Items related to On the Heights of Despair

On the Heights of Despair - Softcover

Cioran, E. M.

  • 4.16 out of 5 stars
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9780226106717: On the Heights of Despair
Softcover
ISBN 10: 0226106713 ISBN 13: 9780226106717
Publisher: University of Chicago Press, 1996

Synopsis

A classic work of philosophical reflection on despair, decay, and the futility of existence that Publishers Weekly said “puts Cioran in the company of Nietzsche and Kierkegaard”

Born of a terrible insomnia—"a dizzying lucidity which would turn even paradise into hell"—this book presents the potent, self-lacerating insights of the youthful E. M. Cioran, a self-described "Nietzsche still complete with his Zarathustra, his poses, his mystical clown's tricks, a whole circus of the heights."

On the Heights of Despair shows Cioran's first grappling with themes he would return to in his later, mature works: despair and decay, absurdity and alienation, futility and the irrationality of existence. It also presents Cioran as a connoisseur of apocalypse, a theoretician of despair, for whom writing and philosophy both share the "lyrical virtues" that alone lead to a metaphysical revelation.

A book to keep at your bedside, as epigrammatic as it is insightful, On the Heights of Despair offers not consolation, but engaging, thought-provoking companionship.

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

About the Author

E. M. Cioran (1911-1995) was born and educated in Romania and lived in Paris from 1937 until his death. He is the author of numerous works, including On the Heights of Despair, also available from the University of Chicago Press.

From the Back Cover

Born of a terrible insomnia which E. M. Cioran called 'a dizzying lucidity which would turn even paradise into hell, ' this book presents the young philosopher, a self-described 'Nietzsche still complete with his Zarathustra, his poses, his mystical clown's tricks, a whole circus of the heights. An exorcism of despair, this book offers insights into the ironic anguish of Cioran's philosophic mind while providing fascinating information on his early development as a writer and thinker.

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.

Publisher
University of Chicago Press
Publication date
1996
Language
English
ISBN 10 
0226106713
ISBN 13 
9780226106717
Binding
Paperback
Edition number
1
Number of pages
150
Rating
  • 4.16 out of 5 stars
    9,863 ratings by Goodreads