The Six Diseases of the Contemporary Spirit (Paperback)

Fundamental work by Romanian Constantin Noica on diseases of the spirit, in a paperback edition.

“A work of maturity, where a long-meditated philosophy finally achieves that simple and clear expression that is the mark of philosophical genius combined with an uncommon literary talent.” Olavo de Carvalho, excerpt from the Introduction

"The Six Diseases of the Contemporary Spirit ," a seminal work by Romanian philosopher Constantin Noica, provides a thorough analysis of the six spiritual illnesses of the contemporary world. Alongside somatic illnesses, which we have known for centuries, and psychic illnesses, identified more recently, there are others of a higher order, called diseases of the spirit, or diseases of the being, which Noica classifies into six. Three stem from lack: todetitis, which is the need to find the authentic individual; catholitis, which is the lack of the general, typical of the human being; and horetitis, which is the absence of determination. The other three are caused by refusal: acatholia, which is the refusal of the individual; atodecia, which is the refusal of the general, of what is human and individual; and finally, ahorecia, which is the refusal of determinations.

To arrive at these concepts, Noica examines, in *The Six Diseases of the Contemporary Spirit *, major works of Western literature and philosophy, transforming this book into a compendium of neuroses, characters, and myths. This highly inventive text is worth checking out.