Bøger af Leonard Peikoff

With his groundbreaking and controversial DIM hypothesis, Dr. Leonard Peikoff casts a penetrating new light on the process of human thought, and thereby on Western culture and history.In this far-reaching study, Peikoff identifies the three methods people use to integrate concrete data into a whole, as when connecting diverse experiments by a scientific theory, or separate laws into a Constitution, or single events into a story. The first method, in which data is integrated through rational means, he calls Integration. The second, which employs non-rational means, he calls Misintegration. The third is Disintegration-which is nihilism, the desire to tear things apart.In The DIM Hypothesis Peikoff demonstrates the power of these three methods in shaping the West, by using the categories to examine the culturally representative fields of literature, physics, education, and politics. His analysis illustrates how the historical trends in each field have been dominated by one of these three categories, not only today but during the whole progression of Western culture from its beginning in Ancient Greece.Extrapolating from the historical pattern he identifies, Peikoff concludes by explaining why the lights of the West are going out-and predicts the most likely future for the United States.

Based on a lecture course given by Leonard Peikoff in 1972, this book provides essential knowledge for everyone whose life pursuits are threatened by our culture's widespread irrationality. "To fight for your values in a world such as ours, you must regard yourself as a psychotherapist of an entire culture," states Dr. Peikoff in his opening lecture. "Its present state at any given time cannot be understood except as an outgrowth from its past. The errors of today are built on the errors of the last century, and they in turn on the previous, and so on back to the childhood of the Western world, which is ancient Greece." For example, he says, the phenomenon of progressive education can be explained only by reference to John Dewey: "But Dewey simply applied to education the principles of William James, and James made an obvious deduction from Hegel, and Hegel is a minor variant on Kant, and Kant was trying to answer Hume, who was the last consistent consequence of thetrend inaugurated by Descartes and Locke, who were simply reformulating, in a somewhat more secular way, the principles of Augustine, who was reformulating in a somewhat more religious way the principles of Plato, who was trying to answer the dilemma posed by Heraclitus and Parmenides, who took off from four sentences of Thales with whom we are beginning tonight."

Based on a series of lectures given by Leonard Peikoff in 1981, Principles of Grammar offers not only an organized survey of grammatical rules and principles but their connection to the principles of clear thinking and clear writing. "At the end of the course," says Dr. Peikoff, "you should be able to see every grammatical rule, directly or indirectly, as a consequence or expression of some essential requirement of the human mind," not "a simply a hodge-podge of memorized rules that make no sense. ... I hope that [the course will give you] a sense of logic and security. Logic in regard to understanding the nature of grammatical issues-why they are as they are-and therefore security in regard to the whole subject. You will know the purpose, the rationale of the rules, and so I hope you will be able to think at the end that you can now make decisions on your own dubious or controversial cases. You don't have to rely helplessly on authorities."About the Author: Leonard PeikoffLeonard Peikoff is the preeminent Ayn Rand scholar writing today. He worked closely with Rand in New York City for thirty years and was designated as legal and literary heir to her estate. He has taught philosophy at several places, including Hunter College and New York University, and has lectured throughout the United States. Peikoff is the author of Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand; The DIM Hypothesis: Why the Lights of the West Are Going Out; and The Ominous Parallels. He grew up in Western Canada and now lives in Southern California.Michael S. BerlinerDr. Berliner, the editor of Letters of Ayn Rand, Understanding Objectivism and a wide variety of other books, presents these grammar lectures in a reader-friendly format. With the wealth of information (of both correct and incorrect usage), this book will appeal to anyone who wants to improve his writing and communication skills

Ayn Rand's philosophy of Objectivism is increasingly influencing the shape of the world from business and politics to achieving personal goals. Here, Leonard Peikoff—Rand's heir—explains how you can communicate philosophical ideas with conviction, logic, and, most of all, reason.Based on a series of lectures presented by Peikoff, Objective Communication shows how to apply Objectivist principles to the problem of achieving clarity both in thought and in communication.Peikoff teaches readers how to write, speak, and argue on the subject of philosophical ideas—ideas pertaining to profoundly important issues ranging from the question of the existence of God to the nature and proper limits of government power.Including enlightening discussions of a wide range of Objectivist topics—such as the primacy of consciousness, the pitfalls of rationalistic thinking, and the true meaning of the word "altruism,” as well as in-depth analysis of some of Ayn Rand's own writings—Peikoff's Objective Communication is essential reading for anyone interested in Ayn Rand's philosophy.

Based on a series of lectures given in 1983 by Dr. Leonard Peikoff, Understanding Objectivism offers a deeper and more profound study of Ayn Rand's philosophy, and outlines a methodology of how to approach the study of Objectivism and apply its principles to one's life.For the legions of readers who treasure Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead, and who savor cogent analysis and provocative discussion of Ayn Rand's thoughts and beliefs, Understanding Objectivism takes the stimulating study of Rand's philosophy to the next level.

Based on a series of lectures by Leonard Peikoff and edited by Marlene Trollope, Discovering Great Plays provides the ability to understand, judge and savor the values offered by great drama. Plays discussed include: Antigone by Sophocles; Othello by Shakespeare; Le Cid by Corneille; Don Carlos by Schiller; An Enemy of the People by Ibsen; Saint Joan by Shaw; Monna Vanna by Maeterlinck, and Cyrano de Bergerac by Rostand. A list of recommended editions and translations is provided by the author. Readers will discover plot-theme as the key to a play; Antigone as a great heroine; Iago as the blackest villain in literature; the Cornelian hero; Schiller's Grand Inquisitor scene as the most dramatic and philosophic in all theater; Ibsen and Ayn Rand's Howard Roark; Shaw's genius in presenting the genius against society; and Cyrano de Bergerac by Rostand.

THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION-The definitive statement of Ayn Rand's philosophy as interpreted by her best student and chosen heir. This brilliantly conceived and organized book is Dr. Leonard Peikoff's classic text on the abstract principles and practical applications of Objectivism, based on his lecture series "The Philosophy of Objectivism." Ayn Rand said of these lectures: "Until or unless I write a comprehensive treatise on my philosophy, Dr. Peikoff's course is the only authorized presentation of the entire theoretical structure of Objectivism-that is, the only one that I know of my knowledge to be fully accurate." In Objectivism, Peikoff covers every philosophic topic that Rand regarded as important-from certainty to money, from logic to art, from measurement to sex. Drawn from Rand's published works as well as in-depth conversations between her and Peikoff, these chapters illuminate Objectivism-and its creator-with startling clarity. With Objectivism, the millions of readers who have been transformed by Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead will discover the full philosophical system underlying Ayn Rand's work.