How to Be: Life Lessons from the Early Greeks
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- Create Date：2023-10-23 00:21:51
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Adam Nicolson
- ISBN：037461010X
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Summary
Nicolson crafts a geography of the ancient world and a brilliant exploration of our connections to the past。
In How to Be， Adam Nicolson takes us on a glorious， immersive journey。 Grounded in the belief that places give access to minds， however distant and strange， this book reintroduces us to our earliest thinkers through the lands they inhabited。 To know the mental occupations of Homer or Heraclitus， one must visit their cities， sail their seas， and find landscapes not overwhelmed by the millennia that have passed but retain the atmosphere of that ancient life。 Nicolson， the award-winning author of Why Homer Matters， uncovers ideas of personhood with Sappho and Alcaeus on Lesbos; plays with paradox in southern Italy with Zeno， the world's first absurdist; and visits the coastal city of Miletus， burbling with the ideas of Thales and Anaximenes。
Sparkling with maps， photographs， and artwork， How to Be provides a vital new way of understanding the origins of Western thought。 It's an expedition into early ideas and a geography of our deepest preconceptions。 Nicolson takes us to the dawn of investigative thought and a nexus of cross-cultural connection， and he makes the questions of the ancient world new again。 What are the principles of the physical world？ How can we be good in it？ And why do we continue to ask these questions？
"A thing of beauty as well as wit and wisdom。" --Paul Cartledge， author of Thebes: The Forgotten City
In How to Be， Adam Nicolson takes us on a glorious， immersive journey。 Grounded in the belief that places give access to minds， however distant and strange， this book reintroduces us to our earliest thinkers through the lands they inhabited。 To know the mental occupations of Homer or Heraclitus， one must visit their cities， sail their seas， and find landscapes not overwhelmed by the millennia that have passed but retain the atmosphere of that ancient life。 Nicolson， the award-winning author of Why Homer Matters， uncovers ideas of personhood with Sappho and Alcaeus on Lesbos; plays with paradox in southern Italy with Zeno， the world's first absurdist; and visits the coastal city of Miletus， burbling with the ideas of Thales and Anaximenes。
Sparkling with maps， photographs， and artwork， How to Be provides a vital new way of understanding the origins of Western thought。 It's an expedition into early ideas and a geography of our deepest preconceptions。 Nicolson takes us to the dawn of investigative thought and a nexus of cross-cultural connection， and he makes the questions of the ancient world new again。 What are the principles of the physical world？ How can we be good in it？ And why do we continue to ask these questions？
"A thing of beauty as well as wit and wisdom。" --Paul Cartledge， author of Thebes: The Forgotten City
Reviews
Andrea Wenger
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This book transports the reader to the birth of philosophy 2，500 years ago in the Mediterranean's bustling harbor cities。 Shaking off the mental domination of priests and god-kings， innovative minds dared to liberate themselves。 Thinkers like Homer， Sappho， and Pythagoras offered new insights on the physical world， morality， and the process of human inquiry。This book offers a sweeping view of the birth of Western philosophy。 For me， it was too much。 I never got a good sense of what the book was This book transports the reader to the birth of philosophy 2，500 years ago in the Mediterranean's bustling harbor cities。 Shaking off the mental domination of priests and god-kings， innovative minds dared to liberate themselves。 Thinkers like Homer， Sappho， and Pythagoras offered new insights on the physical world， morality， and the process of human inquiry。This book offers a sweeping view of the birth of Western philosophy。 For me， it was too much。 I never got a good sense of what the book was about。 It's a ton of information。 It's good information， and it's interesting。 It just didn't feel coherent to me。 It didn't seem to be telling a story。 Maybe it wasn't supposed to， but the human mind responds better to stories than to disarticulated facts。Also， I think the book title confused me。 The purpose of the book isn't to offer life lessons from the early Greeks。 It's a history of Western philosophy。 In other words， it's a history book， not a philosophy book。Thanks， NetGalley， for the ARC I received。 This is my honest and voluntary review。 。。。more
Ryan Munroe
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This a very interesting and comprehensive overview of intellectual history。 Personally， I had a hard time staying focused and comprehending what I was reading。 I constantly needed to look up the definition of words as I was reading， which made this reading experience a bit cumbersome。 That being said， I have no doubt that people who have a lot of background knowledge on Greek history will enjoy this book。 This simply wasn't a good starting point for me。 This a very interesting and comprehensive overview of intellectual history。 Personally， I had a hard time staying focused and comprehending what I was reading。 I constantly needed to look up the definition of words as I was reading， which made this reading experience a bit cumbersome。 That being said， I have no doubt that people who have a lot of background knowledge on Greek history will enjoy this book。 This simply wasn't a good starting point for me。 。。。more
