{"product_id":"the-laughter-of-the-thracian-woman-a-protohistory-of-theory-paperback","title":"The Laughter of the Thracian Woman: A Protohistory of Theory - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eHans Blumenberg\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003eSpencer Hawkins\u003c\/b\u003e (Translator)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAn important work by 20-century philosopher Hans Blumenberg, here translated into English for the first time, \u003ci\u003eThe Laughter of the Thracian Woman\u003c\/i\u003e describes the reception history of an anecdote best known from Plato's \u003ci\u003eTheaetetus\u003c\/i\u003e dialogue: while focused on observing the stars, the early astronomer and proto-philosopher Thales of Miletus fails to see a well directly in his path and tumbles down. A Thracian servant girl laughs, amused that he sought to understand what was above him when he was not mindful of what was right in front of him. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eVariants of this story recur in texts by Diogenes Laertius, Church Fathers Tertullian and Eusebius, medieval and Renaissance-era preachers, Enlightenment figures Voltaire, Montaigne, Bacon, and Kant, and later in works by Feuerbach, Nietzsche, Heidegger, and Blumenberg's own colleagues. Some of these philosophers sympathize with Thales' ambitions while others chastise his negligence. Blumenberg sees the story as a highly sought substitute for our missing knowledge of the earliest historical events that would fit the label \"theory.\" By retelling the anecdote, philosophers reveal their distinctive values regarding absorption in curiosity, philosophy's past, and the demand that theorists abide by sanctioned methods and procedures. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn this work and others, Blumenberg demonstrates that philosophers' most beloved images and anecdotes have become indispensable to philosophy \u003ci\u003eas\u003c\/i\u003e metaphors; that is, as representations whose meanings remain indefinite and invite frequent reinterpretation.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eHans Blumenberg\u003c\/b\u003e (1920-1996) was one of the most significant German philosophers of the twentieth century. His publications include \u003ci\u003eThe Legibility of the World, Legitimacy of the Modern Age, Genesis of the Copernican World, Work on Myth\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eOut of the Cave\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eSpencer Hawkins\u003c\/b\u003e is an Instructor in the Cultures, Civilizations, and Ideas program at Bilkent University, Turkey.\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 224\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.6 x 8.5 x 5.5 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e April 23, 2015\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47938260467933,"sku":"9781623562304","price":88.45,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0811\/9867\/8237\/files\/Qpq12NNrqj9781623562304.webp?v=1779177229","url":"https:\/\/handfulofbooks.com\/products\/the-laughter-of-the-thracian-woman-a-protohistory-of-theory-paperback","provider":"Handful of Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}