Coping with the Human Predicament - Living an Examined, a Disciplined and a Charitable Life

by Douglas Patterson

Overview

Living a successful temporal life and at the same time facing the reality of death tries the strongest among us. People approach thier lives from a variety of directions some of which are more adaptive than others. Those who live egocentric and disolute lives often later in life rue the day that they have been so foolish. If one looks to the great minds of the past such as Socrates (whose bust at the Lourve graces the cover of this book) and St. Paul and others, however, he will find guidelines that may make his life easier and perhaps even fulfilling - so that whether he looks forward to a life after death or only to "the dying of the light," he will have few grounds for regret.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940012106285
Publisher:	Patterson Publishing Company
Publication date:	05/02/2011
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	309 KB

About the Author

Since both my parents were teachers, my life has been focused throughout on education. I was born and grew up in Southern, Idaho among Mormons and Republicans. Even though I would now describe myself as an agnostic and a pragmatist and an independent, my childhood experiences apparently - to judge what I have written in this book - still have a very strong hold on my mind. I hold a B.A. from the University of Oregon and an M Ed from Central Washington University. I taught English and German for a total of thirty-seven years, three in the small town of New Plymouth,Idaho and then thirty-four years at Dwight D. Eisenhower Senior High School in Yakima, WA. I have always had a lively interest in philosophy, especially in the study of epistemology. This field is, of course, a central theme in this book. High school and college students, in my judgment, would benefit greatly from a more thorough and systematic effort to teach critical thinking skills. We can never do too much to foster self discipline and self reliance and kindness among our young people. Even though I have been retired for several years now, I maintain an active life in which I attempt to follow my own advice. Living an examined, a disciplined, and a charitable life has helped me to cope with and even to enjoy the mental and the physical challenges of the first phases of old age.