How propaganda works

How propaganda undermines democracy and why we need to pay attentionOur democracy today is fraught with political campaigns, lobbyists, liberal media, and Fox News commentators, all using language to influence the way we think and reason about public issues. Even so, many of us believe that propa...

How to be a farmer

A delightful anthology of classical Greek and Roman writings celebrating country living—ranging from a philosophy of compost to hymns to the gods of agricultureWhether you farm or garden, live in the country or long to move there, or simply enjoy an occasional rural retreat, you will be delighted...

How to be a friend

A splendid new translation of one of the greatest books on friendship ever writtenIn a world where social media, online relationships, and relentless self-absorption threaten the very idea of deep and lasting friendships, the search for true friends is more important than ever. In this short book...

How to be free

A superb new edition of Epictetus’s famed handbook on Stoicism—translated by one of the world’s leading authorities on Stoic philosophyBorn a slave, the Roman Stoic philosopher Epictetus (c. 55–135 AD) taught that mental freedom is supreme, since it can liberate one anywhere, even in a prison. In...

How to be healthy

Timeless wisdom about how to be healthy in body and mind from one of the greatest physicians of the ancient worldThe second-century Greek physician Galen—the most famous doctor in antiquity after Hippocrates—is a central figure in Western medicine. A talented doctor, surgeon, writer, philosopher,...

How to be persuasive

A new translation of essential selections from Aristotle’s Rhetoric, which teaches how to recognize—and resist—persuasive techniques that can be used to mislead and manipulateToday, the word “rhetoric” is typically used to criticize language that is empty or misleading. But the study of rhetoric ...

How to care about animals

An entertaining and enlightening anthology of classical Greek and Roman writings on animals—and our vital relationships with themHow to Care about Animals is a fascinating menagerie of passages from classical literature about animals and the lives we share with them. Drawing on ancient writers fr...

How to eat

A delicious feast of ancient Greek and Roman writings on living well by eating well Today, we’re stuffed with dietary recommendations from every direction. Social media, advertising, food packaging, diet books, doctors—all have advice on what, how much, and when to eat. This would have been no su...

How to focus

How you can learn to focus like a monk without living like oneDistraction isn’t a new problem. We’re also not the first to complain about how hard it is to concentrate. Early Christian monks beat us to it. They had given up everything to focus on God, yet they still struggled to keep the demons o...

How to get over a breakup

A modern translation of the ancient Roman poet Ovid’s Remedies for Love—a witty and irreverent work about how to fall out of loveBreakups are the worst. On one scale devised by psychiatrists, only a spouse’s death was ranked as more stressful than a marital split. Is there any treatment for a bre...

How to innovate

What we can learn about fostering innovation and creative thinking from some of the most inventive people of all times—the ancient GreeksWhen it comes to innovation and creative thinking, we are still catching up with the ancient Greeks. Between 800 and 300 BCE, they changed the world with astoni...

How to keep an open mind

How ancient skepticism can help you attain tranquility by learning to suspend judgmentAlong with Stoicism and Epicureanism, Skepticism is one of the three major schools of ancient Greek philosophy that claim to offer a way of living as well as thinking. How to Keep an Open Mind provides an unmatc...

How to lead when men fail

A lively new translation of Plutarch’s The Excellence of Women, a remarkable collection of stories about brave and clever female leaders in ancient Greece, Rome, Persia, and North AfricaIn times of peace, the women of the ancient Mediterranean had few chances to exercise leadership. But when fail...

How to listen

A lively new translation of Plutarch’s charming and timeless essay on how to be a good listener—and why listening is essential to learning and living wellListening is a skill—even an art—and it’s essential to learning and to life. Indeed, as Plutarch writes in How to Listen, “listening well is th...

How to run a country

Timeless political wisdom from ancient history's greatest statesmanMarcus Cicero, Rome's greatest statesman and orator, was elected to the Roman Republic's highest office at a time when his beloved country was threatened by power-hungry politicians, dire economic troubles, foreign turmoil, and po...