Karen Hammond
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I did think that this might have been very dry and overly academic but how wrong I was 。 This is a fascinating look into the psyche and day to day life of the ancient greek life。 I could not put it down。
Roy Kenagy
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DMPL HOLD PLACED 2023_07_18 How to Be: Lessons from the Early Greeks by Adam Nicolson review – ancient wisdom for today’s world—Alex Preston / Guardian-Observer https://bit。ly/458HVVF DMPL HOLD PLACED 2023_07_18 How to Be: Lessons from the Early Greeks by Adam Nicolson review – ancient wisdom for today’s world—Alex Preston / Guardian-Observer https://bit。ly/458HVVF 。。。more
Annarella
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There's a lot of books about Ancient Greece but there's so few about Ancient Greek culture and this one was a treat。Well researched， well written and informative。 There's a lot of food for thought and there's the story of how the Western culture came into being。A highly recommended readMany thanks to the publisher for this ARC， all opinions are mine There's a lot of books about Ancient Greece but there's so few about Ancient Greek culture and this one was a treat。Well researched， well written and informative。 There's a lot of food for thought and there's the story of how the Western culture came into being。A highly recommended readMany thanks to the publisher for this ARC， all opinions are mine 。。。more
Thomas
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A great introduction to Greek thought and an interesting thesis as to how harbour cities may have influenced the evolution of these philosophies。 The chapter on Heraclitus was particularly interesting， but I also very much enjoyed the first chapter about The Odyssey。
8stitches 9lives
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How To Be tells the immersive and accessible story of Western thought， its origins and its evolution from early Greece; it is an exploration of the sea-and-city world in which， in the Western tradition， the great and everlasting questions of existence were first explored。 Prize-winning history writer Nicolson is a staunch believer in the need to return to the days of pre-Socratic Ancient Greece in order to understand the significant impact the country and culture had when it came to cultivating How To Be tells the immersive and accessible story of Western thought， its origins and its evolution from early Greece; it is an exploration of the sea-and-city world in which， in the Western tradition， the great and everlasting questions of existence were first explored。 Prize-winning history writer Nicolson is a staunch believer in the need to return to the days of pre-Socratic Ancient Greece in order to understand the significant impact the country and culture had when it came to cultivating so many unique minds。 I must say， as a philosophy enthusiast it's a joy to have the early-Greek thinkers set against the political and geographical context of the times illustrating what the cultural zeitgeist around them was like at the time to produce such schools of thought。 The idea for the book began after visiting Samos， a Greek island in the eastern Aegean， with his wife and having a copy of Kirk & Raven's The Presocratic Thinkers to hand。 It outlined the first emergence 2，500 years ago of the instinct that understanding was not simply to be learned from priests or elders， or experts， or by imagining a congeries of terrifying metaphysical monsters， but could be gathered by each of us applying the worrying and thinking mind to the conundrums of life。 How To Be both asks and offers answers to the question as to why an eruption of new thinking happened in this place and at that time， and what Nicolson has written is soaked in the double belief: firstly that places give access to minds， however distant and strange， that philosophy has a geography and that to be in the places these thinkers knew， visit their cities， sail their seas and find their landscapes not overwhelmed by the millennia that have passed is to know something about them that cannot be found otherwise; and second that， despite that locatedness， and despite their age， the frame of mind of these first thinkers remains astonishingly and surprisingly illuminating today。 These first Greek thinkers， teaching and writing between about 650 and 450 BC， found their lives on the boundary between the perception of a universal harmony and the daily encounter with the world as it is， in all its difficulty and multiplicity。 They did not provide a set of rationalist solutions nor religious doctrines， but again and again explored the borderland between those ways of seeing， holding their position in the shadowy ground between the poetic and the analytic， the physical and metaphysical。The narrative visits several important spots， including Miletus - the birthplace of the first theorists of the physical world; Ephesus - the home of Heraclitus， the first person to consider the interrelatedness of things; the twin cities of Notion and Colophon - the country of Xenophanes， the first philosopher of civility; and Lesbos - the island of Sappho and Alcaeus， the greatest early lyric poets。 