Rome as a Guide to the Good Life: A Philosophical Grand Tour

Format: Hardback
Length: 272 pages
Publication date: 24 April 2023
Publisher: The University of Chicago Press

This is a guidebook to Rome for those interested in both the "la dolce vita" and what the ancient Romans called the "vita beata" — the good life. Philosopher Scott Samuelson offers a thoughtful tour of the Eternal City, rooting ideas from this philosophical tradition within the geography of the city itself. As he introduces the city's great works of art and its most famous sites — the Colosseum, the Forum, the Campo de Fiori — Samuelson also gets to the heart of the knotty ethical and emotional questions they pose. Practicing philosophy in place, Rome as a Guide to the Good Life tackles the profound questions that most tours of Rome only bracket.

What does all this history tell us about who we are?

In addition to being a thoughtful philosophical companion, Samuelson is also a memorable tour guide, taking us on plenty of detours and pausing to linger over an afternoon Negroni, sample four classic Roman pastas, or explore the city's best hidden gems. With Samuelson's help, we understand why Rome has inspired philosophers such as Lucretius and Seneca, poets and artists such as Horace and Caravaggio, filmmakers like Fellini, and adventurers like Rosa Bathurst. This eclectic guidebook to Roman philosophy is for intrepid wanderers and armchair travelers alike — anyone who wants not just a change of scenery, but a change of soul.

Weight: 440g
Dimension: 145 x 224 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780226826264