With the World at Heart: Studies in the Secular Today

Love plays a crucial role in creating and sustaining the temporal worlds we inhabit. According to Thomas A. Carlson, it empowers love to create a world that is not limited by mortal existence's fragility and sorrow.

\n Format: Hardback
\n Length: 256 pages
\n Publication date: 03 April 2019
\n Publisher: The University of Chicago Press
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Love is a profound and complex emotion that has played a central role in human history and culture. It has been studied and debated by philosophers, theologians, and scientists for centuries, and its role in shaping our understanding of the world remains an ongoing topic of exploration. In this essay, we will explore the role of love in opening and sustaining the temporal worlds we inhabit.

One of the leading scholars in philosophy and the history of religious thought, Thomas A. Carlson, has written extensively on the topic of love. In his book, Love and the End of the World: A Philosophical Exploration, Carlson traces the question of love through Christian theology, twentieth-century phenomenological and deconstructive philosophy, and nineteenth-century individualism.

Carlson begins by revising Augustine's insight that when we love a place, we dwell there in the heart. He argues that this idea is too limited and that love can extend beyond physical places to include abstract concepts, ideas, and relationships. Carlson also resists lines of thought that seek to transcend loss and its grief by loving all things within the realm of the eternal. He believes that mortal existence in its transience is a source of fragility and sorrow, but that love can create a world that is more robust and resilient.

Through masterful readings of Heidegger, Derrida, Marion, Nancy, Emerson, and Nietzsche, Carlson shows that the fragility and sorrow of mortal existence in its transience do not, in fact, contradict love, but instead empower love to create a world. He argues that love is not just a feeling or a desire, but a force that can shape the world in profound ways. Love can create a sense of belonging and connection that can transcend physical boundaries and cultural differences. It can inspire us to work towards a common goal and to create a world that is more just and equitable.

In conclusion, love is a powerful emotion that has the ability to shape our understanding of the world and to create a more robust and resilient world. Through careful exploration of the role of love in philosophy and the history of religious thought, we can gain a deeper understanding of the complexities of this emotion and its potential to create a better future for all.

\n Weight: 466g\n
Dimension: 161 x 236 x 17 (mm)\n
ISBN-13: 9780226617367\n \n