num_pages: 359
description: 'If we submit everything to reason our religion will be left with nothing mysterious or supernatural’ Blaise Pascal, the precociously brilliant contemporary of Descartes, was a gifted mathematician and physicist, but it is his unfinished apologia for the Christian religion upon which his reputation now rests. The PenseÃs is a collection of philosophical fragments, notes and essays in which Pascal explores the contradictions of human nature in psychological, social, metaphysical andâ€”above allâ€”theological terms. Mankind emerges from Pascal’s analysis as a wretched and desolate creature within an impersonal universe, but who can be transformed through faith in God’s grace. This masterly translation conveys Pascal’s disarmingly personal tone and captures all the fire and passion of the original. Also contained in this volume are a comparison between different editions, appendices and a bibliography.
language: English
title: Pensées
titlecomplete: Pensées
genres: Classics, Philosophy, Religion, Christianity, 17th Century, France, French Literature, Theology, Nonfiction, Christian
ratings_count: 13127
publisher: Penguin Classics