Books like Betraying Spinoza by Rebecca Goldstein
In *Betraying Spinoza*, Rebecca Goldstein traces the life of the 17th‑century philosopher Baruch Spinoza, focusing on his excommunication by Amsterdam’s Jewish community in 1656. She examines how the trauma of persecution and the emerging racial anti‑Semitism of early modern Europe influenced Spinoza’s radical rejection of religious orthodoxy. Goldstein reconstructs Spinoza as a complex, deeply human figure—both a heretic and a hero—whose rational system remains relevant to contemporary thinkers, from string theorists to neurobiologists.
First publish date: 2006
Genre: Biography & Autobiography/Biography
Authors: Rebecca Goldstein
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