Published Books

The titles listed below are only available in Brazilian Portuguese.

Aristotle in a New Perspective: Introduction to the Theory of the Four Discourses. Original title: "Aristóteles em nova perspectiva: Introdução à teoria dos quatro discursos"—1st edition 1994, latest edition 2013. 

This book is an original contribution to universal philosophy and to the Aristotelian studies. 

By the author's own words: There is a core idea embedded in the works of Aristotle, and it has escaped the attention of almost all his readers and commentators from Antiquity to the present day. Even those who have grasped it down through the millennia—I know of only two—merely noted it in passing, without explicitly affording it any decisive importance with regard to a comprehensive understanding of Aristotle’s philosophy. And yet, it is the very key to such an understanding, if by that we mean the act of capturing the unity of a man’s thought right from his own intentions and values, rather than judging it from the outside in; an act that implies carefully respecting what is written between the lines, as it were, instead of smothering the work under some wrongheaded idolatry of the reified text, the very tomb of thought. I call it the Theory of the Four Discourses, and it can basically be summed up as follows: human discourse is a single power that manifests in four distinct ways: poetics, rhetoric, dialectic, and analytics (logic).

"If Voegelin had read this, he would have incorporated Olavo de Carvalho’s thought into his own to explain how we proceed from perception to science.”—FREDERICK WAGNER, Eric Voegelin Society, letter to the Author, February 14th, 2005.

“I have known Olavo de Carvalho and his work since the spring of 2006. At that time, I had the pleasure to edit his very fine manuscript, entitled “Aristotle in a New Perspective”. After editing the manuscript, I took the uncharacteristic step of forwarding it (with the author's permission) to a few of my former professors at the University of Notre Dame. I did so because I was quite certain that the manuscript marked a highly original contribution to our understanding of Aristotle — which is no easy feat, given the sheer volume of scholarship surrounding this ancient thinker.” —JODI BRUHN, Ph.D. Research Fellow, Institute On Governance, Ottawa, Canada.

The Garden of Afflictions: From Epicurus to the Resurrection of Caesar: An Essay on Materialism and Civil Religion. Original title: "O Jardim das Aflições: De Epicuro à ressurreição de César: ensaio sobre o Materialismo e a Religião Civil"—1st edition 1995; latest edition 2019. 

 By the author's own words: The fundamental thesis of this essay is that the history of the West is shaped by the idea of Empire and its successive attempts at restructuring; despite its different clothing, the ultimate goal remains the same: to expand the domains of the Empire to the limits of the visible world.

“If his work distinguishes itself from the shallow and pedantic prose of contemporary philosophers, it is mainly for its lively and good humored style, for its generous erudition and for its tireless search for intellectual honesty.”—A. F. BORGES.

New Age and Cultural Revolution: Fritjof Capra and Antonio Gramsci. Original title: A Nova Era e a Revolução Cultural : Fritjof Capra & Antonio Gramsci"—1st edition 1994, latest edition 2019. In this book, Olavo de Carvalho describes the impact of the works of Fritjof Capra and Antonio Gramsci upon Brazilian culture and politics.

The Collective Imbecile: Brazilian Incultural News. Original title: “O Imbecil Coletivo: Atualidades inculturais brasileiras.” 1st edition 1994, latest edition 2021. This book is always sold out and remains one of Carvalho’s best sellers in Brazil. Some well-spoken intellectuals, with their ideas, are together put to prove. Instead of remaining the intelligentsia they are known for, Olavo de Carvalho exposes their ignorance and dishonesty. The reader is introduced the phenomena he called ‘collective imbecile,’ meaning a class of high-educated personas who stupify one another with their ideas—along with his theory called ‘cognitive parallax’—that is a disconnection between the axis of intellectuals’ theoretical construction with the axis of their lived experience. 

The Future of Brazilian Thought: Studies on Our Place in the World. Original title: “O Futuro do Pensamento Brasileiro: Estudos Sobre o Nosso Lugar no Mundo.” 1st edition 1997, latest edition 2016. Olavo de Carvalho introduces the reader to the four main Brazilian intellectuals and their contributions to universal culture: Gilberto Freyre, Mário Ferreira dos Santos, Miguel Reale, and Otto Maria Carpeaux—, and meditates upon the incapacity of Brazilian society to recognize and learn with its greatest talents. 

The Collective Imbecile II: The Long March Down the Drain & The Sons of PUC. Original title: “O Imbecil Coletivo II: A Longa Marcha da Vaca para o Brejo e, Logo Atrás dela, os Filhos da PUC.” 1st edition 1998, latest edition 2019. New events in Brazilian intellectual environment of PUC-RJ (Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro) provided Olavo de Carvalho with enough material for a second volume of The Collective Imbecile. 

How to Win a Debate with No Need to Be Right: Comments on Arthur Schopenhauer’s 'Eristic Dialectics' (Translator and Editor). Original title: “Como Vencer Um Debate Sem Precisar Ter Razão, Em 38 Estratagemas. Dialética Erística.” 1st edition 1997, latest edition 2019. Besides rendering Arthur Schopenhauer’s “Die kunst, Recht zu Behalten” into Portuguese, Olavo de Carvalho furnishes that little handbook against intellectual dishonesty with an illuminating introduction, footnotes, and commentary on the writings of the German philosopher. 

The Symbolic Dialectics. Original title: A Dialética Simbólica. 1st edition 2007, latest edition 2015. This book has some of Carvalho’s greatest essays on poetics and dialectics: “Literary Genres: Their Metaphysical Foundations”, based upon the symbolism of traditional languages, Carvalho restores the distinction among the literary genres and their correlation with reality; “Symbols and Myths in the film ‘The Silence of the Lambs’.” Olavo de Carvalho presents an original analysis of the film The Silence of the Lambs and uncovers the traditional initiatory structure that underlies Jonathan Demme’s Academy Award-winning thriller.

Machiavelli or the Demonic Confusion. Original title: "Maquiavel ou A Confusão Demoníaca”, 1st edition 2011, latest edition 2019. The Prince is one of the most studied books in political sciences. Olavo lays out the real truth behind Machiavelli and The Prince. Far from being some type of scholar, or objective political scientist, Machiavelli laid traps for his reader. He quoted the Bible, but would flip its meaning on its head, to spread confusion. Stalin and Hitler both studied Machiavelli. He posed as a realist when in fact his analysis was the height of naivety.

[To be updated]