Abstract

What has been recorded in the vast ocean of books about the nature of the world and humanity?
Structured around the universal human pursuits of “wonder, learning, engagement, struggle, love, and living,” this work traces an intellectual voyage through classic writings by Plato, Pascal, Montaigne, Nietzsche, Arendt, and many others. A widely read and deeply knowledgeable bibliophile moves freely across philosophy, history, and literature, charting a new map of thought.

Author’s Information

Yojiro Ishi was born in 1951. He specializes in French literature and thought. Doctor of Philosophy (Academic). He graduated from the Faculty of Law, University of Tokyo, and completed the Master's program in French Language and Literature at the Graduate School of Humanities, University of Tokyo. He has served as Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, University of Tokyo, and as a Trustee and Vice President of the University of Tokyo. Professor Emeritus at the University of Tokyo and Chubu University.
Major works include: "Lautréamont: Transgression and Creation" (Chikuma Shobo, recipient of the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Award for Artistic Excellence), "French Thinking: A Genealogy of Savage Thinkers" (Chuko Shinsho), "Nadar 1820-1910: The Man Who 'Reproduced' His Times" (Fujiwara Shoten), "Questioning the Mission of the University" (Fujiwara Shoten), and "Pierre Bourdieu" (Suiseisha).
His major translations include Bourdieu's "Distinction I & II" (Fujiwara Shoten, recipient of Shibusawa-Claudel Prize), "The Complete Works of Isidore Ducasse Lautréamont" (Chikuma Shobo, Japan recipient of Translation Publishing Culture Award and Japan-France Translation Literature Award), and Julien Greene's "Moira" (Iwanami Bunko).