- Paperback: 192 pages
- Publisher: Routledge; New edition edition (31 Dec 1975)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0415098645
- ISBN-13: 978-0415098649
- Product Dimensions: 19.2 x 13 x 1.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 193,131 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details |
More About the Author
Product Description
Review
'He writes what he calls common sense, but is in fact uncommon wisdom.' - The Observer
--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.Product Description
Bertrand Russell describes the purpose of this book as the putting together of some remarks on the state of happiness which are inspired by common sense, rather than any profound philosophy or deep erudition. It is based on the belief that many people who are unhappy could become happy by well-directed effort.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Browse and search another edition of this book.
First Sentence
Animals are happy so long as they have health and enough to eat. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
Animals are happy so long as they have health and enough to eat. Read the first page
Explore More
Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
28 of 28 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I have to say that when I bought this book I was pretty skeptical and even cynical about the topic matter, having read Russell's History of Western Philosophy and some of the other titles in the Routledge Classics and expecting something similar.
I was very pleasantly surprised and intend to re-read this book annually, Russell wrote this book for a mass audience, combining philosophy, psychology and common sense Russell first surveys what he believes to be the main causes of unhappiness, byronic unhappiness, competition, boredom and excitment, fatigue, envy, the sense of sin, persecution mania and fears of public opinion, and then proceeds to consider the possible sources of happiness Zest, affection, the family, work, impersonal interests and effort or resignation.
Some of it can appear dated and the work of the age in which it was written, for instance I think that he wrote about a sense of sin at a time where this could be a great deal more troubling to the conscience than present day, then again I remind myself that there are probably people and places where this remains very much the case today.
I cant fault Russell in his ultimate conclusion that to be happy one should live objectively, have a wide range of interests and be as sincerely and genuinely interested in and warm towards others, engaging with the world instead of retreating from it where possible. The book is full of great advice about how living after this fashion can permit you to cope with the sources of unhappiness which Russell perceives.
Russell also, in his wisdom, does not pretend to have all the answers and when he does touch upon the topic of psychology does say that it is possible that on occasion more professional advice and assistance could be called for, something that I think is very much lacking in other self-help genres or treatise.
I would also recommend this book as very readable, its jargon free, the pace is excellent and I enjoyed it as much as any book of its kind or more light reading like genre fiction.
I was very pleasantly surprised and intend to re-read this book annually, Russell wrote this book for a mass audience, combining philosophy, psychology and common sense Russell first surveys what he believes to be the main causes of unhappiness, byronic unhappiness, competition, boredom and excitment, fatigue, envy, the sense of sin, persecution mania and fears of public opinion, and then proceeds to consider the possible sources of happiness Zest, affection, the family, work, impersonal interests and effort or resignation.
Some of it can appear dated and the work of the age in which it was written, for instance I think that he wrote about a sense of sin at a time where this could be a great deal more troubling to the conscience than present day, then again I remind myself that there are probably people and places where this remains very much the case today.
I cant fault Russell in his ultimate conclusion that to be happy one should live objectively, have a wide range of interests and be as sincerely and genuinely interested in and warm towards others, engaging with the world instead of retreating from it where possible. The book is full of great advice about how living after this fashion can permit you to cope with the sources of unhappiness which Russell perceives.
Russell also, in his wisdom, does not pretend to have all the answers and when he does touch upon the topic of psychology does say that it is possible that on occasion more professional advice and assistance could be called for, something that I think is very much lacking in other self-help genres or treatise.
I would also recommend this book as very readable, its jargon free, the pace is excellent and I enjoyed it as much as any book of its kind or more light reading like genre fiction.
56 of 57 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
One of the reviewers complained that this was not a "philosophical masterpiece". Of course it isn't. It's an excellent work of popular psychology aimed at the layman. As Russell himself commented:
"Unsophisticated readers, for whom it was intended, liked it... Highbrows, on the contrary regarded it as a contemptible pot-boiler..."
