing. He was appointed Editorial Director in 1997, Deputy Managing Director in 2006, and took on a more global role in 2010 as Global Publishing Director. In 2016, Marar was promoted to President, Global Publishing where he has overall responsibility for SAGE's publishing strategy .
In recent years at SAGE, Marar has also focused on supporting the social sciences more generally. He has spoken and written on this theme in various international contexts.
In early 2015 was appointed to the board of the Campaign for Social Science (CfSS) and in 2020 he was elected as a fellow of the Academy of Social Science, an event he reflected on in a widely read article for Social Science Space. In 2015, Marar was invited to sit on the board of trustees for the UK academic news site, The Conversation.
He also sits on the boards of the Big House Theatre Company, and The Ceasefire Centre for Civilian Rights.
He lives in London with his wife and three daughters.
Marar was born in 1966 in Baghdad, Iraq, then lived in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Beirut, Lebanon before moving with his family to London in the late 1970s.
He attended Exeter University where he obtained a BSc in psychology. He completed an MA in the philosophy and psychology of language from Birkbeck, University of London.
Marar joined SAGE in 1989 and has worked across all aspects of publishing. He was appointed Editorial Director in 1997, Deputy Managing Director in 2006, and took on a more global role in 2010 as Global Publishing Director. In 2016, Marar was promoted to President, Global Publishing where he has overall responsibility for SAGE's publishing strategy .
In recent years at SAGE, Marar has also focused on supporting the social sciences more generally. He has spoken and written on this theme in various international contexts.
In early 2015 was appointed to the board of the Campaign for Social Science (CfSS) and in 2020 he was elected as a fellow of the Academy of Social Science, an event he reflected on in a widely read article for Social Science Space. In 2015, Marar was invited to sit on the board of trustees for the UK academic news site, The Conversation.
He also sits on the boards of the Big House Theatre Company, and The Ceasefire Centre for Civilian Rights.
He lives in London with his wife and three daughters.
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