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Schopenhauer & Friends
Notes on the father of pessimistic philosophy — and his surprising inheritors . . . .
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A Schopenhauer Cheat Sheet
A Schopenhauer Cheat Sheet
Handy conceptual shortcuts (+ a few comic touches)
Cynthia Giles
Dec 12, 2019
Michel Houellebecq on Desire and the Collapse of Western Civilization
Michel Houellebecq on Desire and the Collapse of Western Civilization
This famous French novelist is a student of Schopenhauer — and a controversial prophet of pessimism
Cynthia Giles
Apr 16, 2020
“What Nothing Means”
“What Nothing Means”
Some notes on despair, desire, and determination in Joan Didion’s Play It as It Lays
Cynthia Giles
Mar 11, 2020
Schopenhauer’s Cat
Schopenhauer’s Cat
Philosophy and physics — with a feline spin
Cynthia Giles
Nov 7, 2019
Visualize Philosophical Connections
Visualize Philosophical Connections
This intriguing graph displays all the reciprocal links in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Cynthia Giles
Jun 21, 2020
The Pessimist’s Guide to Being Happy
The Pessimist’s Guide to Being Happy
With colorful illustrations + advice from Dante, Schopenhauer, Thornton Wilder, and some other person
Cynthia Giles
Mar 22, 2020
A Schopenhauer Notebook: Page 1
A Schopenhauer Notebook: Page 1
Trolling Hegel, then and now (+ a party favor)
Cynthia Giles
Mar 11, 2020
NOTHING APPLIES: Joan Didion and Play It As It Lays
Goodbye to Joan Didion
Goodbye to Joan Didion
A slow fading ends . . .
Cynthia Giles
Dec 30, 2021
A Writer’s Space: Joan Didion
A Writer’s Space: Joan Didion
Some connected designs of life and fiction
Cynthia Giles
Nov 11, 2019
Joan Didion’s “White Space” Novel
Joan Didion’s “White Space” Novel
Play It as It Lays, and the freedoms of interpretation
Cynthia Giles
Mar 29, 2020
Play It as It Lays, at 50
Play It as It Lays, at 50
Two early reviews refract the strange light of Didion’s novel
Cynthia Giles
Jun 18, 2020
Play It as It Lays: The Movie
Play It as It Lays: The Movie
Didion co-wrote the screenplay for this faithful but almost-forgotten adaptation of her novel
Cynthia Giles
Nov 25, 2019
Joan Didion Talks about Writing
Joan Didion Talks about Writing
She’s unusually relaxed in this fascinating 1977 interview . . .
Cynthia Giles
Sep 3, 2020
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