Philosopher's Dog

Praise for Raimond Gaita ROMULUS, MY FATHER ‘Extraordinary and beautiful…a profound meditation on love and death, madness and truth, judgement and compassion.’ RICHARD FLANAGAN, SUNDAY AGE ‘The moving intensity of the narrative makes Romulus, My Father a triumph.’ FRANKFURT ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG ‘consistently astounding…a memoir of absolutely compelling tragi-comic quality.’ PETER CRAVEN, AUSTRALIAN ‘A marvellous book…an original meditation on life itself: character, conversation, friendship, morality and the terror of insanity.’ SPECTATOR ‘A gift to a man, to his vision of life…a story marked by constant wonder and the acceptance of life.’ LA REALIDAD ‘A rare and passionate book, the like of which has seldom been seen in Australia.’ SYDNEY MORNING HERALD ‘Very moving and well-written, expressive if a moral vision which is both true in itself and now sorely neglected…a book that deserves to be widely read.’ ROGER SCRUTON ‘A story with the simplicity of myth and the force of tragedy…I know of no other book where the love between father and son has been more beautifully expressed.’ ROBERT MANNE, AUSTRALIAN BOOK REVIEW A COMMON HUMANITY: THINKING ABOUT LOVE & TRUTH & JUSTICE ‘Raimond Gaita’s insights are original and his prose as eloquent as it is affecting.’ THE ECONOMIST, BOOKS OF THE YEAR ‘Gaita’s genius…is his ability to weigh the soul on a scale, and to show how goodness and justice might yet prevail.’ THE SCOTSMAN ‘Philosophy at its most profound.’ JEAN CURTHOYS, AUSTRALIAN BOOK REVIEW ‘On every page of Gaita’s work—all his work—one hears a distinctive, unrelentingly serious and powerful voice. In Romulus its tone is lyrical and affecting, in Good and Evil philosophical and exacting… A Common Humanity is a work of both the writer and philosopher. It is a rare and distinguished contribution to our public life.’ MARTIN KRYGIER, AUSTRALIAN’S REVIEW OF BOOKS ‘As eloquent as it is affecting.’ ECONOMIST, BOOKS OF THE YEAR, 2000 ‘Profound and original…his humane and wise book offers a view on life which deserves to be taken seriously.’ TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT ‘A wise and beautifully written book…a wonderful example of how philosophy can still speak without any condescension.’ SIMON CRITCHLEY ‘…a striking and revelatory read, and I warmly recommend it.’ MIND ‘The trenchant beauty of the discussion, the courage and independence of the mind at work, are a magnificent accomplishment.’ PHILOSOPHICAL BOOKS ‘Gaita’s gait bedazzles, In both writing and content, there appear sensitivity, significance and feeling…Wittgenstein advises “Take your time” I advise such with the issues of this book.’ THE PHILOSOPHER’S MAGAZINE GOOD AND EVIL: AN ABSOLUTE CONCEPTION ‘I would not have believed that a work in moral philosophy could, in our present age, have such depth, brilliance and force.’ NORMAN MALCOLM ‘Outstanding.’ ALASDAIR MACINTYRE ‘A superb, richly textured discussion which engages directly with real people and their deeply serious moral concerns.’ TIMES HIGHER EDUCATION SUPPLEMENT ‘Genuinely moving…A wonderful book.’ STANLEY HAUERWAS ‘Profound…splendidly original and insightful discussions.’ R.A.DUFF, PHILOSOPHICAL BOOKS ‘A Socratic attempt to call moral philosophy back to seriousness…one of the deepest works on ethics I have read.’ LARS HERTZBERG, PHILOSOPHICAL INVESTIGATIONS THE PHILOSOPHER’S DOG ‘In everything that Rai Gaita writes we sense a generous heart at work, as well as a lucid intelligence, The Philosopher’s Dog is a book to give to the kind of person who asks what philosophy is for.’ J.M.COETZEE ‘Rai Gaita is a dog-lover, a philosopher and a gifted, sensitive writer. In this immensely readable and enjoyable book, he mixes the personal with the philosophical and the anecdotal with the profound to produce a series of illuminating reflections on what it means to be a creature and, more importantly, what it means to be fully human. It is a gre