This is a list of notable philosophical fiction authors and their works, in chronological order according to the author's year of birth. AuthorYearsNotable Works and/or ThemesAugustine of Hippo354-430 De MagistroHalevi, Judah1075-1141 The KuzariAbelard, Peter1079-1142 Dialogue of a Philosopher with a Jew and a ChristianIbn Tufail1105-1185 Hayy ibn Yaqdhan: explores the limits of natural theology and the Islamic concept of fitraSamar Attar, The Vital Roots of European Enlightenment: Ibn Tufayl's Influence on Modern Western Thought, Lexington Books, .Jon Mcginnis, Classical Arabic Philosophy: An Anthology of Sources, p. 284, Hackett Publishing Company, .Machiavelli, Niccolò1469–1527 The MandrakeMore, Thomas1478-1535 Utopia: first unambiguous example of utopian and dystopian fiction.Voltaire1694-1778 Zadig Micromegas CandideJohnson, Samuel1709-1784 RasselasRousseau, Jean-Jacques1712-1778 Julie, or the New HeloiseDiderot, Denis1713–1784 Jacques the FatalistSade, Marquis de1740–1814Atheism; Nihilism; Libertinism Justine, or The Misfortunes of Virtue Philosophy in the BoudoirGoethe1749-1832 Wilhelm Meister's ApprenticeshipJean Paul1763–1825 Siebenkäs TitanChateaubriand, François-René de1768–1848 RenéHogg, James1770-1835 The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified SinnerHölderlin, Friedrich1770–1843 HyperionStendhal1783-1842 The Red and the BlackCarlyle, Thomas1795-1881 Sartor ResartusLeopardi, Giacomo1798-1837 Small Moral Works - Philosophical stories that were greatly enjoyed even by Arthur Schopenhauer.Kierkegaard, Søren1813-1855 Diary of a Seducer - A novel in the highly literary philosophical work Either/Or.Turgenev, Ivan1818-1883 Fathers and SonsDostoevsky, Fyodor1821-1881Existentialism Crime and Punishment The Brothers Karamazov Notes from UndergroundChernyshevsky, Nikolay1828-1889Russian nihilism, Utopian socialism What Is to Be Done?Tolstoy, Leo1828-1910 War and Peace ResurrectionPater, Walter1839-1894 Marius the EpicureanNietzsche, Friedrich1844-1900 Thus Spoke Zarathustra: Well-known example of a modern philosophical novel.Santayana, George1863–1952Unamuno, Miguel de1864–1936Pirandello, Luigi1867–1936Maxim Gorky1868-1936 The Life of Klim SamginProust, Marcel1871-1922 In Search of Lost TimeChesterton, G. K.1874-1936Mann, Thomas1875-1955 The Magic MountainHesse, Hermann1877-1962 SiddharthaAndrei Bely1880-1934 PetersburgMusil, Robert1880-1942 The Man Without QualitiesPapini, Giovanni1881–1956Kafka, Franz1883-1924Existential Nihilism The TrialBroch, Hermann1886-1951 The Death of VirgilCéline, Louis-Ferdinand1894-1961 Journey to the End of the NightHuxley, Aldous1894-1963 Brave New World - A critique on the conflict between the human element and animal nature of man as well as the manipulative use of psychological conditioning.
