Zena Hitz

An invitation to readers from every walk of life to rediscover the impractical splendors of a life of learning In an overloaded, superficial, technological world, in which almost everything and everybody is judged by its usefulness, where can we turn for escape, lasting pleasure, contemplation, or connection to others? While many forms of leisure meet these needs, Zena Hitz writes, few experiences are so fulfilling as the inner life, whether that of a bookworm, an amateur astronomer, a birdwatcher, or someone who takes a deep interest in one of countless other subjects. Drawing on inspiring examples, from Socrates and Augustine to Malcolm X and Elena Ferrante, and from films to Hitz's own experiences as someone who walked away from elite university life in search of greater fulfillment, Lost in Thought is a passionate and timely reminder that a rich life is a life rich in thought. Today, when even the humanities are often defended only for their economic or political usefulness, Hitz says our intellectual lives are valuable not despite but because of their practical uselessness. And while anyone can have an intellectual life, she encourages academics in particular to get back in touch with the desire to learn for its own sake, and calls on universities to return to the person-to-person transmission of the habits of mind and heart that bring out the best in us. Reminding us of who we once were and who we might become, Lost in Thought is a moving account of why renewing our inner lives is fundamental to preserving our humanity.

The Hidden Pleasures of an Intellectual Life

Lost in Thought

What is happiness? Does life have a meaning? If so, is that meaning available in an ordinary life? The philosopher Zena Hitz confronted these questions head-on when she spent several years living in a Christian religious community. Religious life -- the communal life chosen by monks, nuns, friars, and hermits -- has been a part of global Christianity since earliest times, but many of us struggle to understand what could drive a person to renounce wealth, sex, children, and ambition to live a life of prayer and sacrifice. Hitz's lively and accessible book explores questions about faith, sacrifice, asceticism and happiness through philosophy, stories, and examples from religious life. Drawing on personal experience as well as film, literature, history, biography, and theology, it demystifies an important element of contemporary culture, and provides a picture of human flourishing and happiness which challenges and enriches modern-day life.

A Philosopher Looks at the Religious Life

"Este livro de Zena Hitz manifesta com a maior clareza a alegria do ato criativo, a feliz obsessão por inventar meios de vida e de pensamento que conduzam àquele momento de descoberta ou, idealmente, à própria vida em geral sentida como um fluxo incessante de descobertas. [...] Para nós brasileiros que, dados à leitura, à escrita e à discussão de ideias, não encontramos facilmente um lugar na sociedade, para nós que nos sentimos desconfortáveis tanto nos ambientes acadêmicos usuais quanto nos novos — e não muito promissores — meios online de educação, para nós, enfim, que sentimos em alguma medida a mão pesada da penúria a ameaçar qualquer tentativa mais desembaraçada e livre de fazer algo no mundo da cultura, para nós este livro é precioso. O testemunho da autora não deve ser tomado como receita a ser reproduzida, mas como prova de que uma alma sincera é quase tudo de que precisamos para realizar o que nos cabe neste mundo." — Ronald Robson, no prefácio

Imerso em pensamentos: os prazeres secretos da vida intelectual

En un mundo hiperconectado, superficial y tecnológico, en el que se juzga casi todo y a casi todos por su utilidad, ¿a qué lugar es posible acudir para retirarnos, disfrutar con sosiego, contemplar y vincularnos de nuevo con los demás? Aunque existen muchas formas de ocio para atender estas necesidades, pocas experiencias llenan tanto como la vida interior —escribe Zena Hitz—, sea la del «ratón de biblioteca», la del astrónomo aficionado, el observador de aves, o la de cualquiera que tenga un interés profundo en alguno de los incontables temas que atraen al pensamiento. A partir de ejemplos inspiradores, desde Sócrates y san Agustín hasta Malcolm X y Elena Ferrante, desde películas hasta las propias experiencias personales de Hitz, que abandonó la vida de elite universitaria en búsqueda de una mayor realización, Pensativos es un recordatorio apasionado y oportuno de que una vida rica en el ámbito del pensamiento es una vida plena. Una invitación a aprender por el mero placer de hacerlo y a renovar nuestra vida interior para preservar nuestra humanidad. «Pensativos es una conmovedora declaración de fe en el acto intelectual en un momento en que todo lo que hacemos parece conspirar contra él». — Alberto Manguel

Zena Hitz

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