These are philosophers known to have established freethinking and regarded as being instrumental in the rise of such thinking。 Throughout Nicolson illustrates the book with photographs， art and maps relevant to the text which bring the time and places vividly to life， and the detail， depth and accuracy speak to his extensive research on the period in question。 Written in a flowing and eminently readable style， we are taken on a beguiling and informative journey that looks back at the very foundations of Western philosophy in the context in which it was birthed; despite having read many similar tombs this is the only one that has approached the topic in this manner and from such an original angle。 Full of wit， warmth and wisdom， this is a worthwhile addition to the library of anyone looking to contextualise early thinking， those at the forefront of Ancient Greek philosophy and their respective ideas。 。。。more
Hanna Gil
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The question "how to be" is perhaps the most essential question humans have been trying to answer since our conscious existence on Earth began。 Adam Nicolson's book with the same title takes us into the world of ancient Greeks and shines a new light on the famous philosophers， thinkers， and ordinary citizens of those distant lands。This book was a pleasure to read， mainly because of the author's beautiful language， supported by extensive research， and excellent knowledge of the subjects。 It can b The question "how to be" is perhaps the most essential question humans have been trying to answer since our conscious existence on Earth began。 Adam Nicolson's book with the same title takes us into the world of ancient Greeks and shines a new light on the famous philosophers， thinkers， and ordinary citizens of those distant lands。This book was a pleasure to read， mainly because of the author's beautiful language， supported by extensive research， and excellent knowledge of the subjects。 It can be devoured on many levels。 The philosophical ideas are not scholarly exercises in disputing the meaning of life but are clearly explained in an easy-to-understand way， with numerous rather brilliant examples。 Many times I caught myself thinking， "Oh， I didn't know that！" and was delighted to learn， for instance， that Pythagoras was not the author of the well-known mathematical theorem; moreover， that he never wrote a word but was a highly inspirational figure， with many followers。 Another discovery was reading about Sybarites， whose love of pleasures transferred into our adjective "sybaritic，" and learning that "they banned noisy occupations such as blacksmithing， carpentry and chicken keeping from within the limits of the city。" Putting my noise-canceling headphones on as the construction work on a nearby building resumed on Monday， I couldn't resist thinking what a great idea it was。 I became immersed in learning details about Sappho， whose poetry I've been adoring， and who is described as a beautiful， sensitive woman with incomparable artistry of words （examples of her poems are included， with explanation）。 I enjoyed reading about Homer， Odysseus， and Zeno; as a matter of fact， I enjoyed reading about all the philosophers。 And the details！ Describing tiny coins， or beautiful vases， supported by illustrations， conveys the everyday day life of the ancient Greeks。 But it's not just the artifacts that teach us about their owners。 Adam Nicolson talks about social relations， at some point emphasizing slavery and explaining its impact。"How to Be" is one of those books I want to return to repeatedly because I feel that reading about the world of the ancient Greeks and discovering their ideas connect us with the history of Western culture and helps us understand our world。 We can learn from those people who lived many centuries ago and yet who seem to be not so "ancient" after all。 。。。more
HooksandBooksUK
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I picked up this book because I have been reading a lot of Greek mythological retellings and have recently visited museums and archeological sites in Cyprus which has fuelled my interest on this topic。 In this book Nicolson takes an in depth look at both the physical and metaphysical lives of the ancient cultures of the Mediterranean。 It examines how the development of harbour cities from 1200BC cultivated numerous great minds; it provides insight with facts and archeological discoveries whilst I picked up this book because I have been reading a lot of Greek mythological retellings and have recently visited museums and archeological sites in Cyprus which has fuelled my interest on this topic。 In this book Nicolson takes an in depth look at both the physical and metaphysical lives of the ancient cultures of the Mediterranean。 It examines how the development of harbour cities from 1200BC cultivated numerous great minds; it provides insight with facts and archeological discoveries whilst also exploring larger philosophical concerns from key thinkers of the era that are still relevant today。 Overall I enjoyed this book， the text flows well without being too dense。 I found it really helpful to contextualise the fiction I have been reading recently with this book。 It contains lots of accompanying images， maps and quotes that really enhance the reader’s understanding of the history， philosophy and geography discussed。 Having never formally studied classics and only read philosophy at A-level I found this book to be an accessible way to further my understanding。 Thank you to NetGalley， 4th Estate and William Collins and to Adam Nicolson for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
