"A captivating exploration of humanity’s journey toward self-transcendence"
by Sophie Marquand / April 13, 2017 / Leave a commentPublished in May 2017 issue of Prospect Magazine
The Art of Losing Control: The Philosophy of Ecstatic Experience, by Jules Evans (Canongate, £12.99)
“There is something to be said for those moments when we lose control, when we surrender to something greater than us, even if it means going beyond critical rationality.” In The Art of Losing Control, Jules Evans, research fellow at Queen Mary, University of London, looks at the ways we attempt to transcend our conscious minds and achieve “ecstasy.” His examples include charismatic Christianity, psychedelic drugs, orgasms, sport, and various kinds of artistic experience, to name just a few. Evans suggests that western culture’s difficult relationship with “ego-loss” has come about since Enlightenment reason caused us to lose our attachment to the enchanted, more spiritual worldview, and accept a perspective in which the universe consists solely of matter and everything can be accounted for in material terms.
You have now reached your limit of 3 free articles in the last 30 days.
But don't worry! You can get another 7 articles absolutely free, si mply by entering your email address in the box below.
When you register we'll also send you a free e-book-Writing with punch-which includes some of the finest writing from our archive of 22 years. And we'll also send you a weekly newsletter with the best new ideas in politics and philosophy of culture, which you can of course unsubscribe from at any time
Prospect takes your privacy seriously. We promise never to rent or sell your e-mail address to any third party.
You can unsubscribe from the Prospect e-mail newsletter at any time.
