Concerning Intellectual Suicide in The Human Race: A Debate on the Human Condition (Human Condition Trilogy) by Massimo Fantini | 4-Star Book Review
First Thoughts:
The reader is encouraged to take a moment to reflect on the author’s perspectives, turning it into an experience rather than a brief story for entertainment. This is a thought-provoking tale of concepts and ideations that you may agree or disagree with, but it certainly gives you much to contemplate. Deep thought about a book is an admirable goal.
Book Details
Concerning Intellectual Suicide in The Human Race: a debate on the human condition by Massimo Fantini
Series: The Human Condition Trilogy
Published by Independent on May 21, 2023
Genres: New Adult, Literary Fiction
Format: eBook, Paperback
Pages: 267
Source: Kindle UnlimitedIntellectual suicide corresponds to the more or less conscious decision to switch off the brain and renounce rational thought in favor of attitudes dictated by superstitions, by established habits, by prejudices, by common places.
The effects of irrational choices – made with the brain switched off – can be devastating for oneself and for the others. Examples range from conformism, to religious superstitions, to ideological fundamentalism, just to name a few possibilities.
Tommaso, the protagonist of this debate, is the victim of his parents’ intellectual suicide, perpetrated through procreation. Procreation – the unilateral act by which a couple throws innocent individuals into the stillicidium of life, without weighing the consequences that the hell of existence will have on them – is the most heinous form of intellectual suicide in the human race, not least because of the scale of its consequences.
The author’s intention is to shine the spotlight on the one reality that unites us all, that accompanies our lives from birth until death, but which is casted to our periphery: the human condition.
The editing and translation of this book was done by Ian Zwaschka.
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Purchase Links for Concerning Intellectual Suicide in The Human Race
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Fantini, Massimo (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 265 Pages - 05/21/2023 (Publication Date)
- Fantini, Massimo (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 355 Pages - 03/23/2024 (Publication Date) - Independently published (Publisher)
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My Thoughts on Concerning Intellectual Suicide in The Human Race
Massimo Fantini’s book Concerning Intellectual Suicide in The Human Race: A Debate on the Human Condition (Human Condition Trilogy) delves into the concept of intellectual suicide, which involves abandoning thought in favor of superstitions, habits, prejudices, or clichés. Fantini explores how such irrational choices can deeply impact individuals and society, leading to conformity or extreme religious and ideological beliefs.
The character Tommaso exemplifies the repercussions of this, growing up in a world where his parents opt for procreation without considering the consequences of bringing a life into being. Fantini argues that this decision epitomizes a form of suicide due to its profound effects on individuals who never consented to their existence.
The author aims to highlight the shared humanity that unites us all—the human condition—often overlooked amidst the busyness of life. Edited and translated by Ian Zwaschka this book presents its concepts through a narrative that may require some effort to fully understand, resembling a somewhat fictionalized thesis. Rather than offering entertainment, this book critically examines societal norms and the risks associated with conformity.
The reader is encouraged to take a moment to reflect on the author’s perspectives, turning it into an experience rather than a brief story for entertainment. This is a thought-provoking tale of concepts and ideations that you may agree or disagree with, but it certainly gives you much to contemplate. Deep thought about a book is an admirable goal.
I may have received a copy of the book from the author, publisher, or tour company. Otherwise, it is from my personal library or Kindle Unlimited.
This review is my honest, unbiased opinion.
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I love to read books through my Amazon Kindle Unlimited subscription.
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About Massimo Fantini
Greetings, readers.
I am Massimo Fantini, an Italian author and free thinker, writing from my home in the hills just outside Bologna. In quiet moments, when I am not writing, I enjoy classical music, particularly orchestral works for violin and the Italian opera.
I graduated from a university in Bologna with a degree in civil engineering. However, the studies of my youth do not represent my life’s obsession—that is, delving into those realities which unite all members of the human race: suffering, frustrations, conflicts, and the human reactions to these. They are the events and forces that take every human as an innocent in the crib and twist and turn them into 8.1 billion unique (but intimately connected) forms.
In short, I am obsessed with exploring the intimate recesses of the human condition.
In 2018, entirely dissatisfied with my job, I sought a new form of expression. Thus, I began to write. Incessantly.
I experimented with many kinds of writing. How best to give my ideas form? Then, I found my voice through stories, giving life to characters who explore, triumph, and fail for us to watch.
In each installment of my Human Condition Trilogy, these same all-encompassing issues are approached from different directions, under different circumstances, and by different characters.
Echoing the sentiment of Heraclitus, no two people may look at the same problem, because it is different to each. From the old cynical Leonard in Concerning Fanaticism to young Tommaso (a character inspired by my own youth) in Concerning Intellectual Suicide, I tried to cast a light on a path that is a constant part of our lives, but also constantly shifting.
Through my writing, I encourage readers to find their own perspective on life. Rather than embracing the comfortable mold which society provides, like a goldfish “free” to swim around in its little bowl, I hope my readers can use my books as a steppingstone toward their own unique way of thinking. And then, I wish them the freedom to pursue it.
Art is wonderful because it is a representation of what we otherwise cannot express. I seek not to provide myself and my readers with a mere distraction (what so often passes for “entertainment”). Not a hole in which to stick our heads for a few hours, only to emerge weakened and even less able to face our reality. Rather, I offer up a representation of our shared condition.
The Human Condition.
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Easy Amazon Links for the trilogy
- Fantini, Massimo (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 632 Pages - 03/22/2024 (Publication Date) - Independently published (Publisher)
- Fantini, Massimo (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 355 Pages - 03/23/2024 (Publication Date) - Independently published (Publisher)
- Fantini, Massimo (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 301 Pages - 03/22/2024 (Publication Date) - Independently published (Publisher)
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If you enjoy Concerning Intellectual Suicide in The Human Race, you might also like:
Confronting Power and Chaos: The Uncharted Kaleidoscope of My Life by Christine Skarbek
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Sounds like such a fascinating book, great review.