Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

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One of the most important influential books written in the past half century, Robert M Pirsig s Zen the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance is a powerfully moving penetrating examination of how we live, a breathtaking meditation on how to live better Here is the book that transformed a generation, an unforgettable narration of a summer motorcycle trip across America s Northwest, undertaken by a father his young son A story of love fear of growth, discovery acceptance that becomes a profound personal philosophical odyssey into life s fundamental questions, this uniquely exhilarating modern classic is both touching transcendent, resonant with the myriad confusions of existence the small, essential triumphs that propel us forward. New Read eBook Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance Author Robert M. Pirsig – kino-fada.fr Maybe it s unfair to give a poor rating to a book I read in high school However, I like to think that I was wise beyond my years and knew a phony, self congratulatory, pretentious buffoon when I saw one On the other hand, I did wear baggy overalls with Birkenstocks every day back then and wondered why I didn t have a boyfriend, so clearly I didn t know everything.But as I read through the reviews here, I am confronted by a rush of unpleasant memories about this particular reading experience T Maybe it s unfair to give a poor rating to a book I read in high school However, I like to think that I was wise beyond my years and knew a phony, self congratulatory, pretentious buffoon when I saw one On the other hand, I did wear baggy overalls with Birkenstocks every day back then and wondered why I didn t have a boyfriend, so clearly I didn t know everything.But as I read through the reviews here, I am confronted by a rush of unpleasant memories about this particular reading experience The narrator did indeed seem like a dick And he may have been okay with that, because...I feel like Robert M Pirsig has wronged me personally.When I was quite young my brain said to me, after a particularly long and stoned session listening to Pink Floyd and discussing philosophy, oh give me a break So I said to my brain, there s no need to be so rude, and my brain said, no seriously, I can t handle this any, really, let me take a break So it did and I ve been operating on brain stem alone ever since I don t know it s made that much difference.I wonder if the author s brain was thinking like mine was Certainly when I was When I was quite young my brain said to me, after a particularly long and stoned session listening to Pink Floyd and discussing philosophy, oh give me a break So I said to my brain, there s no need to be so rude, and my brain said, no seriously, I can t handle this any, really, let me take a break So it did and I ve been operating on brain stem alone ever since I don t know it s made that much difference.I wonder if the author s brain was thinking like mine was Certainly when I was reading this book and sort of enjoying it 2 stars worth , I was also thinking I am just too old to be reading this sort of cod philosophy, too old and not stoned enough I read other people s reviews and h...After years of people saying, Oh, you re a philosophy major Have you heard of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance You should read it I finally broke down and bought a copy I am usually wary of books that seem to hold promises of sweetness and light and spiritual awakening, in this age of The Purpose Driven Life and Silver Ravenwolf.My thoughts on the book, even months after reading it, are still mixed Artistically, I do think it s a polished and respectable piece of literature It s After years of people saying, Oh, you re a philosophy major Have you heard of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance You should read it I finally broke down and bought a copy I am usually wary of books that seem to hold promises of sweetness and light and spiritual awakening, in this age of The Purpose Driven Life and Silver Ravenwolf.My thoughts on the book, even months after reading it, are still mixed Artistically, I do think it s a polished and respectable piece of literature It s well written and compelling But my philosophy major side is hesitant about it I don t know much about Zen Buddhism, so I can t speak for how Pirsig treated that aspect, but the rundowns on philosophy made me anxious in the way that Philosophy for Dummies makes me anxious you have to assume that the author s interpretation is one that is valid And sometimes there was enough value judgment language that it felt like the text was conveniently interpreting the philosopher at hand, as op...There are three threads weaving through this book none of which, as is pointed out, has much to do with either eastern philosophy or with motorcycle maintenance The first is a straightforward narration by a man riding across the country with his young son and two friends a married