Audiobook5 hours
Does Santa Exist?: A Philosophical Investigation
Written by Eric Kaplan
Narrated by Sean Runnette
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
()
About this audiobook
Metaphysics isn't ordinarily much of a laughing matter. But in the hands of acclaimed comedy writer and scholar Eric Kaplan, a search for the truth about old St. Nick becomes a deeply insightful, laugh-out-loud discussion of the way some things exist but may not really be there-just like Santa and his reindeer.
Even after we outgrow the jolly fellow, the essential paradox persists: There are some things we dearly believe in that are not universally acknowledged as real. In Does Santa Exist?, Kaplan shows how philosophy giants Bertrand Russell and Ludwig Wittgenstein strove to smooth over this uncomfortable meeting of the real and unreal-and failed. From there he turns to mysticism's attempts to resolve such paradoxes. Finally, he alights on comedy as the ultimate resolution of the fundamental paradoxes of life.
Kaplan delves deeper into what this means, from how our physical brains work to his own personal confrontations with life's biggest questions: If we're all going to die, what's the point of anything? What is a perfect moment? What can you say about God? Or Santa?
Even after we outgrow the jolly fellow, the essential paradox persists: There are some things we dearly believe in that are not universally acknowledged as real. In Does Santa Exist?, Kaplan shows how philosophy giants Bertrand Russell and Ludwig Wittgenstein strove to smooth over this uncomfortable meeting of the real and unreal-and failed. From there he turns to mysticism's attempts to resolve such paradoxes. Finally, he alights on comedy as the ultimate resolution of the fundamental paradoxes of life.
Kaplan delves deeper into what this means, from how our physical brains work to his own personal confrontations with life's biggest questions: If we're all going to die, what's the point of anything? What is a perfect moment? What can you say about God? Or Santa?
Related to Does Santa Exist?
Related audiobooks
Good Thinking: Why Flawed Logic Puts Us All at Risk and How Critical Thinking Can Save the World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5When Bad Thinking Happens to Good People: How Philosophy Can Save Us from Ourselves Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Unbelievers: An Emotional History of Doubt Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Texts from Jane Eyre: And Other Conversations with Your Favorite Literary Characters Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Seven Types of Atheism Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Why Grow Up?: Subversive Thoughts for an Infantile Age Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dancing with the Devil: Why Bad Feelings Make Life Good Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWell-Being as Value Fulfillment: How We Can Help Each Other to Live Well Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe End the Suburbs: Where the American Dream is Moving Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Nervous States: Democracy and the Decline of Reason Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Hi, I'm an Atheist!: What That Means and How to Talk About It with Others Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Better Living Through Selective Apathy Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPlato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar...: Understanding Philosophy Through Jokes Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5There Is No God and Mary Is His Mother: Rediscovering Religionless Christianity Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Cult of Smart: How Our Broken Education System Perpetuates Social Injustice Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Grammar Snobs Are Great Big Meanies: A Guide To Language For Fun & Spite Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Would You Kill the Fat Man? Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Arrested Development and Philosophy: They've Made a Huge Mistake Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIn Praise of Slowness: Challenging the Cult of Speed Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Aristotle and an Aardvark Go to Washington: Understanding Political Doublespeak Through Philosophy and Jokes Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Squat!: A Readable Sitcom Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Swearing Is Good for You: The Amazing Science of Bad Language Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Social Construction of Reality: A Treatise in the Sociology of Knowledge Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Internet Is Not What You Think It Is: A History, a Philosophy, a Warning Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Godless Citizens in a Godly Republic: Atheists in American Public Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Irreligion: A Mathematician Explains Why the Arguments for God Just Don't Add Up Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Gossip: The Untrivial Pursuit Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Substitute: Going to School With a Thousand Kids Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5What It Means to Be Moral: Why Religion Is Not Necessary for Living an Ethical Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Philosophy For You
101 Essays That Will Change The Way You Think Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Buddhism 101: From Karma to the Four Noble Truths, Your Guide to Understanding the Principles of Buddhism Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Conscious: A Brief Guide to the Fundamental Mystery of the Mind Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Courage to Be Disliked: How to Free Yourself, Change Your Life, and Achieve Real Happiness Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How to Be Free: An Ancient Guide to the Stoic Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Art of Communicating Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Tao Te Ching: A New English Version Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Stoicism: How to Use Stoic Philosophy to Find Inner Peace and Happiness Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Brain Training with the Buddha: A Modern Path to Insight Based on the Ancient Foundations of Mindfulness Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Book of Five Rings Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Mastering Logical Fallacies: The Definitive Guide to Flawless Rhetoric and Bulletproof Logic Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Holographic Universe: The Revolutionary Theory of Reality Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Tao of Pooh Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Why Buddhism is True: The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Meditations of Marcus Aurelius Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Art of Living: Peace and Freedom in the Here and Now Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Summary: The Laws of Human Nature: by Robert Greene: Key Takeaways, Summary & Analysis Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Courage to Be Happy: Discover the Power of Positive Psychology and Choose Happiness Every Day Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fierce Self-Compassion: How Women Can Harness Kindness to Speak Up, Claim Their Power, and Thrive Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Finite and Infinite Games Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/512 Rules for Life by Jordan B. Peterson - Book Summary: An Antidote to Chaos Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5People of the Lie Vol. 1: Toward a Psychology of Evil Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Summary of Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Buddhist Boot Camp Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related categories
Reviews for Does Santa Exist?
Rating: 3.7499999714285717 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
14 ratings1 review
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A quite funny philosophical exploration into 3 questions, all of which read the same. As the author suggest the subject could be "What is the point of life?" or "Does God exist?" but he does a great job with Santa as the subject. There is logic, and mysticism and comedy. Some parts of the books threw me but I put that up to my lack of sleep although he wades into some very deep discussion of the "unlimited".