Books like

Books like Moralia

12 books with a reading profile close to Moralia by Plutarch. Deep, contemplative and open-ended; a demanding read.

1

The Hymns of the Ṛgveda

by Ralph Thomas Hotchkin Griffith, Jagdish Lal Shastri

Also deep and contemplative · philosophy, academic

This volume presents the complete English translation of the oldest Sanskrit text, a collection of over one thousand sacrificial hymns addressed to deities such as Indra, Agni, and Varuna.
2

Don Quixote

by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

Also deep and contemplative · philosophy, dense

Alonso Quijano, an elderly man from La Mancha, loses his grip on reality after consuming a constant diet of chivalric tales.
3

Inferno

by Dante Alighieri

Also deep and contemplative · philosophy, dense

Dante Alighieri narrates his descent through nine concentric circles of hell under the guidance of the Roman poet Virgil.
4

The Paradoxes of Art

by Alan Paskow

Also deep and contemplative · philosophy, academic

In "The Paradoxes of Art," Alan Paskow addresses the ontological status of fictional entities and why humans feel genuine emotions toward characters they know do not exist.
5

The Struggle for Recognition

by Axel Honneth

Also deep and contemplative · philosophy, academic

Axel Honneth constructs a social theory centered on the premise that human identity depends on successful interaction within three distinct spheres of recognition: love, rights, and solidarity.
6

The Divine Comedy of Dante Alighieri, Volume 2: Purgatorio

by Dante Alighieri

Also deep and contemplative · philosophy, dense

Following their departure from the pit of Hell, Dante and his guide Virgil ascend the island-mountain of Purgatory.
7

The Nicomachean Ethics

by Aristotle

Also deep and contemplative · philosophy, academic

Aristotle argues that the ultimate human goal is eudaimonia, a state of flourishing achieved through living in accordance with reason.
8

On Free Choice of the Will

by Augustine, Thomas Williams

Also deep and contemplative · philosophy, academic

In this dialogue, Augustine investigates the origin of evil and the mechanics of human volition.
9

The Oedipus Cycle: Oedipus Rex, Oedipus at Colonus, Antigone

by Sophocles

Also deep and contemplative · philosophy, dense

These three plays by Sophocles follow Thebes' royal family through its curse.
10

Essays of three decades

by Thomas Mann

Also deep and contemplative · philosophy, academic

This collection brings together sixteen of Mann’s non-fiction pieces written between 1911 and 1937, focusing on the intellectual heritage of Europe.
11

Discourse on Method and Meditations on First Philosophy

by René Descartes

Also deep and contemplative · philosophy, academic

René Descartes establishes a radical epistemological system by rejecting any belief that permits even a grain of doubt.
12

Moby-Dick

by Herman Melville

Also deep and contemplative · philosophy, dense

Ishmael, a schoolmaster seeking relief from a melancholy spirit, joins the crew of the Pequod, a whaling vessel departing from Nantucket.

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