The Conquest of Happiness

by Bertrand Russell

External discipline is the only road to happiness for those unfortunates whose self-absorption is too profound to be cured in any other way.

I do not myself think that there is any superior rationality in being unhappy. The wise man will be as happy as circumstances permit, and if he finds the contemplation of the universe painful beyond a point, he will contemplate something else instead.

The reasons which lead certain persons to cynicism are connected with the tyranny of the old ideals over the unconscious, and with the absence of a rational ethics by which present-day people can regulate their conduct. The

A happy life must be to a great extent a quiet life, for it is only in an atmosphere of quiet that true joy can live.

To a great extent fatigue in such cases is due to worry, and worry could be prevented by a better philosophy of life and a little more mental discipline. Most men and women are very deficient in control over their thoughts. I mean by this that they cannot cease to think about worrying topics at times when no action can be taken in regard to them.