These words are from Russell's autobiography.
The contention of the same reviewer that Russell was a deeply unhappy man is a plump over-simplification of the truth that anyone who is brilliant and intellectually rigorous as Russell was will never - in Russell's own words - find consolation in philosophy. Never satisfied by anything less then what could be backed up by fact he suffered from the corresponding lack of assurance that certainty brings. This does not mean his life was without joy or he was generally unhappy. Read and enjoy, and if you are a highbrow unable to go beyond Principia Mathemetica, at least try to recall that you are a human being for whom cerebration is a part time job and that there is more in Russell then is dreamt of in your philosophy.
"Unsophisticated readers, for whom it was intended, liked it... Highbrows, on the contrary regarded it as a contemptible pot-boiler..."
These words are from Russell's autobiography.
The contention of the same reviewer that Russell was a deeply unhappy man is a plump over-simplification of the truth that anyone who is brilliant and intellectually rigorous as Russell was will never - in Russell's own words - find consolation in philosophy. Never satisfied by anything less then what could be backed up by fact he suffered from the corresponding lack of assurance that certainty brings. This does not mean his life was without joy or he was generally unhappy. Read and enjoy, and if you are a highbrow unable to go beyond Principia Mathemetica, at least try to recall that you are a human being for whom cerebration is a part time job and that there is more in Russell then is dreamt of in your philosophy.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Half DIY happiness guide and half philosophy of human behaviour. On the whole a complete must read. Russell manages to condense into a short and enjoyable book his personal views on why we are happy or unhappy. He identifies causes of unhappiness and gives practical remedies for them. He shows us the sources of happiness and helps us profit from them. A deeply penetrating book I found most of it very relevant and practical both for understanding yourself and others, and for being happier. Read it, it gives us the education for life we should get at school. And remember enthusiasm is one of the most important source of happiness, live with enthusiasm and you will enjoy
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
The Conquest of Happiness
Having been impressed with Russell's outstanding essay, 'An Outline of Intellecutal Rubbish', I wanted to read more from him and came across this book in the library. Read more
Published 3 months ago by thehiddenhamish
Conquest versus Pursuit
It shows its age - the style and the references, not the physical condition of the book itself, which is perfect. And yet it is refreshing and clear. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Bennettskaya
Fingers crossed
Fingers crossed as I embark on this well known publications. Can the man with the massive brain really make my life any happier? Let's suck it and see. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Hugh Maloney
Charming and quaint
I purchased this book after reading the chapter on envy in "Search for roots" by Primo Levi - who described reading Bertrand Russell as comparable to a discussion with a charming... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Mark B
Me not drinkee for drinkee, me drinkee for drunkee
In his characteristic, and sometimes hard-hitting cynical, style Bertrand Russell explains why happiness is an achievement (not a gift) in a world full of (un)avoidable misfortune... Read more
Published 16 months ago by Luc REYNAERT
My book for "the island"
That was for sure one of the best books I've ever read (and I read a lot). Though written in 1930 it is still so true. Read more
Published on 15 Aug 2009 by ela
Drag yourself out of that pit of misery
Bertrand Russell, mathematician, philosopher and Nobel prize winner,appears to have lived a full and interesting life for 97 years so his philosophy to achieve happiness should be... Read more
Published on 21 July 2008 by Sally Wilton
Very enjoyable book if you suffer from unhappiness sometimes
When searching in an online library with the keyword 'happiness' yesterday I was surprised to find a book by Bertrand Russell. Read more
Published on 7 Jun 2005 by the great amphibian
Do not expect a philosophical masterpiece
This book consists of a collection of essays by one of the most important philosophers of the twentieth century, Bertrand Russell, a winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature. Read more
Published on 24 Oct 2001
Conquered
Russells words like "Life is not a drama in which we struggle a lot which at the end results in happiness". Read more
Published on 26 April 2000 by Saravanan
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
