The Art of Happiness

by John Cowper Powys

. Village Press 1974, clean copy, no markings, light fading to covers, Professional booksellers since 1981

Genres: Nonfiction

1000 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1935

About the author

Powys was born in Shirley, Derbyshire, where his father was vicar. His mother was descended from the poet William Cowper, hence his middle name. His two younger brothers, Llewelyn Powys and Theodore Francis Powys, also became well-known writers. Other brothers and sisters also became prominent in the arts.

John studied at Sherborne School and Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, and became a teacher and lecturer; as lecturer, he worked first in England, then in continental Europe and finally in the USA, where he lived in the years 1904-1934. While in the United States, his work was championed by author Theodore Dreiser. He engaged in public debate with Bertrand Russell and the philosopher and historian Will Durant: he was called for the defence in the first obscenity trial for the James Joyce novel, Ulysses, and was mentioned with approval in the autobiography of US feminist and anarchist, Emma Goldman.

He made his name as a poet and essayist, moving on to produce a series of acclaimed novels distinguished by their uniquely detailed and intensely sensual recreation of time, place and character. They also describe heightened states of awareness resulting from mystic revelation, or from the experience of extreme pleasure or pain. The best known of these distinctive novels are A Glastonbury Romance and Wolf Solent. He also wrote some works of philosophy and literary criticism, including a pioneering tribute to Dorothy Richardson.

Having returned to the UK, he lived in England for a brief time, then moved to Corwen in Wales, where he wrote historical romances (including two set in Wales) and magical fantasies. He later moved to Blaenau Ffestiniog, where he remained until his death in 1963.

Reviews

[Richard S · Rating 5 out of 5]

John Cowper Powys' (JCP) non-fiction is highly underrated, even a book put together as quickly as this one, which reads as if it was composed at a single sitting, and which was written for money - his publisher wanted a book they knew would sell well before doing his next novel.

"The Art of Happiness" - why are there not more books like this written today? And this work of pure philosophy is quite wonderful. JCP offers up his suggestions which are unusual but interesting. Where the book really shines though I felt was in the psychological insight into the relation between the sexes. In his novels the characters have a very high degree of realism in their relationships, and JCP's understanding of the human psyche in the matter of the relations between men and women is quite unsurpassed.

This book was written between his Autobiography and Maiden Castle, both incredibly difficult works, and it was nice to read something easy and simple. While JCP's novels reflect his philosophy, The Art of Happiness is not a comprehensive work as it deals with a single topic. In Defence of Sensuality is more of a comprehensive philosophy.

So - recommended to all, maybe not a life changer but it will spur your thinking, even if you find much of it difficult to consume. JCP's inimitable prose is exceptionally clear and well thought out. It was a pleasure reading. It made me happy.

[Rupert Owen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once again I have found the pure intellectual levelness of John Cowper Powys to be awe inspiring. This short essay concerns itself with the dogmatic materialism and dogmatic idealism, two polar extremes of society that aim to find happiness in either complete science or complete mysticism. The poetic tongue Powys deploys here is sometimes so rich, I know that a second or third reading with more focus is needed. However, that makes for a lot of depth in a work of only 45 pages. I think even Powys admits that in such a short work it is not feasible to chart the whole extent of this topic. More so I think he concentrates on what happiness may be rather than the art of obtaining it. I do prescribe to the idea that one can never be truly happy (Whatever happiness actually is - one man's happiness is another man's crappiness), more so I appreciate that Powys also recognises this despite the title of the treatise. Who Powys is addressing here is the sensitive being, who finds himself pitted against so much of humanity that makes him feel unhappy. So a bit like saying here is a guide for tall people on how to avoid banging your head.

I recommend this read wholly in as much as Powys is master of painting an idea with such brevity as he can, to degrees of which he can unravel complicated concepts in a single paragraph, concepts that in the hands of another writer may take up several chapters.

[Nicholas Kokolakis · Rating 3 out of 5]

A challenging read and interesting look at the constant struggle for happiness. “ Pleasure can come and go at random and by chance, for it depends on outward things; but happiness does not depend on outward things. It is born of the mind, nourished by the mind, it is what rides, like breath in a frosty air, from the mind’s wrestling with its fate. We are not born to be happy. We are born to struggle for happiness.”

[Tor · Rating 1 out of 5]

I kept feeling like he was almost going to make an interesting point. Almost.