Publication

1995-12-01 - Currency

Language

English

Word Count

48,250 words, Guess

Page Count

193 pages

Identifiers

  • Open LibraryOL7440146M
  • ISBN-139780385480215
  • ISBN-100385480210
  • OCLC Control Number32925097
  • Library of Congress Control Number95032754
and 2 more
  • Goodreads2503228
  • LibraryThing189288

Classifications

  • LCCPQ6398.G3 A613 1996

Description

The Art of Worldly Wisdom by Baltasar Gracian was all but forgotten for three hundred years, until its republication in 1992 turned this lost classic into a New York Times best-seller. Now Gracian, the Spanish Jesuit considered Machiavelli's better in strategy and insight, sets a new standard on the art of living and the practice of achieving. That new standard is the art of heroism - how to be "the consummate person, ripe and perfect: accurate in judgment, mature in taste, attentive in listening, wise in sayings, shrewd in deeds, the center of all perfection.". Gracian teaches the reader to be "a giant" - "the greatest person possible, a miracle of perfection, a king." Wit, wisdom, courage, elegance, grace, humility, spontaneity - these are the qualities needed to reach heroism in any occupation. But it is not enough to be wise or graceful: One must learn as well how to manage that talent, how to distinguish a quality from its shadow. A Pocket Mirror for Heroes provides "a politics for governing [oneself], a compass for sailing toward excellence, an art for reaching distinction with just a few rules of discretion," and it will be wise and witty company for anyone who recognizes - and relishes - the challenges of daily life.

First Sentence

How singular I want you to be!

Subjects

Other Editions

  • The Pocket Mirror of HeroesCurrency1995-12-01

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