Academic philosophy has become notorious for impenetrable prose. Durant writes with passion, humor, and rhythm. Read his closing lines on Spencer: “He is the greatest synthesist of science that the world has yet seen; and his ‘Synthetic Philosophy’ will remain for generations an unapproachable monument to the unity of knowledge and the grandeur of man.” That kind of writing makes ideas soar.
Nearly a century after its publication, Durant’s masterpiece remains the gold standard for introductory philosophy. It is a book that does not merely inform; it seduces the reader into falling in love with the life of the mind. story of philosophy by will durant