EPICURUS and THE PLEASANT LIFE: A Philosophy of Nature Kindle Edition– November 30, 2022 - Revised and Expanded 2nd Edition

I LOVE philosophy...especially practical philosophy that deals with how to live a better life, developing values/ethics and so forth. I've read numerous books of this sort and have found most of them extremely valuable and life enhancing... I'm just over 10% into this book (and have skimmed through the upcoming sections of it) and I feel confident that this is NOT one of those books... I appreciate (and value) books tying in modern scientific knowledge and psychotherapy with ancient philosophy (the excellent "How To Think Like A Roman Emperor" did this VERY effectively by tying ancient stoic philosophy in with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy); however, the beauty of good philosophy is that it's useful *without* having to take a deep dive into science and psychotherapy...much of it is simply "uncommon common sense" that, when applied, is demonstrably effective. This book, though, takes the approach of first explaining at length the "biology of happiness," the functions of the conscious and unconscious mind and so forth. It feels as if the author believes he needs to prove the worthiness of the philosophy scientifically first before anyone will find any value in the teachings at their face value; this is a red flag if ever I saw one. It yammers on, page after page on these subjects while barely addressing directly the philosophy of Epicurus himself. I'm not saying that topics such as the functions of the conscious and unconscious mind (etc.) are not valid and useful topics, but that's NOT why I (and I would guess most people) read books of this sort. I have plodded through this book for over 2 weeks now and have barely gotten through a tenth of it because it is utterly not what the cover says it would be. Maybe the author eventually gets around to Epicurus' teachings but I'm not going to waste any more of my valuable reading time on this book hoping to get there. I'm still interested in the philosophy of Epicurus (as I believe it is grossly misrepresented and misunderstood in our modern age) but I will look to another book to hopefully achieve that.

I really enjoyed this informative book on Epicurus and his philosophy which not only gives detailed explanations of what's left of his writings (and much was destroyed) but grounds the philosophy by explaining how to live according to his guidance. It is a dry read despite its scope including practical application, and I recommend only for people interested in this topic. Like many people, my perception of Epicurus is mainly from the gourmet magazine Epicurious. Actually this perception is quite a ways from the truth. Epicurus's pursuit of pleasure was not hedonistic but rather pursuing the good (natural) practices and not regularly indulging in excesses or overly rich food. His teachings are amazingly timely today as he lived in tumultuous times. He warned that politics is best avoided as it does not bring happiness and advocated living a simple live away from crowds and cultivating friendship. (This may have been because his teachings were not well received and he had to run for his life literally at times!) In this technologically-connected but more face time socially isolated world, there's valuable guidance on developing friendships. Much of Epicurus's writings were destroyed as his philosophy based on nature did not include worship of god(s) which didn't sit well with the Christians. Fragments remain in letters he wrote to friends. I gave this 4 stars instead of 5 because I felt that some of the science used to support the philosophy was shaky. A sentence would be dropped and I saw no reasoning supporting it. However, this book is more than the sum of its parts so I find the shortcomings are easily outweighed by this book's value.

While I appreciate any modern take on Epicurus and his liberating philosophy I can not recommend this book. It may be due to it probably being poorly translated from Greek for it is all over the place, repetitive and surprisingly shallow in the wide topics it attempts to present. The writing style simply has no logical flow and is highly irritating to read. I highly recommend James Warren, Tim O’ Keefe, Norman DeWitt or Diego Fusaro.

Epicurus is a widely misunderstood philosopher often associated with hedonistic pursuits. Nothing could be further from the truth. 2300 years ago he laid out a plan for personal happiness through seeking natural, wholesome pleasures at every opportunity.Dimitriadis thoroughly examines Epicurus and many other ancient philosophers through the lens of modern psychology, neurology and biochemistry.I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in the human mind, and above all, a simple guide to happiness. Execution of Justice: Covert Ops Military Assassination Thriller

This book is jam packed from cover to cover with interesting information. I especially enjoyed the way the author went through the history up to present times while examining the relevancy for each chapter into today's society as compared to previous ones. I also enjoyed how he compared ideas from masters like Pythagoras, Socrates, Kafka, Frankl, Camus, Sartre — to name but a few with explanations and then explained how Epicurus' view differed. My favourite quote is from Simone de Beauvoir: "You are not born a woman but you become one." Suffice it to say I highlighted a lot of this book and tend to refer back to it again and again.

