How to be happy though human / by W. Béran Wolfe.

egoism, vanity, aggressiveness, boastfulness, and the various “ plus-gestures ” we described in a previous chapter. The goal of socialized compensation may be evaded, moreover, by the characteristic “ hesitating attitude ” of the neurotic who believes that dilatory tactics, if pursued long enough, will buy an eventual escape from the necessity of solving these problems. Under this category we have hesitation, indecision, pro¬ crastination, doubt, and conflict, which we have already described in part. Another characteristic evasion of normal adult responsibilities is to be found in what we have called “ side-show ” character traits. These are devices which not only evade the issues of reality, but give the deserter a sense of great importance in his useless arena. They also serve to convey to the world the impression that he is very busy. Among these “ side¬ show ” traits we find all the tricks ot pedantry, perfectionism, useless piety, religiosity, ritualism, tradi¬ tionalism, bigotry, timidity, anxiety, and, above all, worry. The farther one is from the normal goal, the more frantic the efforts to pursue one’s false ends with a great show of activity. That is why those who evade the normal responsibilities of adult life by attempting to re-establish the paradise of their lost childhood, work so much harder at this vain task than those who move forward, taking victory and defeat with a fair sense of humour. Among the traits that betray a retreat from life, we find all forms of human parasitism. In social relations we find a pathological love for some member of the family, together with an insufficient adjustment to men and women outside the family. In the occupational life, the psychologically immature show a tendency to be lazy, to make excuses, to shift from one job to another, to demand a sinecure : in the sexual life we find such infantile forms of expression as the perversions and the parent fixations. The keynotes of this group of character traits are childishness and irresponsibility. A further interesting method of the evasion of normal