Editorial notes:
For a broader elaboration on Shai’s ‘Bibliome project’ see the Editorial notes to ‘Philosophy Readings Through Time‘ (Open link in a new tab).
Here I start to plan bibliomes – they being organic districts that are fertilized by interest and motivation, and whose seeds can be defined as specifically as words. This “page”, or Note, may serve also as a log and a record of the thought processes that underlie Bibliome development.
Philosophy Bibliome – I get to this via obviously being interested in iome sense, though how that sense might be specified remains a challenge. I have been reading through time, motivated by the premise that philosophers read each other and are consequentially that there is some benefit to reading them in order.
- Cicero – I get to this via reading through time, assisted by a Timeline.
- His own writings
- Writings on him
- The best (per Amazon), and fairly recent, review of his life and times, is Cicero: The Life and Times of Rome’s Greatest Politician [Amazon].
- Epictetus – I get to this via the Timeline, skipping Philo (via lack of interest) and Seneca (via lack of interest sufficient to motivate me to read more than what I already have). In principle, this is a figure I would like to address, but at the present time there are no books that can keep up with the competing desire to move into the modern period, and thus (after perusing the names in history) I come to More.
- Thomas More.
- His own writings: Utopia interests me most, based already on what little I know of it. I’ve yet t justify any translation, and need to consider that some editions include additional content, such as letters.
- Writings on him: A biography seems useful, and I would not assume to be interested in any in-depth analysis of either his political thinking or anything that regards his religious thinking.
- The Life of Thomas More recommends itself in reviews, including those on the author [Amazon]. Depending on my experience, later I may want to consider other books by this author – Peter Ackroyd.
- Nicolas Copernicus. Although this person may be separated from a list of philosophers, there are arguments to keep him, and (more forcible) reasons to want to gain some understanding of (a) natural philosophy, in history, and therein the subset (b) of astronomy, including, as a unit, that trinity comprising Copernicus, Kepler, and Galileo.
- His own writings are too dense, and I’m not appealed to read them. However, and with that in mind, it may be of interest to therefore read The Book Nobody Read [Amazon].
- Writings on him:
- Kuhn’s book The Copernicun Revolution [Amazon] would seem to adequately discuss the science and its implications (incl. philosophical).
- Michel Montaigne.
- By him: Obviously his Essays, the only question possibly being “which?” (considering different translations, or different anthologies of excerpts).
- On him:
Literature Bibliome – this is defined by its motivation to be “well read” (cf. any number of similar clichés).
- One useful justification is the list from 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die [Amazon]. Choosing to use this as a periscope to navigate, further options require selection. First, I choose to read in the order of most recent until the most ancient. Reading a book from this list may inevitably affect future reading – this manner of consideration I move to another Note: 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die. Currently planning to read: #54, 77, 7.
