A lyrical work of philosophy that draws from the work of Spinoza, George Eliot, biographers, memoirists, and more to examine how wisdom and goodness are transmitted by individual human lives.

<Transcendence for Beginners< is an innovative book about philosophy and life writing, exploring how each practice might complement the other and so contribute to a greater understanding of human existence. In six short chapters, guided by a pantheon of exemplars drawn from European and Indian traditions as well as her own experience as a biographer and philosopher, Clare Carlisle examines how deep, genuine wisdom and goodness are transmitted by individual lives.

Animated by the spirit of enquiry and the desire to share its rewards, <Transcendence for Beginners< is a generous, enlivening work by one of the UK&rsquo;s most original thinkers.

Autorentext

Clare Carlisle is the author of eight books on philosophy and philosophers, including Philosopher of the Heart: The Restless Life of Soren Kierkegaard and The Marriage Question: George Eliot's Double Life, which won the 2024 PEN/Jacque-line Bograd Weld Award for Biography. Carlisle grew up in Manchester, England; studied philosophy at Trinity College, Cambridge; and now lives in East London. She is a professor of philosophy at King's College London.