Essays & Short Works
- Philosophical Travelogues
- Essays on Society and Culture
- Essays for Personal Growth
- Explorations in Science and Thought
- Explorations in Psychology
- Political Essays and Reflections
- Political Essays and Manifestos
- Philosophical Essays on Existence
The Human Machine
Bennett asks us to consider our brains as the most wonderful machine, a machine which is the only thing in this world that we can control. A…
My Inventions and Other Works
Between February and October 1919, Nikola Tesla submitted many articles to the magazine Electrical Experimenter. The most famous of these wo…
Nature
First published anonymously in 1836, Nature marks the beginning both of Emerson’s literary career and the Transcendentalist movement. Asking…
Human, All Too Human
"Human, all-too-Human, is the monument of a crisis. It is entitled: 'A book for free spirits,' and almost every line in it represents a…
The French Revolution
“It is, for that matter, self-evident that if one community decides in one fashion, another, also sovereign, in the opposite fashion, both c…
The Servile State
In The Servile State, Hilaire Belloc explores the stark divide between servile and non-servile labor, presenting a thought-provoking analysi…
Thinking as a Science
Written in a conversational style that will appeal to the younger person as well as seasoned professional, "Thinking as a Science"…
Poor Richard's Almanack
A brief biographical sketch of Franklin's life, followed by a collection (published in 1899) of 670 aphorisms, apothegms, or proverbs - shor…
Discourse on the Method of Rightly Conducting One’s Reason and of Seeking Truth
The Discourse on Method is best known as the source of the famous quotation “cogito ergo sum”, “I think, therefore I am.” …. It is a method …
A Short History of England
Gilbert Keith Chesterton was a prolific writer on many topics. His views of history were always from the standpoint of men and their interac…
Beyond Good and Evil
By turns illuminating, infuriating, bewildering, and amusing, Nietzsche's masterwork covers a lot of ground. He rejects most strands of Wes…
What is Property?
What Is Property?: or, An Inquiry into the Principle of Right and of Government (French: Qu'est-ce que la propriété ? ou Reche…
The Sound of War
The Sound of War is a collection that captures the essence of World War II through actual sound recordings. With a total of 18 episodes, thi…
Utilitarianism
In Utilitarianism, John Stuart Mill presents a thorough examination of the ethical theory that advocates for actions that promote the greate…
The Ghosts of Piccadilly
Nothing spooky or supernatural, but a very personal gathering of gossip, letters, and fragments of biography of famous people who have lived…
Ten Days in a Madhouse
In 1887 Nellie Bly, one of the first female newspaper writers, and a young reporter who would soon go on to make a career for herself as an …
Old Times on the Mississippi
Old Times on the Mississippi offers a vivid glimpse into the life and culture along the Mississippi River as seen through the eyes of Mark T…
A Modest Proposal
Jonathan Swift almost defines satire in this biting and brutal pamphlet in which he suggests that poor (Catholic) Irish families should fatt…
Contra Gentes
Contra Gentes is the first of a two volume work published by Athanasius of Alexandria prior to the outbreak of the Arian controversy (ca. 31…
A Holy Life the Beauty of Christianity
Written in the late 1600s by John Bunyan, author of The Pilgrim's Progress, this treatise exhorts Christians to holy living. Bunyan takes as…