How to speak freely

A vivid and timely new translation of Plato’s Apology, in which Socrates defends his pursuit of truth, no matter the consequencesFree speech is back at the center of political and cultural debate, amid intense arguments over censorship on campus, in government, and in everyday life. How to Speak ...

How to stop a conspiracy

An energetic new translation of an ancient Roman masterpiece about a failed coup led by a corrupt and charismatic politicianIn 63 BC, frustrated by his failure to be elected leader of the Roman Republic, the aristocrat Catiline tried to topple its elected government. Backed by corrupt elites and ...

How to talk about love

Explore the nature of love in this charming new translation of selections from Plato’s great dramatic work, the SymposiumWhat is love? In poetry, songs, fiction, movies, psychology, and philosophy, love has been described, admired, lamented, and dissected in endless ways. Is love based on physica...

How to tell a story

An inviting and highly readable new translation of Aristotle’s complete Poetics—the first and best introduction to the art of writing and understanding storiesAristotle’s Poetics is the most important book ever written for writers and readers of stories—whether novels, short fiction, plays, scree...

How to win an election

A primer on campaigning in ancient Rome that reads like a strategy memo from a modern political consultantHow to Win an Election is an ancient Roman guide for campaigning that is as up-to-date as tomorrow's headlines. In 64 BC when idealist Marcus Cicero, Rome's greatest orator, ran for consul (t...

Human rights as politics and idolatry

Michael Ignatieff draws on his extensive experience as a writer and commentator on world affairs to present a penetrating account of the successes, failures, and prospects of the human rights revolution. Since the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, this revo...

Ideas for the philosophy of the history of mankind

One of the most important works of the Enlightenment—in the first new, unabridged English translation in more than two centuriesPublished in four volumes between 1784 and 1791, Herder’s Ideas for the Philosophy of the History of Mankind is one of the most important works of the Enlightenment—a bo...

Identity in democracy

Written by one of America's leading political thinkers, this is a book about the good, the bad, and the ugly of identity politics.Amy Gutmann rises above the raging polemics that often characterize discussions of identity groups and offers a fair-minded assessment of the role they play in democra...

Immigration and freedom

A compelling account of the threat immigration control poses to the citizens of free societies Immigration is often seen as a danger to western liberal democracies because it threatens to undermine their fundamental values, most notably freedom and national self-determination. In this book, howev...

In the shadow of justice

A bold new history of postwar political philosophy and of how John Rawls transformed modern liberalismIn the Shadow of Justice tells the story of how liberal political philosophy was transformed in the second half of the twentieth century under the influence of John Rawls. In this first-ever hist...

Insecurity politics

The everyday realities of financial and work insecurity that drive right- and left-wing populismIn Insecurity Politics, Lorenza Antonucci examines the lived, everyday experiences that underpin political disaffection. Countering the reductive portrayals of populist voters as left-behind outsiders,...

Intelligent materialism

This volume collects the lucid and engaging works of Soviet philosopher Evald Ilyenkov on the topic of Hegel and dialectics

Irrationality

From sex and music to religion and politics, a history of irrationality and the ways in which it has always been with us—and always will beIn this sweeping account of irrationality from antiquity to the rise of Twitter mobs and the election of Donald Trump, Justin Smith argues that irrationality ...

Just giving

The troubling ethics and politics of philanthropyIs philanthropy, by its very nature, a threat to today’s democracy? Though we may laud wealthy individuals who give away their money for society’s benefit, Just Giving shows how such generosity not only isn’t the unassailable good we think it to be...

Just hierarchy

A trenchant defense of hierarchy in different spheres of our lives, from the personal to the politicalAll complex and large-scale societies are organized along certain hierarchies, but the concept of hierarchy has become almost taboo in the modern world. Just Hierarchy contends that this stigma i...

