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Great Books of the Western World (60 Volumes) |  | Author: Mortimer J. Adler
Creators: Clifton Fadiman, Philip W. Goetz
Publisher: Encyclopedia Britannica, Incorporated
Category: Book
List Price: $995.00
Buy New: $625.00
as of 3/21/2010 19:52 MDT details
You Save: $370.00 (37%)
New (17) Used (17) from $10.00
Seller: caya2000
Rating:  18 reviews
Sales Rank: 253319
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 2nd
Pages: 37000
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 102.1
Dimensions (in): 21.1 x 18.2 x 14.1
ISBN: 0852295316
Dewey Decimal Number: 081
EAN: 9780852295311
ASIN: 0852295316
Publication Date: March 1, 1994
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
There is no better way to own and appreciate the world's greatest written works. Great Books of the Western World is one of the most acclaimed publishing feats of our time. Authoritative, accurate, and complete, this collection represents the essential core of the Western literary canon, compiling 517 of the most significant achievements in literature, history, philosophy, and science into a color-coded set as handsome as it is affordable. From the ancient classics to the newest masterpieces of the 20th century, Great Books traces the ideas, stories, and discoveries that have shaped modern civilization. Volumes 1 and 2 of this collection is the Syntopicon, a unique two-volume guide (not sold separately) that enables you to investigate a particular idea and compare what different authors have to say about it. The Syntopicon comprises a new kind of reference work -- accomplishing for ideas what the dictionary accomplishes for words and the encyclopaedia accomplishes for facts. Also included is the Great Conversation, featuring fascinating background information, extensive timelines, photos, and quotes from the classic works and their authors. 60 volumes Individual Volume Size: 9 1/2" H x 1"-2" W (Across Spine) x 6 1/2" D Overall Width of Set: 65"(5'5") Special colors on the Great Books' spines guide you quickly to the four subject areas -
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 18
 Reason with a capital R February 6, 2010
Andy K (Adelaide, Australia)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I was brought to the Great Books via a spiritual orientation. I felt strongly motivated to distinguish between genuine spirituality and pseudo-spirituality. But in order to do that, I needed to discern the distinction between true and pseudo-science, true and imitation rationality.
I noticed that by and large our society is inundated with sophistry, slippery words, advertising white noise, deception, doubletalk, a machiavellian diplomacy. Just as there is genuine reason, there is also pseudo-reason or sophistry.
The Great Books were the answer to these questions. Except for Karl Marx, they exemplify just, wise, balanced, mature, sophisticated reason. Among them are the essential teachings of reason in logic, philosophy, history, sociology, rhetoric, poetry, and wisdom literature.
My conclusion so far is that the Great Books are not Truth with a capital T, but they sure are Reason with a capital R.
If you want genuine reason, clarity, logic, reality, and scientific precision, these are prerequisite reading for being entitled to form sensible opinions.
If you want to contribute to society, then the Great Books teach us what is meant by the words "society" and "contribute" so that we may do that.
The Great Books are the ultimate humbling intellectual experience available. You cannot delude yourself with illusions of rationality after reading them. They make reason accessible for a reasonable price whilst showing up the superficiality and lack of substance in almost everyone's naive faith in their own reasonability.
People don't like the Great Books because they are an affront to their pride, an allergy to their arrogance, and a hammer to their denial. If you imagine the Great Books are sexist or racist, talk to your therapist. Others say the Great Books are elitist; this is the attitude of the anti-elite elitists whom Harold Bloom calls the "culture of resentment". It is jejune.
That said, many of the translations are old. Most are old and good, a few are old and bad translations. I recommend purchasing secondhand alternative translations of some of these books. You may as well read a different translation the second time round anyway, but having a more recent version helps clear up what is the writer's stuff and what is the translator's stuff.
 The product never came. November 1, 2009
Daniel M. Henry
0 out of 4 found this review helpful
There was a mix-up with the order. I was only sent the introductory volume instead of the 60 volume set of Great Books of the Western World. Total Quality Books promptly refunded my money when they discovered their mistake. Amazon did a good job informing me what to do. They were very helpful.
 Marginal utility January 12, 2009
D. L. Rubin
16 out of 28 found this review helpful
Though exclusionary by race, class, and gender, even in the second edition, the contents are indisputably important. That said, the set's unintroduced, unannotated texts, reproduced in _very_ small type defeat the compilers' purpose. And, but for Adler's introductory essays (available from Amazon vendors in a popular edition) the Syntopicon is a boondoggle. These flaws are compounded by reliance on very old public-domain translations which "erect more barriers between reader and text than the original" languages themselves. Great Bookies would do better to buy individual works in recent paperback editions with full critical apparatus.
 Not for the faint of heart, but worth your time December 2, 2008
Cutedeedle (Whidbey Island, WA)
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
This is the second edition of the compendium of Great Books. The first volume titled "The Great Conversation" -- updated by the Editor in Chief of The Great Books, Mortimer Adler -- explains why the 60 volume collection is organized as it is and what the three criteria were, established over several years' compilation, for inclusion in the set. "Influence" was not a criterion for selection, otherwise Hitler, Stalin and Lenin would have been incorporated, among other notable authors who were omitted. Unless you read "The Great Conversation" and the two volume Syntopicon you will undoubtedly be bewildered about the organizational structure of these books. Be aware, this is not like a set of college textbooks. These are original works, dating from Homer in 900-800 B.C. through mid-20th century's Samuel Beckett. Much of it is difficult reading. It's a collection of the great ideas of western civilization, not simply books that encompass only one subject each. If you are looking for such a thing you will not only waste your money and time but you'll be very disappointed and your set will probably end up on eBay.
The general organization of The Great Books is by date written, but there are so many cross-references of the "great ideas" and "great authors" that you can find any subject, idea or author by using the Syntopicon as your guide. Adler and the editors have narrowed what they consider the great ideas of western civilization down to 102. Astonishing, when you consider the writing and authors span about 2800 years of western thought.
The readings include virtually all of the subjects considered the liberal arts: literature of all kinds; philosophy and theology; mathematics and the natural sciences; history, biography and the social sciences; and economics, sociology and anthropology. If you're not in a college program that uses the Great Books in their curriculum, Adler provides a ten year reading plan for the books in "The Great Conversation." Again, not for the faint of heart, but I guarantee if you manage to get through all 60 books you will truly be educated.
As an FYI, I'm currently in what seems to be the sole graduate program in the country that uses only the Great Books in their curriculum. It is also a distance-learning program and uses the Socratic method for discussions, which are held by telephone with tutors (what teachers or professors are usually called when using this method of inquiry and discussion). Check out my Amazon profile for some details.
Great Books of the Western World August 11, 2008
Brenda P. Clark (Gainesville, GA)
2 out of 6 found this review helpful
My husband had always wanted this set of books and, thanks to Amazon, I was able to purchase them for almost half the price of new ones. The volumes arrived safely and still wrapped in their original plastic, except for two books, which were in excellent shape.
Thanks, Amazon!
Showing reviews 1-5 of 18
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