I've condensed the oftentimes confusing depths of Alain de Botton's publication, which I decided to read this past summer to give myself a taste of the upcoming online philosophy class I would be taking, into what I believe to be of most relevance.
definition of edifying: "instructive or informative in a way that improves the mind or character" (Merriam-Webster)
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greek etymology of the word 'philosophy': philo~love ... sophia~wisdom
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"We stifle our doubts and follow the flock because we cannot conceive of ourselves as pioneers of hitherto unknown, difficult truths" (Alain de Botton).
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"What is declared obvious and "natural" rarely is so. Recognition of this should teach us to think that the world is more flexible than it seems, for the established views have frequently emerged not through a process of faultless reasoning, but through centuries of intellectual muddle. There may be no reason for things to be the way they are" (Alain de Botton).
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"It is by finding out what something is not that one comes closest to understanding what it is" (Alain de Botton).
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"Social life is beset with disparities between others' perceptions of us and our reality" (Alain de Botton).
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definition of epicurean: "devoted to the pursuit of pleasure; hence, luxurious, sensual, gluttonous" (Oxford English Dictionary)
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"Philosophy is useless if it does not drive away the suffering of the mind" (Alain de Botton).
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"The household of Epicurus resembled a large family, but there was seemingly no sullenness nor sense of confinement, only sympathy and gentleness" (Alain de Botton).
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"His experiences had taught him a comprehensive dictionary of frustration, his intellect a series of responses to them" (Alain de Botton).
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"No one should undertake a journey by car, or walk down the stairs, or say goodbye to a friend, without an awareness, which Seneca would have wished to be neither gruesome or unnecessarily dramatic, of fatal possibilities" (Alain de Botton).
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"We need metaphors to derive a sense of what cannot be seen or touched, or else we will forget" (Alain de Botton).
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"What progress, you ask, have I made? I have begun to be a friend to myself" (Hecato).
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"Wisdom lies in correctly discerning where we are free to mould reality according to our wishes and where we must accept the unalterable with tranquility" (Seneca).
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"I was in this mood so long, without recovering, that it did me so much harm" (Alain de Botton).
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"It is apparent from the heedless pounding of the oceans or the flight of comets across the night sky that there are forces entirely indifferent to our desires" (Alain de Botton).
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"It is tempting to quote authors when they express our very own thoughts but with a clarity and psychological accuracy we cannot match" (Alain de Botton).
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"Il vaut mieux laisser les hommes pour ce qu'ils sont, que les prendre pour ce qu'ils ne sont pas" (Chamfort).
translation: It is best to leave men for what they are, than to take them for what they are not.
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"Both alcohol and Christianity have the power to weaken our resolve to garden our own problems, both deny us the chance of fulfilment" (Alain de Botton).
***
"The greatest works of art speak to us without knowing of us" (Alain de Botton).
***
"We should not feel confused by the enormity of the upset that can ensure from only a few days of hope" (Alain de Botton).
***
"He fought hard to be happy, but where he did not succeed he did not turn against what he had once aspired to. He remained commited to what was in his eyes were the most important characteristic of a noble human being: to be someone who 'no longer denies' " (Alain de Botton).
***
"How can anyone become a thinker if he does not spent at least a third of the day without passions, people, and books?" (Alain de Botton)
definition of edifying: "instructive or informative in a way that improves the mind or character" (Merriam-Webster)
***
greek etymology of the word 'philosophy': philo~love ... sophia~wisdom
***
"We stifle our doubts and follow the flock because we cannot conceive of ourselves as pioneers of hitherto unknown, difficult truths" (Alain de Botton).
***
"What is declared obvious and "natural" rarely is so. Recognition of this should teach us to think that the world is more flexible than it seems, for the established views have frequently emerged not through a process of faultless reasoning, but through centuries of intellectual muddle. There may be no reason for things to be the way they are" (Alain de Botton).
***
"It is by finding out what something is not that one comes closest to understanding what it is" (Alain de Botton).
***
"Social life is beset with disparities between others' perceptions of us and our reality" (Alain de Botton).
***
definition of epicurean: "devoted to the pursuit of pleasure; hence, luxurious, sensual, gluttonous" (Oxford English Dictionary)
***
"Philosophy is useless if it does not drive away the suffering of the mind" (Alain de Botton).
***
"The household of Epicurus resembled a large family, but there was seemingly no sullenness nor sense of confinement, only sympathy and gentleness" (Alain de Botton).
***
"His experiences had taught him a comprehensive dictionary of frustration, his intellect a series of responses to them" (Alain de Botton).
***
"No one should undertake a journey by car, or walk down the stairs, or say goodbye to a friend, without an awareness, which Seneca would have wished to be neither gruesome or unnecessarily dramatic, of fatal possibilities" (Alain de Botton).
***
"We need metaphors to derive a sense of what cannot be seen or touched, or else we will forget" (Alain de Botton).
***
"What progress, you ask, have I made? I have begun to be a friend to myself" (Hecato).
***
"Wisdom lies in correctly discerning where we are free to mould reality according to our wishes and where we must accept the unalterable with tranquility" (Seneca).
***
"I was in this mood so long, without recovering, that it did me so much harm" (Alain de Botton).
***
"It is apparent from the heedless pounding of the oceans or the flight of comets across the night sky that there are forces entirely indifferent to our desires" (Alain de Botton).
***
"It is tempting to quote authors when they express our very own thoughts but with a clarity and psychological accuracy we cannot match" (Alain de Botton).
***
"Il vaut mieux laisser les hommes pour ce qu'ils sont, que les prendre pour ce qu'ils ne sont pas" (Chamfort).
translation: It is best to leave men for what they are, than to take them for what they are not.
***
"Both alcohol and Christianity have the power to weaken our resolve to garden our own problems, both deny us the chance of fulfilment" (Alain de Botton).
***
"The greatest works of art speak to us without knowing of us" (Alain de Botton).
***
"We should not feel confused by the enormity of the upset that can ensure from only a few days of hope" (Alain de Botton).
***
"He fought hard to be happy, but where he did not succeed he did not turn against what he had once aspired to. He remained commited to what was in his eyes were the most important characteristic of a noble human being: to be someone who 'no longer denies' " (Alain de Botton).
***
"How can anyone become a thinker if he does not spent at least a third of the day without passions, people, and books?" (Alain de Botton)