S R Streeter
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Adam Nicolson has written a fascinating book that explores the meaning of To Be Human within the context of Ancient Greece and an emerging world of philosophy that is questioning life in relation to ancient gods and curious creatures and to where man is independently abandoning the dictated ideology and beginning to self reflect on his purpose。Each chapter is explored through a key question: Does love rule the universe？ How can I be true to myself？。。。 culminating in The invention of Understandin Adam Nicolson has written a fascinating book that explores the meaning of To Be Human within the context of Ancient Greece and an emerging world of philosophy that is questioning life in relation to ancient gods and curious creatures and to where man is independently abandoning the dictated ideology and beginning to self reflect on his purpose。Each chapter is explored through a key question: Does love rule the universe？ How can I be true to myself？。。。 culminating in The invention of Understanding and raises broader questions that can also help us to consider what we can learn and recognise in 2023 from these ancestors and their legacy 。Familiar names such as Homer， Odysseus， Pythagoras are explored and their impact on the evolution of philosophical thinking。Nicolson's prose captures the locations， periods and events in meticulous detail transporting us to another time- obviously assisted by his love of sailing and navigating the seas ，the sense of travelling the trade routes and observing the landscape and architecture is palpable。Each chapter is meticulously researched and the abundance of cultural references and knowledge truly highlights the wisdom and knowledge of the Greek。 The maps and photographs of artefacts deepen the readers connection to each essay/chapter and understanding of the period 。 Adam Nicolson has produced an impressively knowledgable and accessible read to explore Ancient Greece and help us dig deeper into a time of philosophical development that is still has its impact on us today。Thank you to Net Galley for this advance copy 。。。more
Henriette
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Vivid journey to the roots of Western thinkingThis book takes the reader on an epic journey through the origins of Western thinking。 It was a delightful discovery while browsing the offerings of netgalley and I just loved all those little gems of insight Nicolson accumulated and put into a vision which painted a very vivid picture of the origins of the way Western thinking emerged。 Nicolson who obviously sailed and surveyed the Mediterrenean seas and the adjacent landscape for many years， introd Vivid journey to the roots of Western thinkingThis book takes the reader on an epic journey through the origins of Western thinking。 It was a delightful discovery while browsing the offerings of netgalley and I just loved all those little gems of insight Nicolson accumulated and put into a vision which painted a very vivid picture of the origins of the way Western thinking emerged。 Nicolson who obviously sailed and surveyed the Mediterrenean seas and the adjacent landscape for many years， introduces the emergence of Greek thinking as a result of their connection with the sea and the establishment of trade and trade routes along the sea: the mindset of merchants， settled in harbours （Nicolson coins it the harbour mind）， sailing their ships to accumulate money and knowledge is the driving force behind a new way of thinking。I loved how Nicolson lets us visit those early harbours - literally walking us through to the acropolis overlooking the sea - how he introduces the early writers， poets and shows us how their writing is connected to the world of seafaring merchants， e。g。 that the Odyssee （and not the Iliad） is the complementing poem to this new， enterprising world。 He skillfully brings to life this ancient world and shows the „Sitz im Leben“ of the first thinkers about the universe。I can only rave how Nicolson opens up a whole new view of the Greek exploration by pointing out how early navigation worked。 And the discovery and description of the ancient krater （a large pot） with stellar constellations had me equally in awe as the author who revealed its existence。 We look with Nicolson at the guiding star of The Great Bear， we walk up with him from the harbour to the acropolis of Old Smyrna， descent under an old church crypt into the pottery lane of ancient times … and from this visceral experiences Nicholson lets us take flight to connect with those early explorers， the mapmakers of times long ago to understand the very makings of Western thinking and its uniqueness。Kudos from this nerd who loves antiquity to this masterful book which was an absolute delight to read and savour。Thanks to the publisher for the ARC。 The review is left voluntarily。 。。。more
spencer wright
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