Description
Book SynopsisIn a masterful survey of the history of the idea of human perfection, prize-winning author and noted rhetorician Michael Hyde leads a fascinating excursion through Western philosophy, religion, science, and art. This book is nothing short of a triumphant examination of why we humans are challenged to live a life of significant insignificance.
Trade ReviewHyde (communication ethics, Wake Forest Univ.) argues that humans "embody a metaphysical desire for perfection," and he aims to show this by reviewing the pertinent thinking of a very large number of writers, from ancient history to the present, in philosophy, religion, science, and the arts--in a sense, the entire "Western canon." His review of the pertinent thinking of the included writers is interesting, engaging, and informative in a way that draws the reader in. To flesh out his inquiry, Hyde goes into detail in two "case studies" that illustrate the metaphysical desire for perfection: "The Rhetorical Situation of Terri Schiavo" and the recent motion picture As Good as It Gets. VERDICT This book should be of interest to a large readership from scholars to lay readers; highly recommended for philosophy and cultural studies collections in most libraries. -- Library Journal, 2010
Table of Contents
- Preface
- Chapter 1: Coming to Terms with Perfection
- Chapter 2: God on a Good Day
- Chapter 3: Interpreting the Call
- Chapter 4: The Otherness All Around Us
- Chapter 5: Reason
- Chapter 6: Beauty
- Chapter 7: The Lived Body
- Chapter 8: The Good Life, the Good Death
- Chapter 9: The Biotechnology Debate
- Chapter 10: On Being an Oxymoron
- Notes
- Index
