Recommendations based on Civilization and Its Discontentsby Sigmund Freud

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. The Ego and the Id

    by Sigmund Freud
    A psychoanalytic exploration of the three facets of the human psyche, and how they interact.

    The Ego and the Id ranks high among the works of Freud's later years. The heart of his concern is the ego, which he sees battling with three forces: the id, the super-ego, and the outside world. Of ... (Goodreads)

  2. Beyond Good and Evil

    by Friedrich Nietzsche
    A philosophical exploration of morality and truth, challenging conventional morality and religious beliefs.

    Friedrich Nietzsche's Beyond Good and Evil is translated from the German by R.J. Hollingdale with an introduction by Michael Tanner in Penguin Classics. Beyond Good and Evil confirmed Nietzsche's ... (Goodreads)

  3. The History of Sexuality, Volume 1: An Introduction

    by Michel Foucault
    Examination of the power dynamics and social constructions of sexual behavior.

    Michel Foucault offers an iconoclastic exploration of why we feel compelled to continually analyze and discuss sex, and of the social and mental mechanisms of power that cause us to direct the ... (Goodreads)

  4. On the Genealogy of Morals

    by Friedrich Nietzsche
    Exploration of morality, power, and the origin of human values.

    On the Genealogy of Morals (1887) is a book about the history of ethics and about interpretation. Nietzsche rewrites the former as a history of cruelty, exposing the central values of the ... (Goodreads)

  5. The Prince

    by Niccolò Machiavelli
    A timeless political treatise on the art of acquiring and maintaining power.

    Machiavelli needs to be looked at as he really was. Hence: Can Machiavelli, who makes the following observations, be Machiavellian as we understand the disparaging term? 1. So it is that to know the ... (Goodreads)

  6. Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison

    by Michel Foucault
    Examines the emergence of the modern prison system and its effects on society.

    Librarian note: an alternate cover for this edition can be found, here,. Barely two hundred and fifty years ago a man condemned of attempting to assassinate the King of France was drawn and quartered ... (Goodreads)

  7. An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding

    by David Hume
    Analysis of the nature of human understanding, challenging existing philosophical and religious beliefs.

    An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, is a book by the Scottish empiricist philosopher David Hume , published in English in 1748. , It was a revision of an earlier effort, Hume's A Treatise of ... (Wikipedia)

  8. Meditations

    by Marcus Aurelius
    Reflections on Stoic philosophy, exploring the nature of existence and how to live life.

    Written in Greek by the only Roman emperor who was also a philosopher, without any intention of publication, the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius offer a remarkable series of challenging spiritual ... (Goodreads)

  9. The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays

    by Albert Camus
    Philosophical essays on the absurd human condition, questioning the value of life.

    One of the most influential works of this century, this is a crucial exposition of existentialist thought. Influenced by works such as Don Juan, and the novels of Kafka, these essays begin with a ... (Goodreads)

  10. Leviathan

    by Thomas Hobbes
    Philosophical exploration of the nature of power and justice in a state of nature.

    'The life of man, solitary, poore, nasty, brutish, and short' Written during the chaos of the English Civil War, Thomas Hobbes' Leviathan asks how, in a world of violence and horror, can we stop ... (Goodreads)

  11. Phenomenology of Spirit

    by Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel
    An exploration of the relationship between mind and world, and the nature of knowledge.

    Perhaps one of the most revolutionary works of philosophy ever presented, The Phenomenology of Spirit is Hegel's 1807 work that is in numerous ways extraordinary. It begins with a Preface, created ... (Goodreads)

  12. The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism

    by Max Weber
    Examines the relationship between Protestantism and the rise of capitalism, arguing that religious beliefs influenced economic behavior.

    The Protestant ethic — a moral code stressing hard work, rigorous self-discipline, and the organization of one's life in the service of God — was made famous by sociologist and political economist ... (Goodreads)

  13. Being and Time

    by Martin Heidegger
    Exploration of the basic questions of existence, re-examining the fundamentals of philosophy.

    One of the most important philosophical works of our time, a work that has had tremendous influence on philosophy, literature, and psychology, and has literally changed the intellectual map of the ... (Goodreads)

  14. The Republic

    by Plato
    A philosophical discourse on justice, examining morality, politics, and virtue.

    Presented in the form of a dialogue between Socrates and three different interlocutors, this classic text is an enquiry into the notion of a perfect community and the ideal individual within it. ... (Goodreads)

  15. Capital: A Critique of Political Economy, Volume 1

    by Karl Marx
    Analysis of capitalism, exploring its economic and social systems.

