Andrew Curran Receives Praise for New Thinking Freely Book

A new book by Andrew Curran, entitled Diderot and the Art of Thinking Freely, has received glowing reviews due to Curran’s unparalleled exploration of the work and life of the famous French philosopher Denis Diderot.

According to one reviewer, Curran marvelously describes Diderot’s life but does much more than create a mere biography. Rather, he describes in detail the intellectual and social lives of France in the 18th century. In the book, Curran discusses how the Jesuits educated Diderot and how Diderot initially intended to become a priest. He goes on to describe the first influential work that Diderot published, called Pensées philosophiques, and how he was imprisoned for his writing. In addition, the book takes a look at the decades of work that Diderot put into creating the Encyclopédie.

What readers can take away from Curran’s book, according to the reviewer, is how complex the political and financial aspects of book publishing can be. They may also be intrigued by Diderot’s unconventional thoughts related to the topic of sexology. For instance, the novel Les bijoux indiscrets is something of a precursor to the Vagina Monologues. The reviewer also said he believed that Curran’s book will leave readers with a fresh appreciation for the French philosopher’s expansive thoughts and expression of intellectual freedom.

A second reviewer praised Curran for creating a well-researched and intellectually dense masterpiece that treats some of the hardest questions we ask as humans, including the existence of God, the role of organized religion, not to mention sexual norms.

According to the second reviewer, in Diderot and the Art of Thinking Freely, readers can peel back the layers of the mind of one of the most persuasive intellectual rebels in history. Given its glowing reception so far, Curran’s book with its unique glorification of skepticism is expected to continue to draw readers both today and in the years ahead.

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