Mortimer Adler on Active Reading: 4 Questions You Need to Ask a Book (Plus an Age-Old Recipe for a Good Night’s Sleep)

“Get into bed in a comfortable position, make sure the light is inadequate enough to cause a slight eyestrain, choose a book that is either terribly difficult or terribly boring … and you will be asleep in a few minutes,” writes Mortimer Adler (December 28, 1902-June 28, 2001) in his famous manual How to Read … Read more

Erich Fromm on Work, Love, Religion, and Happiness

Renowned psychoanalyst and philosopher Erich Fromm (March 23, 1900–March 18, 1980) was one of the most significant public intellectuals of the twentieth century. Living and working at the height of the Cold War and imminent threat of a nuclear annihilation, he put an enormous effort into bridging the gap between high government officials and human … Read more

What Is Good for the World Will Be Good for Us: Wendell Berry on Making Our Planet a Better Place for Ourselves and Our Posterity

“It took modern humans tens of thousands of years to reach a population of seven hundred million and then we tapped into millions of years of stored energy known as fossil fuels. Our human population exploded. It increased by ten times in a mere two hundred years. Our consumption has also exploded: on average ten … Read more

Aristotle on Virtues as Habits

“I discovered a long time ago that writing of the small things of the day, the trivial matters of the heart, the inconsequential but near things of this living,” wrote E. B. White to his brother Stanley White while reflecting on the art of living through writing. “Was the only kind of creative work which … Read more