BOOK OF DEAD OF PHILOSOPHERS, THE

The question of what constitutes a 'good death' has been the central preoccupati
on of philosophers since ancient times. Many of the 190 philosopher's deaths inc
luded here are bizarre, and tales of madness, murder, pathos (and bathos) abound
. Heracleitus suffocated in cow dung; Empedocles leapt into a volcano; Jeremy Be
ntham had himself stuffed and sits on public view in University College London -
"The Book of Dead Philosophers" will inspire both amusement and reflection.
Loo
king at what great thinkers have said about death turns out to be a life-affirmi
ng enquiry into the meaning and possibility of human happiness. In learning how
to die, we learn how to live.