How to be happy though human / by W. Béran Wolfe.
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all men and women can, with courage and understanding, become happier than they are. Those who have attained complete happiness will hardly read these pages, except perhaps to find confirmation and corroboration of their own technique of living, while those so inadequately endowed by nature as to be incapable of happiness in the larger human sense, will not turn to this book for solace. Happiness lies within the scope of all others. The object of this book is to acquaint the reader with the principles and practice of the art of living well. It is not designed as a training course for saints and angels. Its principal thesis is that a tremendous artistic and creative satisfaction awaits any man, or woman, who devotes himself to the task of self-sculpture, providing he is modest enough to play the game according to the rules, and confident enough in his powers to believe that the final product, while not perfect, may well be good. Our first premise is that nearly every human being’s lot may be changed for the better. Over two thousand years ago Socrates taught his pupils that “ virtue may be learned ”. Surely the major chagrins and disappointments of life may be avoided. Most of the torturing conflicts and much of the mental pain we experience are unnecessary and avoidable. There is hardly an intolerable anguish that cannot be replaced by some reasonable peace of mind. Most of the major personality disasters can be ameliorated if not entirely prevented. Some can be cured, many can be solaced, all can be consoled. Happiness is the interest that is paid men by nature for investments in the good life. It is not the reward of per¬ fection. It begins as a dividend on the first step in the right direction, and it accrues by compound interest. We shall proceed, therefore, to examine the problem of human happiness not as if it were an isolated goal of human life, but as if it were an attribute and an accompani¬ ment of the good life. And the good life, as we have seen, is a fine art which can be learned. Consequently our first concern is to know more about the artistic processes involved in creative self-sculpture, and our