Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values â A Philosophical Travel Memoir of Personal Growth
Language: English
Published by Mariner Books Classics, 2008
- Softcover
- Used
Seller: Goodwill_NE_Indiana, Fort Wayne, IN, U.S.A.Goodwill_NE_Indiana
AbeBooks seller since September 23, 2025
Condition: Used - Good
£ 4.39
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Seller Inventory # FWV.0061673730.G
- Title
- Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values â A Philosophical Travel Memoir of Personal Growth
- Author
- Pirsig, Robert M.
- Publisher
- Mariner Books Classics
- Publication year
- 2008
- Condition
- good
- Binding
- Soft cover
- Language
- English
- ISBN 10
- 0061673730
- ISBN 13
- 9780061673733
A man and his young son embark on a summer motorcycle road trip across Americas Northwest, seeking to reconnect and explore the open country.
But this is no ordinary vacation. As the miles unspool, the journey transforms into a profound philosophical inquiry, a rolling Chautauqua that seeks to answer one of lifes most essential questions: What is best?
On a vintage motorcycle, the narrator grapples not only with the mechanics of his machine but with the very nature of Quality itself. He confronts the deep split in modern life between a cold, rational view of technology and a romantic, emotional engagement with the world, searching for a way to heal the divide. Yet, the biggest questions lie within.
Dogging his every thought is the ghost of his former self, a brilliant and dangerous man named Phaedrus, whose obsessive pursuit of truth led to his own destruction. This cross-country odyssey is more than a search for answers; it is a confrontation with a haunting past, a flight for sanity, and a powerful meditation on how we ought to live.
This profound and deeply personal story is an exploration of lifes most fundamental questionsa search for how to live, not just how to get by.
- A Father-Son Journey: Across the backroads of America, a man and his eleven-year-old son, Chris, share a motorcycle trip that uncovers the deep, complex, and often fraught bonds between them.
- The Philosophy of Quality: Through a series of philosophical discussions, or Chautauquas, the narrator grapples with the essential nature of what makes something good, from a well-maintained engine to a well-lived life.
- Technology and The Human Spirit: The narrative explores the deep divide between those who run from the cold logic of machines and those who engage with it, seeking a way to unite our rational and creative selves.
- A Divided Self: Haunting the entire journey is the ghost of Phaedrus, a former self the narrator must confront, forcing a reckoning with his own past, his sanity, and the very nature of his identity.
"Synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
About the Author
Robert M. Pirsig (19282017) is the author of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, which has sold more than five-million copies since its publication in 1974, and Lila, a finalist for the 1992 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. He graduated from the University of Minnesota (B.A., 1950; M.A., 1958) and attended Benares Hindu University in India, where he studied Eastern philosophy, and the University of Chicago, where he pursued a PhD in philosophy. Pirsigs motorcycle resides in the Smithsonian Institution.
"About the title" may belong to another edition of this title.
Goodwill_NE_Indiana
Fort Wayne, IN, U.S.A.
AbeBooks seller since September 23, 2025
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Goodwill Industries of Northeast Indiana, Inc.
1516 Magnavox Way
Fort Wayne, IN U.S.A. 46804
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