Heidegger and a Hippo Walk Through Those Pearly Gates: Using Philosophy (and Jokes!) to Explore Life, Death, the Afterlife, and Everything in Between

by Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein

Book Overview

A hilarious take on the philosophy, theology and psychology of mortality and immortality. That is, death. The authors pry open the coffin lid on this one, looking at the Big D, its prequel, Life, and its sequel, the Hereafter. Philosophers such as Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, Camus and Sartre have been wrestling with the meaning of death for as long as they have been wrestling with the meaning of life. Fortunately, humourists have been keeping pace with...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0670020834
• ISBN13: 9780670020836
• Release Date: October 2009
• Publisher: Viking Books
• Length: 245 Pages
• Weight: 0.67 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.5" x 7.4"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

The Cartoons Are Killers!

I have several relatives in the "very old" generation and they're dropping like flies. As a result, I have tried to brush up on my ability to converse easily with those who have almost finished their bucket list. My particular approach is to minimize the religious and maximize the use of humor. Some of them have fallen hard enough for the threats about "the other place" and I feel it is my job to reassure them that they'll at least be well-remembered. So far, this book is my best resource. You're in luck if you would like to be knowledgable about the great philosophers who addressed death but reading about them puts you to sleep. They're all here, interspersed with hilarious cartoons and correctly presented by the authors. The format of the book lends itself well to painless learning. If you are approaching the finish line yourself, let me provide for you the recommendation of Mark Twain. I had read it before, but this book presents it again: "When approaching the Pearley Gates, leave your dog behind. If entrance were based on merit, he would be admitted and you would be left behind." DB

Excellent sequel

Fifty percent philosophy and fifty percent humor - or is it the other way around? This book continues the excellent technique of making philosophical questions (and answers) as fun as they ever get. Terrific jokes that are older than Hippos but newer than mud, this is a great book for newbies and oldbies. It should be a quick best seller and never end in the cellar.

Philosophy and humor all rolled into one. Wonderful!!!

I don't have a lot of time for reading, but this book totally engulfed me; I couldn't put it down!!! During a time when I have been facing middle age and the aging of my parents, I have been contemplating the whole "death" thing. This book talks about so many things that are somewhat taboo in our society and helps dealing with death in a humorous but very straight forward manner. Religious-types may not care for the book, but as a spiritual person that has never been involved in traditional structured religion I found it absolutely intriguing!!! The book is broken into 7 sections includes funny comics throughout the book. Here are the topics discussed: Dead! Whatcha Gonna Do About It? Eternity When You Least Expect It Immortality the Old-fashioned Way, On the Soul Train Post Mortem Life: Postcards Death as a Lifestyle Choice Biotechnology: Stop the Presses! The End They look at philosophers viewpoints over history and the whole death-anxiety that exists in our society. Throughout the book they include life situation scenes that are hilarious. I love the kick in the butt to religion. This book is not just a funny book about death, but will really help you look death straight in the eyes from a new point of view. Loved it!!!

The Funny Meaning of Death

Who the heck buys books about, well, death? A large segment of the death-books market is probably shallow-minded religious people who indulge in house of cards speculations built on the thinnest of historical/theological evidences. Another segment is those who find themselves confronting issues of mortality in their own lives and who use such books to help them through their own difficult times. "Heidegger and a Hippo" is not this. Rather, it is a "death book" for the rest of us - that is, those of us who wouldn't normally read books about such a subject - it's neither emotional, dark, nor preachy, but funny and clarifying. Also (to paraphrase a common sort of 'philosophical joke' from the book that is actually funnier than I'm about to make it out to be) - it's not exactly a book about death. I reviewed Cathcart and Klein's previous work, "Aristotle and an aardvark go to Washington" as an effort that came across as largely flat because the authors had strayed too far from their home turf of western philosophy and too far into generalalist areas of contemporary politics where they had no particular expertise or insights. I think the authors in retrospect must have felt the same way, since here, in "Heidegger and a Hippo", they return to what they are good at - presenting some rather nuanced philosophy in a thoughtful yet entertaining way. As a plus, the duo pull off what few comedians ever do - the quality of their jokes, funny quotations, and so forth is actually better than it was in their first two offerings. The end result is a very good book that makes for easy yet compelling light reading. The philosophical themes explored in the book come overwhelmingly from western sources - think Aristotle, Wittgenstein, and Heidegger. A bit more emphasis on Eastern philosophies would have made the book better, but this is a bit beyond the authors' field of expertise, as whn they do get into Eastern ideas, it is only in a very generalist sort of way. Nevertheless, Heidegger and a Hippo is a keeper.

Hilarious and Helpful

"Heidegger and a Hippo Walk Through Those Pearly Gates" is a surprisingly funny and nuanced view of the meaning of life, with special emphasis on the views of classical philosophers. The format will be familiar to those that have read Cathcart and Klein's "Plato and a Platypus Walk Into a Bar" -- some serious philosophy, a good joke or two, and a series of delightful cartoons on relevant topics. Surprisingly supported by the jokes and cartoons, the authors carefully consider some serious philosophical issues while clearly explaining background concepts. I was a Philosophy major in college many years ago, and it was delightful to see how easily the authors clearly explained some rather difficult concepts in Existentialism, classic philosophy (Plato and Aristotle), depth psychology (Freud and Jung), Buddhism, religion, and cybernetics as they explored issues like the survival of personality after death, the existence of heaven and hell, and the meaning of life. There's a lot to learn from this book but it never feels dull or academic. Perhaps my only criticism is the repeated use of nicknames for famous philosophers. The first time Martin Heidegger is referred to as "Marty" is mildly amusing, but it quickly becomes tiresome as the gag is repeated many times. On the plus side, they quote Woody Allen often. All in all, a refreshing and vigorous example of the best use of philosophy as a means to clarify thinking and beliefs. Highly recommended.