Carpe Diem Regained

The first cultural biography of carpe diem and a call to seize back the true meaning of ‘seize the day’

Discover a bold new philosophy for the digital age as Roman Krznaric revives the ancient art of living fully and consciously. Carpe Diem Regained is a call to awaken your sense of purpose and passion in a world drowning in distraction.

Existentialism is back

Carpe diem, seize the day, is one of the oldest pieces of life advice in Western history. But its true spirit has been hijacked by ad men and self-help gurus, reduced to the instant hit of one-click online shopping, or slogans like live in the now. We need to reclaim it to make sense of our complex, confusing times.

The last great expression of carpe diem was in the electrifying existential philosophy of the 1940s. Today it is an idea that challenges us to confront our mortality and live with greater passion and intention, rather than scrolling mindlessly on our phones or allowing freedom to become a mere choice between brands.

In Carpe Diem Regained, Roman Krznaric reinvents existentialism for our age of information and choice overload. An essential and empowering work of contemporary philosophy, the book unveils the surprising ways of seizing the day that humankind has discovered over the centuries, ways we urgently need to revive.