We are presented with an unpleasant choice between either committing to peculiar concepts about immaterial deities or letting go entirely of a host of consoling, subtle or just charming rituals for which we struggle to find equivalents in secular society.
ALAIN DE BOTTONThere is a devilishly direct relationship between the significance of an idea and how nervous we become at the prospect of having to think about it.
More Alain de Botton Quotes
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In the oasis complex, the thirsty man images he sees water, palm trees, and shade not because he has evidence for the belief, but because he has a need for it. Desperate needs bring about a hallucination of their solution: thirst hallucinates water.
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Envy: a confused, tangled guide to one’s own ambitions.
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We may seek a fortune for no greater reason than to secure the respect and attention of people who would otherwise look straight through us.
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I am in general a very pessimistic person with an optimistic, day to day take on things. The bare facts of life are utterly terrifying. And yet, one can laugh. Indeed, one has to laugh precisely because of the darkness: the nervous laughter of the trenches.
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You normally have to be bashed about a bit by life to see the point of daffodils, sunsets and uneventful nice days.
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We will cease to be angry once we cease to be so hopeful.
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Forcing people to eat together is an effective way to promote tolerance.
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Not everyone is worth listening to.
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In the gap between who we wish one day to be and who we are at present, must come pain, anxiety, envy and humiliation.
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Curiosity takes ignorance seriously – and is confident enough to admit when it’s in the dark. It is aware of not knowing. And then it sets out to do something about it.
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There’s a whole category of people who miss out by not allowing themselves to be weird enough.
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The longing for destiny is nowhere stronger than in our romantic life.
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You need a long hard day’s work to reveal the logic of the craving for very bad tv and alcohol.
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Don’t despair: despair suggests you are in total control and know what is coming. You don’t – surrender to events with hope.
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The problem isn’t so much finding good ideas (there is no shortage) as embedding the ones we have into everyday practice.
ALAIN DE BOTTON