Spinoza
The Outcast Thinker
Failed to add items
Sorry, we are unable to add the item because your shopping cart is already at capacity.
Add to basket failed.
Please try again later
Add to Wish List failed.
Please try again later
Remove from Wish List failed.
Please try again later
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
1 credit a month to buy any audiobook in our entire collection.
Access to thousands of additional audiobooks and Originals from the Plus Catalogue.
Member-only deals & discounts.
Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
Spinoza
Narrated by:
Erin Bennett
Buy Now for $21.99
-
Narrated by:
-
Erin Bennett
-
By:
-
Devra Lehmann
About this listen
The second title in the Philosophy for Young People series.
- Winner of the National Jewish Book Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature
- A Kirkus Reviews Best Teen Books
"Clarity, accessibility and spot-on relevance to issues facing modern society make this a must read." --Kirkus Reviews, starred review
A brilliant schoolboy in 17th-century Amsterdam, Bento Spinoza⏤formally Baruch and later Benedict de Spinoza⏤quickly learns to keep his ideas to himself. When he is 23, those ideas prove so scandalous to his own Jewish community that he is cast out, cursed, and effectively erased from their communal life. The scandal shows no sign of waning as his ideas spread throughout Europe. At the center of the storm, he lives the simplest of lives, quietly devoted to his work as a lens grinder and to his steadfast search for truth, striving to embody a philosophy of tolerance and benevolence. Spinoza does not live to see his ideas change the world.
What caused such an uproar? Spinoza challenged age-old ideas about God, the Bible, and religion. His God was the sum total of nature, not a father-figure who created the world and takes care of humankind. His bible was a book like any other, not a holy text to be interpreted only by religious authorities. His religion was a commitment to basic moral behavior, not a collection of superstitions or rituals. For such ideas, Spinoza was reviled, but he emerged from his experience as one of history’s most articulate voices for freedom of thought, freedom of expression, and freedom of religion. Those of us who enjoy the fundamental rights of modern democracies are the beneficiaries of Spinoza’s quiet bravery.
Spinoza: The Outcast Thinker is the second book in the new Philosophy for Young People series, introducing readers to seminal philosophers from ancient times up through the present day.
Like any good introduction, it will leave you hungry for more detailed accounts of Spinoza’s life and thoughts (e.g. Nadler and Israel).
But this book is very well researched and should be your starting point.
Spinoza’s story demonstrates how even a meagre amount of societal freedom can give birth to world changing ideas by those who are brave enough to let their minds wander wherever reason guides.
Spinoza is an unsung hero of the liberal world that we still enjoy (just) and deserves to be more widely known and celebrated.
An elegant introduction to an unsung hero of freedom
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.