I wish to start off by saying, Wow! This is definitely the kind of book for a college lecture hall. Very thought provoking from cover to cover. I love how Haris Dimiriadis compares Epicurus' views with many great masters of the past. It's a wonderful philosophical journey that the author takes you on and opens your eyes to the beauty of the world around you.For someone that hasn't studied the subject, I found this book to be quite enjoyable and easy to follow.

I saw that there are a lot of 5 star reviews for this book. Having read it now myself, i can't understand why people would write a glowing 5 star review without mentioning the problems with it. Here are three:Word OrderI assume the book was translated because there are errors in word order at points (not very frequently but definitely enough to interrupt comprehension and enjoyment of the reading). I am making the assumption its translated because its either that or a pompous affectation in the writing style and i'd rather give the author the benefit of the doubt.Citation / ReferencingAlso, the author has a habit of trying to back up his arguments by saying things like 'evidence shows' at various points without any citation / referencing, or even a mention of what the evidence is. To me this lazy writing. I want to know what the evidence is. I want to be able to check some of it myself, or maybe follow on to other reading and learn more so i can form my own ideas. But alas, this isn't possible and we are instead required to take it on the author's word that indeed the 'evidence shows'.Chapter IntroductionsThe book itself has some great material but i think it would be a far better read it if stuck to the topic at hand: Epicureanism. What we get at the start of most of the chapters is a whistle stop tour of related ideas from other famous minds, such as Freud, before the Epicurean insights. The problem is that these are too rushed and shallow to do justice to the ideas of these thinkers. They are also not critically compared to the contrasting Epicurean position, and therefore they slow down the reading of what i came here for (the Epicurean philosophy) without proving much value in my opinion.Honestly, i can't understand the 5 star reviews. I hate to break with the Amazon convention of either giving a book 5 stars and hailing it as amazing, or 1 star and trashing it. But the reality is this is a quite good book that could be pretty great if it had better editing in terms of writing, content, and citation / referencing in places.

In an age where narcissism is king and we are slaves to technology, the wise words of Epicurus resonate louder than ever. This excellent book examines the Greek philosopher's teachings in great detail and seeks to lead the reader down the path to a more fulfilling life.While many ancient Greeks held logic and knowledge up as the key to a happy life, Epicurus insisted happiness, feelings and a connection to nature were more important.Haris Dimitriadis does a wonderful job of arguing why Epicurus' world view should win the day and this book certainly gave me plenty to ponder.It lays bare the ludicrous state of our materialistic society where people find themselves buried under piles of debt to accumulate possessions that will only bring them fleeting happiness. Epicurus wisely argues that only basic needs have to be met to bring contentment and that our quest for more money and bigger houses only brings pain as it forces us to work longer hours and spend less time with our families and friends.While the focus is on Epicurus and his work, Dimitriadis also gives us a wider look at philosophy and even explains the biological processes behind our thoughts. He's clearly a smart cookie and you can tell this book has been thoroughly researched.However, it's sometimes to the book's detriment as he tries to cram too much in. At over 500 pages it's a daunting read and something that demands your full attention. This isn't a book you can dip in and out of but if you give it your full concentration you will be rewarded. Dimitriadis is an accomplished writer and it's an entertaining as well as informative read. But I can't help but think slimming it down to around 350 pages might have helped get the message across better. Still well worth reading

Epicurus and the Pleasant Life is the "self-help book for intellectuals". It helps you think through ideas from the past and apply them to modern life - showing that humans have been creatures of habit throughout the centuries. A case of looking back at ideas from the past can enable us to look forward.The book covers the various forms of self and what it means to who you are. It looks at topics such as what it means to alive, how our understanding of ourselves and the world around us creates free will - and how these equate to finding happiness.It's not just about “what” we think and feel, but also “why” - looking at the biology of messaging within our brains that effect our perceptions of self.I personally preferred the earlier chapters about pleasure and positivity over those about worries and fears, but I realise the book needed both in order to be balanced.I'm not sure I'm any closer to happiness, but I do feel as if my brain cells have been exercises in a positive way. Haris Dimitriadis should be incredibly proud of what he has achieved.

Very good and in depth description of basic Epicurean philosophy.What is very good is the successful attempt by the author to ralate the Epicurean thoughts to modern life, which to my advice, is a good way of understanding and putting into practice philosophy in general.One drawback in this book is that when drawing comparisons to other philosophycal thoughts it will only highlights the parts of such thoughts that are able to enhance the Epicurean thought currently scrutinised.But that is another discussion.....fully recommend!

Great in depth look at an ancient philosophy of life that still holds true in many ways for us in the modern world.