6 h 15 minAudiobook9 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if the philosopher who teaches acceptance of death begins to long for a life beyond it?
Alciphron leads the school of Epicurus in Athens. Young and admired, he teaches that the soul dies with the body and that a calm, pleasant life is enough. Yet his own longing will not rest. In Thomas Moore’s prose romance, The Epicurean, he leaves the Garden for Egypt, seeking what his teaching cannot give him.
Among the priests and monuments of Memphis, Alciphron meets Alethe, a gentle young woman whose quiet hope unsettles him and wins his love. Around them lie temple secrets, hidden rites and trials beneath the ground. As he faces ordeals of courage, purity and faith, his search for immortality becomes a struggle over what makes life worth living.
What you’ll discover
- A restless philosopher Follow Alciphron as his longing for immortality draws him beyond the teachings he leads.
- Love that unsettles certainty Meet Alethe, whose gentle presence brings love and quiet hope into his restless search.
- Secrets beneath the temple Enter a world where priests guard their knowledge and demand more than a stranger’s curiosity.
- Egypt in rich detail Picture moonlight on the Nile, torchlit tombs and the great monuments of Memphis.
- Questions that press close Explore the pull of pleasure, faith and love against the fear of death.
Is it for you?
This book suits readers who like romances set in the ancient world, rich description of Egypt, and stories where ideas about death and faith press on a love story. It may suit you less if you want fast, plain, modern storytelling.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A philosopher rules the Garden in Athens
- A restless longing sends him to Egypt
- At Memphis he meets Alethe
- Secret rites and trials beneath the temple
- Pleasure, faith and the fear of death
- A poet's prose, a letter from the past
Who’s who
- AlciphronA young, charming Greek philosopher who leads the Epicurean school in Athens and goes to Egypt, driven by a longing for a life beyond death.
- AletheA young woman of the temple world at Memphis, serious and gentle, whose quiet hope unsettles Alciphron and wins his love.
- The Egyptian priestsThe guardians of temple secrets, who test Alciphron with trials and wonders, some sincere in their faith and others hungry for power.
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- 15-minute summary
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- Paperback
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- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
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The Epicurean
by Thomas Moore· 1827
A Greek philosopher travels to Egypt seeking life beyond death.
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Language: English
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1 of 6
A philosopher rules the Garden in Athens
Alciphron is young, handsome and admired. He is the head of the Garden, the school in Athens that follows the teaching of Epicurus. Its members gather among trees and flowers to talk, to feast and to enjoy the day. Their creed says the gods do not trouble themselves with people, and that death is simply the end of feeling.
Moore shows this life as charming, not as a pose. Alciphron has friends, pupils, pleasures and a quick mind, and he is good at defending his school against rivals. The Epicureans of the story are not brutes. They believe that gentle enjoyment, friendship and freedom from fear make a good life, and they say so with grace.
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What is The Epicurean by Thomas Moore about?
It tells of Alciphron, a young Greek philosopher who leads the Epicurean school in Athens. Driven by a longing for immortality, he travels to Egypt, falls in love and faces secret temple trials that test his beliefs.
Who is Alciphron in The Epicurean?
Alciphron is the hero and the storyteller. He is the young head of the Garden, the school of Epicurus in Athens, and he is cheerful, witty and sure of his philosophy until a restless longing begins to trouble him.
What does Epicurean mean in this book?
It refers to the school of Epicurus, which taught that the soul dies with the body and that a calm life of simple pleasure, friendship and freedom from fear is best. In the book it is a creed of comfort.
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