Feline Philosophy: Cats and the Meaning of Life

Feline Philosophy: Cats and the Meaning of Life

In Feline Philosophy, the philosopher John Gray discovers in cats a way of living that is unburdened by anxiety and self-consciousness, showing how they embody answers to the big questions of love and attachment, mortality, morality, and the Self: Montaigne's house cat, whose un-examined life may have been the one worth living; Meo, the Vietnam War survivor with an unshakable capacity for fearless joy; and Colette's Saha, the feline heroine of her subversive short story The Cat, a parable about the pitfalls of human jealousy.

Exploring the nature of cats, and what we can learn from it, Gray offers a profound, thought-provoking meditation on the follies of human exceptionalism and our fundamentally vulnerable and lonely condition. He charts a path toward a life without illusions and delusions, revealing how we can endure both crisis and transformation, and adapt to a changed scene, as cats have always done.

Title : Feline Philosophy: Cats and the Meaning of Life
Edition Language : English
ISBN : 9780374154110
Format Type :

    Feline Philosophy: Cats and the Meaning of Life Reviews

  • Lou

    In Feline Philosophy, John Gray turns his attention to cats―and what they reveal about humans' torturous relationship to the world and to themselves. The history of philosophy has been a predictably...

  • James

    Cats are happy being themselves, while humans try to be happy by escaping themselves. 2.5 stars — Imagine an Intro to Philosophy course taught by an eccentric professor who really, REALLY lov...

  • Steven

    "Cats have no need of philosophy. Obeying their nature, they are content with the life it gives them. In humans, on the other hand, discontent with their nature seems to be natural. With predictably ...

  • Murtaza

    I keep reading John Gray's books not necessarily for new information but out of a sort of habitual homage to him for writing the life-changing Straw Dogs so many years ago. This book is a not-entirely...

  • Skallagrimsen

    Feline Philosophy is a short book by John Gray about the nature of cats, how it differs from human nature, and what humans can learn from it. Of his previous books, it most overlaps with The Silence o...

  • Much better if the author rather wrote a shorter (literary) essay. I don't get the idea of giving info: of certain philosophers, events, much of the time in detail. The good and important parts (parts...

  • Carolyn

    Two of my favourite things in life are books and cats, and I have also had a lifelong interest in philosophy, so when this little book crossed my path, I jumped at it.While perfect for those like me w...

  • Kent Winward

    Meow...

  • A

    too much philosophy, not enough cat...

  • William Southwell-Wright

    A more serious and thoughtful book than a glib glance at the title would suggest....