*Starred Review* As a freshman in college, Samuelson fought with classmates over whether philosophy was essential for a meaningful life. Fortunately, he’s still fighting. Defying the widespread perception of philosophy as an academic specialty, Samuelson urges readers to join him in a humanizing intellectual adventure, one that begins with Socrates’ frank profession of ignorance. Awakened to a sense of wonder at the mysteriousness of human experience, readers interrogate alternate forms of happiness, reflect on the perilous freedom in suicide, ponder the origins of evil—even examine the reasons for boredom. Even the simple act of eating an apple yields surprising new meaning under the philosophic gaze. Though Samuelson regards radical doubt as an essential step toward truth, he pushes beyond skepticism, exploring the paradoxes of Christian faith with Pascal, tasting the ecstasy of Sufi mysticism with al-Ghazali. Predictably, Samuelson takes titans such as Aristotle, Epictetus, Descartes, and Kant as guides for critical passages of his philosophic journey. Despite Plato’s misgivings about their influence, Samuelson also draws inspiration from poets. But perhaps no one teaches more than Samuelson’s own diverse college students—a wine-loving bicyclist, a sleep-deprived housewife, a monk-faced factory worker. These seemingly ordinary people underscore the most important lesson of all: philosophy matters for everyone. --Bryce Christensen
Review
“A basic but thoughtful introduction to philosophy. Samuelson treats philosophy not merely as a topic or academic subject, but as an approach to life. As a teacher and as a person, Samuelson encourages his students—who, as community college students in a small, Midwestern city, come from all walks of life—and his readers to do the same. . . . Samuelson works through a wide spectrum of key issues and thinkers—both classical and contemporary—in a fair, efficient, sympathetic, and enjoyable manner. His writing style is both engaging and approachable. The “interludes” between the book’s four parts encourage readers to reflect on what appear to be commonplaces in human experience (laughter and tears, wine and bicycles, campfires and the sun); yet, these experiences can and should give rise to wonder, the beginning of philosophy. A notable feature of the book is the wide range of sources from which Samuelson draws, from philosophers and mystics to poetry and modern mythologies.” ― Review of Metaphysics
“Scott Samuelson is a philosopher with a knack for storytelling. As a result, The Deepest Human Life is a book that humanizes philosophy and that relates grand philosophical themes to the lives of ordinary people. Not only that, but Samuelson writes in a manner that ordinary people—meaning those without a philosophical background—will find inviting. Readers will come away with a better understanding of some of philosophy’s fundamental concepts and in many cases will also have taken important first steps toward conducting an examination of their own lives.” -- William B. Irvine, author of A Guide to the Good Life
“For a survey of philosophical thought, Samuelson’s quirky, abundantly informed new book, The Deepest Human Life, is a surprisingly snappy read. A cynical elevator pitch might call it “philosophy for dummies,” but it’s not for dummies any more than it’s for overly serious chin-massagers. The book would be useful as either an introduction or a brush-up, and enjoyably personable in either instance.”
― Chapter 16
“Samuelson has given us a personal perspective on doing philosophy. While a close reading of The Deepest Human Life will let you come away with a broad contextual understanding of the development of western thought, the book is really about inspiring the reader to think―and act, and live―more philosophically.”
― Epicurus in Exile
“The Deepest Human Life offers us the kinds of tools we have always needed to face Pascal’s implicit challenge to face ourselves, difficult though the task may be.”
― Rain Taxi Review of Books
“Many professors claim to learn from their students while inwardly denying the claim. But the enchanting Samuelson takes us along to class with him in these lively pages. Unlike other members of the philosophers’ guild, he seldom serves up an abstraction without an accompanying concrete example culled from in-class comments and student papers. . . . This compelling story of philosophy nudges the reader toward the conviction that a sense of awe, which Samuelson lionizes and invites, will transform more than our ways of thinking.”
― Christian Century
“As a freshman in college, Samuelson fought with classmates over whether philosophy was essential for a meaningful life. Fortunately, he’s still fighting. Defying the widespread perception of philosophy as an academic specialty, Samuelson urges readers to join him in a humanizing intellectual adventure, one that begins with Socrates’ frank profession of ignorance. . . . But perhaps no one teaches more than Samuelson’s own diverse college students―a wine-loving bicyclist, a sleep-deprived housewife, a monk-faced factory worker. These seemingly ordinary people underscore the most important lesson of all: philosophy matters for everyone.” -- Bryce Christensen ― Booklist
Review
“The Deepest Human Life is charming and upbeat, but it’s also very poignant in places. Samuelson weaves his personal story of teaching at a community college into the philosophical adventure and shows how philosophy is an approach to life―a practice of self-knowing and self-forgetting―rather than a professional career. The result is a unique introduction to philosophy, composed with a rare voice of humane literary sophistication.” -- Stephen T. Asma, author of Against Fairness
About the Author
Scott Samuelson lives in Iowa City, Iowa, where he is professor of philosophy at Kirkwood Community College. He has taught the humanities in universities, colleges, prisons, houses of worship, and bars. He has also worked as a movie reviewer, television host, and sous chef at a French restaurant on a gravel road. He is the author of The Deepest Human Life and Seven Ways of Looking at Pointless Suffering, both published by the University of Chicago Press.
