The Conquest of Happiness (1930) is Bertrand Russell’s short, practical guide to living more happily in the modern world. Russell argues that much unhappiness comes from patterns of thought and social pressures—like envy, fear of opinion, boredom, and the obsessive pursuit of status—and that these can be unlearned. He offers a clear-eyed, non-mystical path toward greater well-being grounded in rational self-understanding, meaningful work, curiosity, affection, and engagement with the world outside the self. The book mixes philosophical insight with down-to-earth advice, aiming to be a “how-to” manual for ordinary people rather than an abstract theory of happiness.
CHAPTERS
00:00 – Preface and Poem
01:50 – Part I. Causes of Unhappiness. Chapter I. What makes People Unhappy
20:14 – Chapter II. Byronic Unhappiness
48:08 – Chapter III. Competition
1:05:35 – Chapter IV. Boredom and Excitement
1:23:09 – Chapter V. Fatigue
1:43:32 – Chapter VI. Envy
2:02:58 – Chapter VII. The Sense of Sin
2:25:41 – Chapter VIII. Persecution Mania
2:47:25 – Chapter IX. Fear of Public Opinion
3:08:09 – Part II. Causes of Unhappiness. Chapter X. Is Happiness Still Possible
3:30:15 – Chapter XI. Zest
3:55:37 – Chapter XII. Affection
4:12:07 – Chapter XIII. The Family
4:44:03 – Chapter XIV. Work
5:00:26 Chapter XV. Impersonal Interests
5:16:08 – Chapter XVI. Effort and Resignation
5:32:27 – Chapter XVII. The Happy Man
Published on 7 hours ago
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