The Soul of the Marionette

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Everyone thinks they want to be free, but what is it that they really want?

In this provocative and freewheeling book, John Gray draws together currents of thought from religion, philosophy and fantastic literature that question the meaning of human freedom.

The Soul of the Marionette explores ancient and modern Gnosticism, the mythical power of tailors' dummies, the use of mirrors for divination and Aztec ritual sacrifice, the cyborg economy and the functions of war, the peculiar logic of conspiracies, the threat and temptation of a society based on universal surveillance and the lure of a virtual life on the Internet, among other perplexing and thought-stirring topics.

Do human beings want more choice in their lives, Gray asks - or do they, like the fairground puppets that the poet Heinrich von Kleist admired for their strange spontaneity, really dream of being free from the burden of choice altogether?