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Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry into Values
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Product Description
The extraordinary story of a man's quest for truth. It will change the way you think and feel about your life.
"The cycle you're working on is a cycle called 'yourself.'"
"The study of the art of motorcycle maintainence is really a study of the art of rationality itself. Working on a motorcycle, working well, caring, is to become part of a process, to achieve an inner peace of mind. The motorcycle is primarily a mental phenomenon." -- Robert M. Pirsig
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #81138 in Books
- Published on: 1984-04-01
- Released on: 1984-03-01
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Binding: Mass Market Paperback
- 400 pages
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
In his now classic Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, Robert Pirsig brings us a literary chautauqua, a novel that is meant to both entertain and edify. It scores high on both counts.
Phaedrus, our narrator, takes a present-tense cross-country motorcycle trip with his son during which the maintenance of the motorcycle becomes an illustration of how we can unify the cold, rational realm of technology with the warm, imaginative realm of artistry. As in Zen, the trick is to become one with the activity, to engage in it fully, to see and appreciate all details--be it hiking in the woods, penning an essay, or tightening the chain on a motorcycle.
In his autobiographical first novel, Pirsig wrestles both with the ghost of his past and with the most important philosophical questions of the 20th century--why has technology alienated us from our world? what are the limits of rational analysis? if we can't define the good, how can we live it? Unfortunately, while exploring the defects of our philosophical heritage from Socrates and the Sophists to Hume and Kant, Pirsig inexplicably stops at the middle of the 19th century. With the exception of Poincaré, he ignores the more recent philosophers who have tackled his most urgent questions, thinkers such as Peirce, Nietzsche (to whom Phaedrus bears a passing resemblance), Heidegger, Whitehead, Dewey, Sartre, Wittgenstein, and Kuhn. In the end, the narrator's claims to originality turn out to be overstated, his reasoning questionable, and his understanding of the history of Western thought sketchy. His solution to a synthesis of the rational and creative by elevating Quality to a metaphysical level simply repeats the mistakes of the premodern philosophers. But in contrast to most other philosophers, Pirsig writes a compelling story. And he is a true innovator in his attempt to popularize a reconciliation of Eastern mindfulness and nonrationalism with Western subject/object dualism. The magic of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance turns out to lie not in the answers it gives, but in the questions it raises and the way it raises them. Like a cross between The Razor's Edge and Sophie's World, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance takes us into "the high country of the mind" and opens our eyes to vistas of possibility. --Brian Bruya
From AudioFile
Although more than twenty years have passed since the book's original publication, Pirsig's philosophies on technology and science, nature and love still offer much to this generation. Lawrence Pressman's delightful performance conveys the author's deep awareness and self-discovery. The combination of the book's vivid imagery and Pressman's contemplative delivery help ease the listener into Pirsig's lesson: we should pay less attention to "what things mean," more attention to "what they are." R.A.P. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine
Review
"Profoundly important... full of insights into our most perplexing contemporary dilemmas... It is intellectual entertainment of the highest order." -- The New York Times
"It lodges in the mind as few recent novels have... The book is inspired, original... As the mountains gentle toward the sea--with father and child locked in a ghostly grip--the narrative tact, the perfect economy of effect defy criticism... The analogies with Moby Dick are patent. Robert Pirsig invites the prodigious comparison... What more can one say?" -- The New Yorker
"It's a miracle.. sparkles like an electric dream. Freshness, originality... that seduces you into loving motorcycles, as tender in their pistons as the petals in the Buddah's dawn lotus." -- The Village Voice -- Review
Customer Reviews
Couldn't put it down.
This was a thought provocing and very enjoyable read. Although it isn't "action packed" or anything, that isn't the point. The author's naration tells the tale of his philosophical journey cross country with his son on his motorcyle. Not only was this book inspirational, but provides new insight in terms of how one sees the world around them. A must read!
About this book
I re-read this book after about 15 years and enjoyed it just as much as the first time, but I got something different out of it this time too.
This book has a great calming effect on me. It's so interesting on so many subjects, and so accesssible. This is such a relevent read.
A book about overcoming intellectualism and becoming whole
Despite the high brow reviews by self proclaiming philosophers and intellectuals who think this is a book about philosophy, it is not. It is also not a "how to" manual on maintaining a motorcycles.
This is a book about overcoming intellectualism and becoming whole. If you are contemplating reading this book please disregard the reviewers who flex their imaginary philosophical and intellectual muscle and just read it. Yes, there will be parts that seem to endlessly pursue some thought or idea but by the end of this book you will be very glad and satisfied you read it.
...of course if you have ever ridden a motorcycle, experienced the landscapes temperature changes, sounds and elements and/or struggled with and beat mental illness this book will take on a special dimension.
