Death. The Big D. Giving up the ghost. Buying the farm. The concept has haunted, obsessed, and fascinated humans since the beginning of time, and Big Thinkers from Saint Paul to Schopenhauer, Descartes to Dylan Thomas, Plato to Peggy lee, have explored everything from angels to zombies and everything in between. And now our fearless authors are taking us on a full tour of the history of how we approach death, why we embrace life, and whether there really is a hereafter. There are no better guides than Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein.
From the bestselling authors of Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar comes a new philosophical quest, this time a journey to the edge of the pearly gates to discover just what the great philosophers, theologians, psychotherapists, and wise guys have to say about life, death, and the hereafter.
Editorial Reviews
"Did you know that Heidegger's notion of living in the shadow of death has its most profound articulation in a country and western song by Tim McGraw? Or what Law and Order has in common with theologian Paul Tillich's view of eternity? Such are the nuggets of wisdom found in this smart and lighthearted consideration of the philosophical dimensions of death. Cathcart and Klein (coauthors of Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar) take readers on a whirlwind tour of anthropological, philosophical and theological theories of why and how we avoid accepting our own mortality. The authors demonstrate how humor allows us to express our fears about death while defusing anxiety. Succinct accounts of Kierkegaard's notion of embracing angst, Schopenhauer's notion of undying will and Descartes on mind-body dualism are thus all peppered by comic asides (Leibnitz maintained that Mind and Matter don't actually get into each others knickers). This little book is an entertaining and surprisingly informative survey of the Big D and its centrality in human life." -Publisher's Weekly
About the Authors
Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein pursued the usual careers after majoring in philosophy at Harvard. Tom has worked with street gangs in Chicago, doctors at Blue Cross Blue Shield, and has dropped out of various divinity schools. Daniel has written several novels and nonfiction books as well as jokes for comedians like Flip Wilson and Lily Tomlin. Daniel Klein lives in Massachusetts, and Thomas Cathcart lives in New York City.
