The World's Best Book Summaries
Is wokeness bad? Does it harm society or have the potential to do so? Douglas Murray has a definite response to those questions. He believes that wokeness is hard to challenge without suffering public ridicule and shaming, which is part of the problem. But, we must fight this ideology, or our society could become even more fragmented, chaotic, and conceivably violent. Continue reading to learn why Murray believes wokeness is bad for society.
How do you go about finding your niche as a freelancer? How can you be sure that you’ve found it? Paul Millerd stepped off the default career path and embarked on “the pathless path” of freelancing. He now helps others find their way. He shares two criteria that you need to look for and shares advice on how to reach those goals. Keep reading to learn how to find your freelancer niche in today’s world.
Do external factors determine our choices and behaviors? Or, do we operate freely? Compatibilists say “Yes.” Compatibilist free will describes the belief that both external factors and free will cause our behavior. Compatibilists bring together the ideas of determinists and libertarians, contending that we’re dealing with an “and” rather than an “or” when it comes to the way our will works. Continue reading to get an explanation (and an argument) from Sam Harris on the matter.
If you have a beginning, a middle, and an end, do you have a story? Is that all there is to story structure? Story-writing experts generally agree that effective stories loosely follow the same pattern. This is called story structure, and most everyone knows that the basic story structure is beginning-middle-end. But, it’s not quite that simple. Read more to get advice from Rob Biesenbach and Robert McKee on how to leverage the basic story structure for the greatest impact.
Where do you look to find meaning in life? How do you perceive injustices in society? In The Madness of Crowds, Douglas Murray shares his concerns about where society is heading. He offers two practical steps that each person can take to turn things in a positive direction: depoliticize your personal identity and gain a healthy perspective on injustice. Keep reading to learn how to make society better with these recommendations.
Do you work for yourself and find it hard to stay motivated? What untapped sources of motivation are out there waiting for you? With a traditional job, it’s easy to know whether you’re on the right track—either you’re performing well and achieving traditional benchmarks, or you’re not. When you’re self-employed, it’s a little more complicated. Continue reading to learn three sources of freelancer motivation you should tap into.
Do we have free will? What are the various views and arguments entailed in the debate? Philosophers continue to wrestle with the issue of free will, discussing what it is and whether or not human beings have it. Sam Harris explains that three points of view have emerged: determinism, libertarianism, and compatibilism. Read more to learn about these three schools of thought regarding free will in philosophy and to get Harris’s take on them.
What difference can symbolism make in a story? When and how is it appropriate and functional? Each story should have a protagonist with a goal, obstacles to the protagonist’s goal, and a theme. But, above and beyond those basic elements, you should infuse complexity into a story to make it more compelling and interesting. Symbolism is one way to do this. Keep reading to get advice from Stephen King and Thomas C. Foster on how and when to use symbolism in a story.
Does it seem like the world has gone mad? What accounts for the recent sweeping societal changes, and is there a way out? In The Madness of Crowds: Gender, Race and Identity, Douglas Murray argues that Western society is currently consumed by an ideology that’s obsessed with social justice and identity politics. He discusses the roots of this change, its impact, and a potential remedy. Continue reading for an overview of this timely book.
Whenever you eat ice cream, is it simply because you choose to? Or, is it the result of a complex series of physical processes beyond your control? Is free will an illusion? Sam Harris writes that we believe in free will, not because it makes logical sense, but because it squares with our intuitions and feelings. He contends that our gut is wrong and that free agency doesn’t actually exist. Read more to understand why Harris believes that free will is an illusion.