About the author

Nicholas J. Pappas

Nick Pappas is a graduate of the University of Chicago (English) and holds a degree from Harvard Law School. Over the past 20 years he’s written a series of philosophical dialogues published by Algora Publishing, developing in some depth the philosopher character “Director,” who converses with friends and acquaintances and brings out the richness of life enhanced by philosophy. Nick also writes poems and short stories. Nick lives in Buffalo, NY, where he teaches high school English.  

All of Health

A Philosophical Dialogue

Price range: $19.95 through $29.95

In the course of a larger discussion about health, a philosopher and a physician arrive at the notion of symbiosis ; a living together to the advantage of each. And isn’t a good conversation a sort of living together to the advantage of each?

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Sound Bite

In a warm and enjoyable dialogue the meaning of "health," in its fullest sense, becomes a philosophical issue as much as a biological. For isn't the essence of health a general sense of well-being? Health can be seen as reflecting satisfaction with our quality of life; but how do we achieve that? Here, a character who is heading off for a job teaching health has an extended conversation with a trusted mentor, and they test various definitions, various visions, and some of the infinite possibilities of the idea of health, in the process coming to a deeper and more invigorating understanding of life itself.

About the Book

In the course of a larger discussion about health, a philosopher and a physician arrive at the notion of symbiosis ; a living together to the advantage of each. And isn't a good conversation a sort of living together to the advantage of each? In such dialogue, we engage with our hearts and minds. When are we more alive than when so engaged?What is the peak of health if not this life, this engagement? Physician and his friend want to know what health is. But they want more. They want to be healthy. Physician and his friend see three basic types of health ; bodily, mental, and societal. These three types affect one another. How they affect one another matters, matters in a critical way. Even a friendly conversation about health ; perhaps especially such a conversation ; can touch on something critical.But there is more. A friendly conversation allows special access to the critical. Our guard is down in such a conversation. We are less likely to be defensive. We are more likely to keep our minds open and clear. We are likely to feel the confidence it takes to learn.

About the Book

What does it really mean to be healthy? Not just physically, but mentally and socially too? That's the question at the heart of this unusual and quietly engaging book by Nicholas J. Pappas, written entirely as a philosophical dialogue between two friends: Director, a philosopher, and Physician, a medical doctor about to take up the first endowed chair of health at a university. The conversation unfolds on a hiking trail, slippery from the spring thaw, which turns out to be the perfect setting for a wide-ranging exploration of ideas.

The two characters identify three interconnected types of health — bodily, mental, and societal — and spend the book testing how these influence each other. Along the way they wrestle with big questions about well-being and quality of life that go well beyond anything you'd find in a medical textbook. What does it mean to truly flourish? Can a good conversation itself be a form of health? Pappas suggests it can, arguing that the open, unguarded exchange between friends is exactly the kind of engaged, lively living that represents health at its peak.

The dialogue format makes this accessible in a way that straight philosophy rarely manages. You're not being lectured at — you're invited to listen in, push back, laugh, and change your mind. Readers interested in philosophy of mind, the meaning of well-being, or simply what a good life looks like will find this a surprisingly warm and thought-provoking read. It sits at the intersection of health philosophy, personal flourishing, and Socratic-style conversation.

Additional information

Weight N/A
Book Type Ebook, ePub, Hard cover, Kindle, Soft cover
Pages

208

Release Year

LC Classification

BD435 .P2684 2018

Dewey code

128;dc23

BISAC I

HEA012000 HEALTH & FITNESS / Holism

BISAC II

PHI000000 PHILOSOPHY / General

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