Confessions of a Young Philosopher
Abigail L. Rosenthal
About the Book
A rare woman’s philosophical autobiography in the lineage of Augustine and Rousseau, Confessions of a Young Philosopher follows Abigail L. Rosenthal’s determined effort to live only the truths she could fully test in life. She examines the worldviews she once embraced—romanticism, French literary ideals of love, Marxist/Castroist political commitment, and a Christian-Gnostic spiritual community—and the often painful revelations that emerged from each.
Clear, vivid, and intellectually fearless, this memoir offers an account of a young philosopher’s struggle to bring her life and her thought into honest alignment.
“I wanted to be conscious of the purposes behind my choices, not let them guide me unawares. It was a point of honor not to profess views if I was not prepared to put them to the test of living them.”
From this opening challenge, Rosenthal unfolds a deeply reflective narrative of youthful striving: searching for meaning, resisting forms of self-betrayal, and confronting the consequences of misguided commitments. Philosophically rich yet lively in style, the book provides an unusually candid window into the making of a woman philosopher.
About the Author
Dr. Abigail L. Rosenthal is a distinguished philosopher, educator and author of Confessions of a Young Philosopher, (following the tradition of Augustine and Rousseau, but from a woman’s perspective, with illustrations) and of A Good Look At Evil, Pulitzer-nominated.
Abigail L. Rosenthal is Professor Emerita of Philosophy at Brooklyn College of The City University of New York. She is also the author of the weekly online column Dear Abbie: The Non-Advice Column. She lives in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, with her husband, philosopher Jerry L. Martin.
Reviews
“Since the Enlightenment, a number of people have tried to tell the truth about their own lives… I think what Rosenthal has done is a most splendid and courageous addition to the literature of trying to tell the truth about oneself.”
— David M. Armstrong
“This powerful book will gradually make its way into Bildungsroman-like permanence.” — Cynthia Ozick
“In this remarkable and deeply instructive book… Rosenthal writes with a vigor and liveliness that make the book a page-turner.”
— Bernard Harrison
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