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Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance - An Inquiry Into Values
by Pirsig, Robert M
- Used
- Very Good
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- Very Good/Very Good
- ISBN 10
- 0688002307
- ISBN 13
- 9780688002305
- Seller
-
Skyway, Washington, United States
Item Price
€186.54€149.23
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
New York: William Morrow & Company, 1974. 1st printing with number line down to "1". A very good only first edition copy with bowed spine, square corners but moderate wear. 412pp. Dust jacket retains original price (7.95) on front flap, is rubbed along edges and has a half-inch half-circle tea stain to upper edge back panel. Offered now in a new mylar cover.. First Edition. Hardcover. Very Good/Very Good. 8vo - 8" - 9" Tall.
Synopsis
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry into Values was written in 1974 by Robert M. Pirsig, a commentary on the Metaphysics of Quality within a growing commercialized society. The work is a fictionalized autobiography narrating a 17-day motorcycle journey across the U.S. with his son, Chris, and his friends John and Sylvia Sutherland. The trip is punctuated by numerous philosophical discussions, referred to as Chautauquas by the author, on topics including epistemology, the history of philosophy, and the philosophy of science. The interactions of these romantic philosophically driven discussions are tied by the author, who refers to his past self as Phaedrus. Author Robert M. Pirsig, a teacher of creative and technical writing at a small college, became engrossed in the question of what defines good writing, and what in general defines good, or "Quality", which he understood similar to Tao. His philosophical inventions and investigations later left him mentally ill, forcing him to reconcile with his past during his trip. "Quality . . . you know what it is, yet you don't know what it is. But that's self-contradictory. But some things are better than others, that is, they have more quality. But when you try to say what the quality is, apart from the things that have it, it all goes poof! There's nothing to talk about. But if you can't say what Quality is, how do you know what it is, or how do you know that it even exists? If no one knows what it is, then for all practical purposes it doesn't exist at all. But for all practical purposes, it really does exist."
Read More: Identifying first editions of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance - An Inquiry Into Values
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Details
- Bookseller
- Turn-The-Page Books
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 073472
- Title
- Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance - An Inquiry Into Values
- Author
- Pirsig, Robert M
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Very Good
- Jacket Condition
- Very Good
- Edition
- First Edition
- ISBN 10
- 0688002307
- ISBN 13
- 9780688002305
- Publisher
- William Morrow & Company
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Date Published
- 1974
- Size
- 8vo - 8" - 9" Tall
- Bookseller catalogs
- Philosophy;
Terms of Sale
Turn-The-Page Books
Returns: All merchandise accepted for a book-price refund if put into the mail within 10 days of receipt by buyer, and in the same condition as received. Any books received in "not as described" condition can be returned for a full refund, including return shipping, within 30 days. In these extremely rare instances, please email us of intent to return so that we can most efficiently expedite matters.
About the Seller
Turn-The-Page Books
Biblio member since 2004
Skyway, Washington
About Turn-The-Page Books
Customer service is our top priority! Susan is an ALA member librarian and lifelong book collector and enthusiast. Peter has happily spent over 30 years in the used book business. Books are well packaged to prevent damage in transit.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Edges
- The collective of the top, fore and bottom edges of the text block of the book, being that part of the edges of the pages of a...
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Number Line
- A series of numbers appearing on the copyright page of a book, where the lowest number generally indicates the printing of that...
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
- Jacket
- Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...
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