Just married

The case for marriage equality and monogamy in a democratic societyThe institution of marriage stands at a critical juncture. As gay marriage equality gains acceptance in law and public opinion, questions abound regarding marriage's future. Will same-sex marriage lead to more radical marriage ref...

Justice and the politics of difference

A landmark work of political theory on the central importance of group identity and cultural pluralism in political lifeJustice and the Politics of Difference challenges the prevailing reduction of social justice to distributive justice, critically analyzing basic concepts underlying most theorie...

Karl marx

A bracing, concise, and accessible overview of the entirety of Marx’s thought, by a major figure of twentieth-century Western Marxism.

Karl marx's theory of history

First published in 1978, this book rapidly established itself as a classic of modern Marxism. Cohen's masterful application of advanced philosophical techniques in an uncompromising defense of historical materialism commanded widespread admiration. In the ensuing twenty years, the book has served...

King leopold's ghostwriter

A dramatic intellectual biography of Victorian jurist Travers Twiss, who provided the legal justification for the creation of the brutal Congo Free StateEminent jurist, Oxford professor, advocate to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Travers Twiss (1809–1897) was a model establishment figure in Victor...

Lawyers and justice

Lenin rediscovered

Lars T. Lih revolutionizes the conventional interpretation of Lenin's classic, included here in an authoritative new translation.

Lenin, hegel, and western marxism

Still the only full-length study of the achievements and limitations of Lenin's extensive writings on Hegel, Hegel, Lenin, and Western Marxism has become a minor classic. In a full critical account, Anderson's book connects Lenin's 'dialectics' to his renowned writings on imperialism, anti-coloni...

Let's be reasonable

A conservative college professor's compelling defense of liberal educationNot so long ago, conservative intellectuals such as William F. Buckley Jr. believed universities were worth fighting for. Today, conservatives seem more inclined to burn them down. In Let's Be Reasonable, conservative polit...

Leviathan on a leash

New perspectives on the role of collective responsibility in modern politicsStates are commonly blamed for wars, called on to apologize, held liable for debts and reparations, bound by treaties, and punished with sanctions. But what does it mean to hold a state responsible as opposed to a governm...

Liberalism as a way of life

Why liberalism is all you need to lead a good, fun, worthy, and rewarding life—and how you can become a better and happier person by taking your liberal beliefs more seriouslyWhere do you get your values and sensibilities from? If you grew up in a Western democracy, the answer is probably liberal...

Liberalism in dark times

A timely defense of liberalism that draws vital lessons from its greatest midcentury proponentsToday, liberalism faces threats from across the political spectrum. While right-wing populists and leftist purists righteously violate liberal norms, theorists of liberalism seem to have little to say. ...

Liberty and equality

An invaluable reflection on the essence of liberal democracy—and an ideal introduction to the work of political philosopher Raymond AronLiberty and Equality is the first English translation of the last lecture delivered at the Collège de France by Raymond Aron, one of the most influential politic...

Losing ourselves

Why you don’t have a self—and why that’s a good thingIn Losing Ourselves, Jay Garfield, a leading expert on Buddhist philosophy, offers a brief and radically clear account of an idea that at first might seem frightening but that promises to liberate us and improve our lives, our relationships, an...

Lost in thought

An invitation to readers from every walk of life to rediscover the impractical splendors of a life of learningIn an overloaded, superficial, technological world, in which almost everything and everybody is judged by its usefulness, where can we turn for escape, lasting pleasure, contemplation, or...

Man-devil

A lively and provocative account of Bernard Mandeville and the work that scandalized and appalled his contemporaries—and made him one of the most influential thinkers of the eighteenth centuryIn 1714, doctor, philosopher and writer Bernard Mandeville published The Fable of the Bees, a humorous ta...

Mandeville’s fable

Why we should take Bernard Mandeville seriously as a philosopherBernard Mandeville’s The Fable of the Bees outraged its eighteenth-century audience by proclaiming that private vices lead to public prosperity. Today the work is best known as an early iteration of laissez-faire capitalism. In this ...