    Capital , one of Marx's major and most influential works, was the product of thirty years close study of the capitalist mode of production in England, the most advanced industrial society of his day. ... (Goodreads)

  16. The Origin of Species

    by Charles Darwin
    Comprehensive scientific exploration of the evolution of species and the natural world.

    Darwin's theory of natural selection issued a profound challenge to orthodox thought and belief: no being or species has been specifically created; all are locked into a pitiless struggle for ... (Goodreads)

  17. The Myth of Sisyphus

    by Albert Camus
    An essay on understanding the absurdity of life, and realizing there is meaning in even the most mundane tasks.

    Throughout history, some books have changed the world. They have transformed the way we see ourselves—and each other. They have inspired debate, dissent, war and revolution. They have enlightened, ... (Goodreads)

  18. Fear and Trembling

    by Søren Kierkegaard
    Philosophical essay exploring the importance of faith, and the human struggle for faith.

    Soren Kierkegaard was a Danish philosopher, theologian, and religious author interested in human psychology. He is regarded as a leading pioneer of existentialism and one of the greatest philosophers ... (Goodreads)

  19. Tao Te Ching

    by Lao Tzu
    A collection of wise sayings and reflections on the nature of existence.

    A lucid translation of the well-known Taoist classic by a leading scholar-now in a Shambhala Pocket Library edition. Written more than two thousand years ago, the Tao Teh Ching , or -The Classic of ... (Goodreads)

  20. Democracy in America

    by Alexis de Tocqueville
    A study of the political and social structure of the United States and its implications.

    Democracy in America has had the singular honor of being even to this day the work that political commentators of every stripe refer to when they seek to draw large conclusions about the society of ... (Goodreads)

  21. Discourse on Method and Meditations on First Philosophy

    by René Descartes
    Philosophical treatise on the nature of knowledge and reality, examining the limits of human understanding.

    La figura de Descartes como filósofo no ha sido objeto de unánime interpretación. Sobre todo en la actualidad se juzga y pondera su obra. no menos que su personalidad, de manera diferente. Para ... (Goodreads)

  22. The Society of the Spectacle

    by Guy Debord
    A critical analysis of the commodification of society and the power of the media.

    Few works of political and cultural theory have been as enduringly provocative as Guy Debord's The Society of the Spectacle. From its publication amid the social upheavals of the 1960s up to the ... (Goodreads)

  23. The Communist Manifesto

    by Karl Marx
    A treatise on the fundamental principles of communism, and its role in society.

    A rousing call to arms whose influence is still felt today Originally published on the eve of the 1848 European revolutions, The Communist Manifesto is a condensed and incisive account of the ... (Goodreads)

  24. Philosophical Investigations

    by Ludwig Wittgenstein
    Wittgenstein's exploration of language and meaning, challenging traditional philosophical concepts and proposing new ways of understanding language games.

    Philosophical Investigations, ( German : Philosophische Untersuchungen ) is a work by the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein . The book was published posthumously in 1953. Wittgenstein discusses ... (Wikipedia)

  25. Being and Nothingness

    by Jean-Paul Sartre
    Philosophical exploration of the nature of being and consciousness.

    Being & Nothingness is without doubt one of the most significant philosophical books of the 20th century. The central work by one of the century's most influential thinkers, it altered the course of ... (Goodreads)

  26. Capitalist Realism: Is There No Alternative?

    by Mark Fisher
    Critique of late capitalism, exploring the oppressive power of neoliberalism.

    After 1989, capitalism has presented itself as the only realistic political-economic system. What effects has this “capitalist realism” had on work, culture, education and mental health? Is it ... (Goodreads)

  27. The Symposium

    by Plato
    A philosophical dialogue among ancient Greeks about the nature of love.

    A fascinating discussion on sex, gender, and human instincts, as relevant today as ever. In the course of a lively drinking party, a group of Athenian intellectuals exchange views on eros, or desire. ... (Goodreads)

  28. The Art of War

    by Sun Tzu
    Ancient Chinese military treatise outlining strategies for success in battle.

    Twenty-Five Hundred years ago, Sun Tzu wrote this classic book of military strategy based on Chinese warfare and military thought. Since that time, all levels of military have used the teaching on ... (Goodreads)

  29. Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals

    by Immanuel Kant
    Examination of the foundations of moral philosophy, focusing on the nature of moral obligation.

    Immanuel Kant's Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals ranks alongside Plato's Republic and Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics as one of the most profound and influential works in moral philosophy ever ... (Goodreads)