After a few
years when I will look back at this book there will be quite a few things that
I’ll be able to recollect. I can easily make lot of associations with this
book. I read one of the chapters of this book in a Critical Reading class, bought
it at a real cool bookstore, happened to stumble upon a hidden treasure of a
coffee shop where I spend some afternoons perusing it. And finally, some clarity
of thought which I gained after completing it.
As is clear by
the title – it is mainly about how we can stay happy.
I am
particularly struck by the mention of “the
pursuit of happiness” as one of the inalienable rights of the citizens in the U.S declaration of Independence. Seems
like the Committee of Five were wise enough to know what matters eventually. There is
abundant material floating around which claims to provide answers to the
complex questions people spend their lives struggling with. Bertrand Russell
does a really good job stripping down the needs and necessities of a man/woman
and come up with what are few basic things which can provide contentment/happiness/whatever
you call it.
In the first
half of the book – he lists the possible reasons why people are unhappy: -
- Mistaken views of the world
- Mistaken ethics
- Mistaken habits of life
- Absence of effort from life
- Absence of love
- Absence of quiet life
- Too much to worry
- Envy
- Fear of public opinion
He lists with
examples, anecdotes going into detail as to how the above characteristics
contribute to disillusionment with life and makes a person incapable to be
happy. For instance – he so rightly points out that “boredom” is an essential
ingredient of life. Even though most of us try to always indulge in exciting
endeavors – little do we realize that their value will start diminishing and
the need for stronger levels of excitement then arises. He also so wisely
states that “the lives of most great men
have not been exciting except at a few great moments.” The manner in which
simple, unadulterated truth is presented in this book is what makes it such a
classic even 80 years after it was first published. Russell clearly defines
that certain great things in life are possible only with a certain degree of
monotony. I had never thought about boredom through such a perspective. Point
to be noted – not to feel bad if you have a low-key weekend or vacation!
Similarly, he
talks about fatigue – how indecisiveness can cause fatigue and the buildup on
fatigue (mental) causes a person to stop living in the moment. The best way to prevent
it is to face our anxieties head-on i.e thinking of the worst-case possibility.
Often, we will realize that the “worst case possibility” isn’t as big as we
thought it would be. That realization can provide a sense of relief.
After listing
down the possible avenues of unhappiness – he starts with whether happiness is
even an achievable goal. He draws a subtle (but very interesting) distinction
between the level of happiness which a scientist and an artist can attain. He
points out that even though the general
public cannot understand a picture or a poem – they conclude it is a bad
picture or bad poem. But when they cannot understand the theory of relativity
they conclude (rightly) that their education has been insufficient. In a
lot of places, you can spot Russell’s dry wit humor.
The last 7
chapters are dedicated to possible ways in which happiness can be derived.
In no proper
order, he implores the reader to -
- Let your interests be as wide as possible and let your reactions to the things and persons that interest you be as far as possible friendly rather than hostile.
- Give affection to your dear ones as affection is reciprocal by nature.
- How having a tight-knit family contributes to a sense of satisfaction.
He calls upon
lot of focus to be given to personal relationships and upbringing kids.
- Need to Work.
He could clearly see much earlier in the
1930s that no matter how dull the work would be, life would be much worse if
there was no work to do. Russell blames it to the failure of man to rely on
being told what to do. As per him, man has not evolved yet to intelligently use
his leisure time. Thus, the need to get up in the morning and do some (any)
work remains important.
- Put in Effort.
You have to have a life where you put in
effort. Also, it is extremely important to not fret over small things like
missing the train or things that upset you. A wise man does not expend emotions
over things that go wrong. Russell shares a powerful trick to put things into
perspective. Ask yourself when things go wrong – In the history of the cosmos does the event in question has lot of
importance?
With his simple powerful words the author
is successfully able to drive home the point that happiness is not elusive. It
is attainable. Most of our “unhappiness” is our own doing, our improper
thoughts and expectations.
If we start approaching life with the
right perspective which he shared we will become A Happy Man or Woman.
P.S - The very few things I did not like
was that at places Russell seems to come across very conservative by nature
specially when it came to women shouldering working opportunities. If you think
of the time when he wrote the book it explains his viewpoint. At that time
women were not even remotely provided equal opportunities to go out and work. Probably,
that is the reason why he couldn’t come to the conclusion that factors
affecting happiness of women were the same as men.
P.P.S - The other thing that stands out from the book is that Russell views drinking in a negative light. He says it is a shame that people are too tired to be capable of enjoying without the help of alcohol. At one place he mocks those who drink a lot - Me no drinkee for drinkee, me drinkee for drunkee!
P.P.S.1 - A bit of trivia.
Einstein is usually praised in the mainstream literature for the stance he adopted against nuclear weapons and the Nazi party. Both Bertrand Russell and Albert Einstein signed statements against the adoption of nuclear weapons. And then Einstein went back to his research while Russell continued his struggle on the streets raising voice and trying to bring awareness on that issue. In Noam Chomsky's words - Einstein didn't rattle too many cages but Russell tried to do something about it. Thus, Russell was viciously attacked by the NYT and others. He was disregarded as a public intellectual and rather considered a crazy madman.
P.P.S - The other thing that stands out from the book is that Russell views drinking in a negative light. He says it is a shame that people are too tired to be capable of enjoying without the help of alcohol. At one place he mocks those who drink a lot - Me no drinkee for drinkee, me drinkee for drunkee!
P.P.S.1 - A bit of trivia.
Einstein is usually praised in the mainstream literature for the stance he adopted against nuclear weapons and the Nazi party. Both Bertrand Russell and Albert Einstein signed statements against the adoption of nuclear weapons. And then Einstein went back to his research while Russell continued his struggle on the streets raising voice and trying to bring awareness on that issue. In Noam Chomsky's words - Einstein didn't rattle too many cages but Russell tried to do something about it. Thus, Russell was viciously attacked by the NYT and others. He was disregarded as a public intellectual and rather considered a crazy madman.
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