In a new book, the philosopher Scott Samuelson offers seven ways of looking at suffering. He pulls wisdom from the lessons of ancient Greek myth, the horrors of the Holocaust, and the beautiful pain of blues music.

Why do we suffer? Why do people die young? Is there any point to our physical and emotional pain? In a new book, philosopher Scott Samuelson offers seven ways to think about suffering. He pulls wisdom from the lessons of ancient Greek myth, the horrors of the Holocaust, and the beautiful pain of blues music. Ultimately, he says, we have little choice but to find a balance between facing pointless suffering and trying to fix it. Samuelson joins us Thursday to discuss the difficult mystery of suffering.

Scott Samuelson teaches philosophy at Kirkwood Community College in Iowa. His writing has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, the Chicago Tribune, and Lapham's Quarterly. His new book is called Seven Ways of Looking at Pointless Suffering: What Philosophy Can Tell Us About the Hardest Mystery of All [Indie bookstores|Amazon].