Island
After Many a SummerJünger, Ernst1895–1998 Heliopolis EumeswilLewis, C. S.1898-1963 Space TrilogyBorges, Jorge Luis1899-1986Philosophical idealism; Eternal recurrence; EternalismPlatonov, Andrei1899-1951 The Foundation PitSaint-Exupéry, Antoine de1900-1944 The Little PrinceMalraux, André1901-1976 Man's FateOrwell, George1903-1950 Animal Farm - A fable on the process of communism represented through animals on a farm. Nineteen Eighty-Four - A critique of totalitarianism as well as a discourse on the manipulative use of language.Rebatet, Lucien1903–1972 Les Deux ÉtendardsGombrowicz, Witold1904-1969 Ferdydurke CosmosSkinner, B. F.1904-1990 Walden TwoSartre, Jean-Paul1905-1980Existentialism Nausea No Exit - An existentialist play outlining Sartrean philosophy. The Devil and the Good Lord - An existentialist play outlining Sartrean philosophy.Rand, Ayn1905-1982ObjectivismBeckett, Samuel1906-1989Absurdism; Quasi-quietism Waiting for Godot: One of the most well-known philosophical plays of the twentieth century.Eliade, Mircea1907–1986 The Forbidden ForestBeauvoir, Simone de1908-1986Existentialism; Feminism
She Came to Stay
All Men are Mortal
The Woman DestroyedDazai, Osamu1909-1948 No Longer HumanLima, José Lezama1910-1976 Paradiso - Latin American Boom novel that explores desire in pre-revolution Cuba.Camus, Albert1913-1960AbsurdismEllison, Ralph1913-1994 Invisible Man - Existentialism in America.Schmidt, Arno1914–1979Percy, Walker1916-1990 The Moviegoer - An existential novel outlining Søren Kierkegaard's philosophy.Burgess, Anthony1917-1993 A Clockwork Orange - A discussion of the role of free will in the context of the application of behaviorism's techniques.Murdoch, Iris1919-1999Lispector, Clarice1920-1977 The Hour of the StarDürrenmatt, Friedrich1921-1990Lem, Stanislaw1921-2006Mishima, Yukio1925-1970 The Sailor Who Fell From Grace With The SeaMarkson, David1927-2010 Wittgenstein's Mistress - An experimental novel that demonstrates Wittgenstein's philosophy of language; stylistic similarities to Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus.Dick, Philip K.1928-1982 Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
A Scanner Darkly VALIS - A novel version of his longer non-fiction book The Exegesis, outlining his intense interest in the nature of reality, metaphysics and religion.Pirsig, Robert M.1928-2017 Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance - Pirsig's Metaphysics of QualityGuin, Ursula K. Le1929-2018Anarchism; Feminism; Socialism; DaoismKundera, Milan1929-2023 The Unbearable Lightness of BeingWilson, Colin1931–2013 Ritual in the Dark The Mind ParasitesEco, Umberto1932-2016SemioticsGardner, John1933-1982 Grendel - An exploration of various philosophical perspectives on finding meaning in the world, the power of literature and myth, and the nature of good and evil. The protagonist is a literary proxy for Jean-Paul Sartre.Berger, Arthur Asa1933- Postmortem for a Postmodernist - A murder mystery that explores postmodernism.Renata Adler1938- SpeedboatAtwood, Margaret1939- The Handmaid's Tale - Dystopian feminist novelStrauss, Botho1944- The Young ManBieri, Peter1944-2023Sloterdijk, Peter1947– Der Zauberbaum Bruckner, Pascal1948-Gaarder, Jostein1952- Sophie's WorldSant, Gus Van1952- Pink - AbsurdismShirley, John1953- The Other End - A novel about the global effects of an externally implemented planetary higher-consciousness, and an "alternative apocalypse", in gnostic-influenced metaphysics advocating Krishnamurtian/Gurdjieffian style awakening.Alexis, André1957- Fifteen Dogs - Winner of the 2015 Scotiabank Giller Prize, this novel explores faith, place, love, power and hatred through the eyes and experiences of fifteen dogs endowed with human intelligence.Dantec, Maurice G.1959-2016Stephenson, Neal1959- Anathem - Includes the philosophical debate between Platonic realism and nominalism.Wallace, David Foster1962-2008 Infinite Jest - Criticizes Poststructuralism/Postmodernism; influenced by Wittgenstein & Existentialism; introduces Metamodernism/Post-postmodernism.Jeppesen, Travis1979-Victims - Explores relativism in its relations to religious beliefYudkowsky, Eliezer1979- Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality: Explores cognitive science, philosophy, rationalism, the scientific methodRebecca Goldstein1983-Atheism; FeminismDukaj, Jacek1997- Other SongsBaran, Ivan2014- The Great Fall Monsieur August
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