Conspicuous Consumption | Penguin Great IdeasThroughout history, some books have changed the world. They have transformed the way we see ourselves and each other. They have inspired debate, dissent, war and revolution. They have enlightened, outraged, provoked and comforted. They have enriched lives and destroyed them. Now Penguin brings you the works of the great thinkers, pioneers, radicals and visionaries whose ideas shook civilization and helped make us who we are. With its wry portrayal of

from the Preface)

Artistic Director

and Leo Strauss—who attributed the problems of modern society to a break in the history of ideas and promoted a return to earlier modes of thought

until journalist Rika Machida writes a letter asking for her recipe for beef stew and Kajii can’t resist writing back

and power with the problem of political and social ethics in a context where the latter has lost its previous religious

In Seaways and Gatekeepers

10TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION: UPDATED WITH A NEW PREFACE

Despite these successes

Rumi celebrates the immensity and wonder of the natural world while warning us of the havoc that greed and the pursuit of power wreak upon us and our world

a chance to find out how much one life might hold inside itself without breaking

this book is a rare phenomenon

and it is central to their livelihood and very way of being