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Twenty Great Ideas that shook the world
Which book in the Great Ideas series do you feel has had the most impact on the world?
Vote for your favourite here.
Click here to see the current results.
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On the Shortness of Life - Seneca
The Stoic writings of the philosopher Seneca offer powerful insights into the art of living, the importance of reason and morality, and continue to provide profound guidance to many through their eloquence, lucidity and timeless wisdom. |
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Meditations - Marcus Aurelius
The Meditations of the great Roman Philosopher-Emperor Marcus Aurelius are simple yet profound works of stoic philosophy that continue to offer guidance and consolation to many with their eloquence, wisdom and humility. |
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Confessions of a Sinner - St Augustine
One of the greatest explorations of sin, epiphany and redemption ever written, the Confessions of Saint Augustine continue to shape our ideas with their passionate declaration of the life-changing power of faith. |
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The Inner Life - Thomas a Kempis
The counsels of Thomas à Kempis have offered spiritual guidance to millions, with their eloquent reflections on the virtues of humility and the profound power of faith. |
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The Prince - Niccolo Machiavelli
Today The Prince is still seen as the Bible of realpolitik, read by strategists, businessmen and political animals everywhere as the ultimate guide to gaining and maintaining power in a dangerous world. |
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On Friendship - Michel de Montaigne
Michel de Montaigne was the originator of the modern essay form; in these diverse pieces he expresses his views on relationships, contemplates the idea that man is no different from any animal, argues that all cultures should be respected, and attempts, by an exploration of himself, to understand the nature of humanity. |
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A Tale of a Tub - Jonathan Swift
Swift's exuberant, bawdy fable is a unique satire on politics, religion, fashion, madness and on writing itself - one which can be seen as anticipating the postmodern age with its witty digressions and dissection of the art of fiction. |
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The Social Contract - Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Rousseau's explosive cry for human liberty helped to spark the French Revolution and has haunted our discussions of how we should rule one another ever since: seen as both a blueprint for political terror and as a fundamental statement of democracy. |
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The Christians and the Fall of Rome - Edward Gibbon
Gibbon's subversive and iconoclastic description of the rise of Christianity inspired outrage upon publication, and remains one of the most eloquent and damning indictments of the delusory nature of faith |
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Common Sense - Thomas Paine
The book that created the modern United States, Paine's incendiary call for Americans to revolt against British rule converted millions to the cause of independence and set out a vision of a just society - free from the corruption and cronyism of aristocracy - which remains as inspiring today. |
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A Vindication of the Rights of Woman - Mary Wollstonecraft
Mary Wollstonecraft's passionate declaration of female independence shattered the stereotype of docile, decorative womanhood, anticipated a new era of equality and established her as the founder of modern feminism. |
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On the Pleasure of Hating - William Hazlitt
William Hazlitt's tough, incisive and combative writings on subjects ranging from slavery to the imagination, boxing matches to the monarchy, established him as one of the greatest radicals of his age and have inspired journalists and political satirists ever since. |
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The Communist Manifesto - Karl Marx & Friedrich Engels
The Communist Manifesto has changed the face of the twentieth century beyond recognition, inspiring millions to revolution, forming the basis of political systems that still dominate countless lives and continuing to ignite violent debate about class and capitalism today. |
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On the Suffering of the World - Arthur Schopenhauer
Schopenhauer's perception of the importance of art, morality and self-awareness in a blind struggle against a Godless, meaningless world radically transformed our understanding of the individual and remains a searing vision of the human condition. |
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On Art and Life - John Ruskin
John Ruskin's insights into the need for individual artistic freedom, and his disdain for the mass-production art of the Victorian era, radically altered society's perception of creative design and remain powerfully relevant to our ideas of beauty today. |
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On Natural Selection - Charles Darwin
No one has done more to shape our view of what makes us human than Charles Darwin, whose seismic theory of evolution turned the Victorian world upside down, utterly rewrote our notions of life on earth and is still attacked by religious creationists today. |
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Why I Am So Wise - Friedrich Nietzsche
One of the most iconoclastic thinkers of all time, Friedrich Nietzsche continues to challenge the boundaries of conventional religion and morality with his subversive theories of the 'superman', the individual will, the death of God and the triumph of an all-powerful human life force. |
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A Room of Ones Own - Virginia Woolf
Virginia Woolf's blazing polemic on female creativity, the role of writers and the silent fate of Shakespeare's imaginary sister remains a powerful reminder of a woman's need for financial independence and intellectual freedom. |
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Civilization and its Discontents - Sigmund Freud
Freud's epoch-making insights revolutionized our perception of the self, forming the foundation for psychoanalysis; here he presents his theory of an innate 'death drive' - arguing that civilization distorts natural aggression to impose a terrible burden of guilt upon us. |
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Why I Write - George Orwell
Whether puncturing the lies of politicians, wittily dissecting the English character or telling unpalatable truths about war, Orwell's timeless, uncompromising essays are more relevant, entertaining and essential than ever in today's era of spin.
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