couple This evocative travelogue is by far the most enjoyable aspect of the novel....Plato s Phaedrus said, And what is written well and what is written badlyneed we ask Lysias or any other poet or orator who ever wrote or will write either a political or other work, in meter or out of meter, poet or prose writer, to teach us this Modern Phaedrus said, And what is good, Phaedrus, And what is not good Need we ask anyone to tell us these things I keep re reading passages from Zen and the Art and Tao of Pooh and Siddhartha and try to make sense in the context of everyday l Plato s Phaedrus said, And what is written well and what is written badlyneed we ask Lysias or any other poet or orator who ever wrote or will write either a political or other work, in meter or out of meter, poet or prose writer, to teach us this Modern Phaedrus said, And what is good, Phaedrus, And what is not good Need we ask anyone to tell us these things I keep re reading passages from Zen and the Art and Tao of Pooh and Siddhartha and try to make sense in the context of everyday life which is where I firmly believe any philosophical questions need to be answered If it is not applicable in ...I must start by saying that this is one of my favorite books ever Although it is deep and complicated and takes a lot of focus to read, I feel that there are a lot of great messages here in the author s search for Quality This was my second time reading this book, and I liked itthis time Interlaced with stories from an across the west motorcycle trip with his son and some friends, Pirsig tells the story of his past in an almost former life before being admitted to a mental institution a I must start by saying that this is one of my favorite books ever Although it is deep and complicated and takes a lot of focus to read, I feel that there are a lot of great messages here in the author s search for Quality This was my second time reading this book, and I liked itthis time Interlaced with stories from an across the west motorcycle trip with his son and some friends, Pirsig tells the story of his past in an almost former life be...OK, maybe I m being a little too harsh I actually enjoyed the idea of the cross country motorcycle ride, the details about motorcycle mechanics, and especially the portrayal of the narrator s relationship with his son The son was the best part of the whole book Unfortunately, there wasn t much space for sonny, because dad was too busy advertising the author s brilliant philisophical insights Evenunfortunately, the insights weren t brilliant, and consumed hundreds of tedious pages It o OK, maybe I m being a little too harsh I actually enjoyed the idea of the cross country motorcycle ride, the details about motorcycle mechanics, and especially the portrayal of the narrator s relationship with his son The son was the best part of the whole book Unfortunately, there wasn t much space for sonny, because dad was too busy advertising the ...Brilliant Pirsig might be something of an American Montaigne, producing readable philosophy with a minimum of abtractions That s a gift After undergoing electro convulsive therapy 28 times, Pirsig, in this book, gives his formerly insane self a doppelg nger like alter ego, Phaedrus, and bravely tries to piece together that formerly insane self s thought in order to learn from it This alone is fascinating At the same time Pirsig is reviewing aspects of eastern and western philosophical thoug Brilliant Pirsig might be something of an American Montaigne, producing readable philosophy with a minimum of abtractions That s a gift After undergoing electro convulsive therapy 28 times, Pirsig, in this book, gives his formerly insane self a doppelg nger like alter ego, Phaedrus, and bravely tries to piece together that formerly insane self s thought in order to learn from it This alone is fascinating At the same time Pirsig is reviewing aspects of eastern and western philosophical thought If you are a philosophy major, however, maybe this book s not for you For me, however, the book s essential I need books that make philosophy comprehensible All too often I find the great geniuses incoherent amid their heaped abstractions Another recent philosophy decrypting book I found helpful was Sarah Bakewell s At the Existentialist Caf Freedom, Being, and Apricot Cocktails, in which the author lays bare the foundat...Robert M Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance I can see by my watch, without taking my hand from the left grip of the cycle, that it is eight thirty in the morning I have read Zen probably four or five times The clinical precision of the author is apparent in all the detail here left grip , eight thirty The self reference of the author looking at his own watch will become a leitmotif as the entire book is about the author looking deep into his own ...

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
  • English
  • 24 July 2018
  • Mass Market Paperback
  • 540 pages
  • 0060589469
  • Robert M. Pirsig
  • Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance