Leisure: The Basis of Culture"One of the most important philosophy titles published in the twentieth century, Josef Pieper's Leisure, the Basis of Culture is more significant, even more crucial, today than it was when it first appeared more than fifty years ago. This special new edition now also includes his little work The Philosophical Act. Leisure is an attitude of the mind and a condition of the soul that fosters a capacity to perceive the reality of the world. Pieper shows that the Greeks and medieval Europeans, understood the great value and importance of leisure. He also points out that religion can be born only in leisure ndash; a leisure that allows time for the contemplation of the nature of God. Leisure has been, and always will be, the first foundation of any culture. Pieper maintains that our bourgeois world of total labor has vanquished leisure, and issues a startling warning: Unless we regain the art of silence and insight, the ability for non-activity, unless we substitute true leisure for our hectic amusements, we will destroy our culture ndash; and ourselves. "Pieper's message for us is plain. . . . The idolatry of the machine, the worship of mindless know-how, the infantile cult of youth and the common mind ndash; all this points to our peculiar leadership in the drift toward the slave society. . . . Pieper's profound insights are impressive and even formidable."- New York Times Book Review "Pieper has subjects involved in everyone's life; he has theses that are so counter to the prevailing trends as to be sensational; and he has a style that is memorably clear and direct." - Chicago Tribune" |
Contents
Foreword by James V Schall S J | 9 |
Authors Preface to the English Edition | 15 |
Intellectual work and intellectual worker Discursive | 25 |
The influence of the ideal of leisure Humanism an | 53 |
Leisure made inwardly possible through Divine Worship | 65 |
THE PHILOSOPHICAL | 75 |
gether Philosophizing as a step beyond our environment visàvis | 93 |
Sloth acedia and the incapacity to leisureLeisure as non | 105 |
bourgeois character of philosophical wonderThe danger of being | 109 |
Common terms and phrases
acedia act of philosophizing activity animal's answer Apollodorus Aquinas says Aristotle artes liberales aspect become called capacity celebration certainly Christian philosophy claim conception contemplation contrary course culture defined disp divine worship effort environment Ernst Jünger essence of things essential everyday everything existential existing things fact feast days festival freedom genuine grasshopper honorarium hope human Ibid incommensurable intellectual worker Josef Pieper Karl Kerényi knowledge labor LDataWorks.com leisure liberal arts limited live man's world mean by philosophizing Metaphysics mind nature notion philo philoso philosophical act philosophical question philosophize means phizing Pieper Plato poetry political possess possible power of establishing proletarian Protagoras Quadragesimo anno Quaest religion sake sense servile arts simply social Socrates sophy speaking sphere spiritual soul Summa Theologica Theaetetus theology thought tion tradition true truth Uexküll ultimate utilitarian vis-à-vis whole of reality wisdom wonder word workaday world world of total