Santayana on the meaning of life

In SOL today we're reading Bertrtand Russell on the "causes of happiness." Foremost among them, for him, was the constant courting of "zest" in life. This led me to consider William James on "what makes a life significant" and "the solid meaning of life"... and that, to their contemporary George Santayana. There is no cure for birth and death, Santayana said, save to enjoy the interval.

As Older Daughter would say: "True dat."

The Swerve

Excellent review in yesterday's Times by Montaigne biographer Sarah Bakewell, on a new account of ancient atomism in Lucretius (and before him Democritus and Epicurus)...

The Swerve - How the World Became Modern - By Stephen Greenblatt - Book Review - NYTimes.com:

“What human beings can and should do is to conquer their fears, accept the fact that they themselves and all the things they encounter are transitory, and embrace the beauty and the pleasure of the world.”

Montaigne, too, was a fan of ancient atomism. He scooped Nietzsche on eternal recurrence:

“Since the movements of the atoms are so varied, it is not unbelievable that the atoms once came together in this way, or that in the future they will come together like this again, giving birth to another Montaigne.”

In a separate review, Dwight Garner finds a Woody Allen angle and adds that for Lucretius

“there is no master plan, no divine architect, no intelligent design.” Religious fear, Lucretius thought, long before there was a Christopher Hitchens, warps human life... living a full life include[s] friendship and philanthropy and fundamental happiness.

As for the atomism itself,

the philosopher George Santayana would call this “the greatest thought that mankind has ever hit upon.” 

Well, maybe... 'til Darwin had the best idea ever.

'via Blog this'

Bye, Sonja

Really enj0yed our last How of Happiness session this afternoon, despite literally losing my voice. But it'll be back, I promise. The new seating arrangement worked great, facing all our interlocutors really seemed to grease the conversational skids: everyone had lots to say. The rain outside didn't please some, but it cooled things off nicely for us; and isn't it always good to help the plants grow?

Kevin's question about cultural differences in people's (and peoples') various conceptions of happiness was hugely instigating, as we wondered (among other things) what more one could or should wish to say to cannibals and dog-eaters and ritual sacrificers (and whomever) to indicate discomfiture with their respective happiness ideals.

Is there a universal human nature to which we can appeal, in trying to adjudicate competing practices and the beliefs they rest on? Even if we assume substantial agreement among humans, what would or should we say to beings who possessed radically different "conceptual schemes" and renounced any interest in our notions of happiness? And is there a "greater good" (with respect to planetary ecology, material excess, public safety, personal predilections et al) that overrides our particular pursuits of happiness? Just a few of the challenging questions we generated and commented on today. Fun!

As we wave bye-bye to Sonja Lyubomirsky, I hope we all saw the practical value in trying to nail down our respective short lists of "happiness activities." I also hope we all have the chance to experience and cultivate that transcendent-ecstatic "Super-flow" she writes of.

I said in class, with my last thin rasp, that her summarizing point about the importance of forming solid happiness habits is strong. It complements her other big Jamesian point about "attention" as crucial to the possibility of living a good life.

I didn't get around to saying today that I also like another Jamesian (and Spinozist) point she makes, that "approach" behavior is better than "avoidance." Put another way: always seek your happiness under the positive aspect of good, sub specie bonum, rather than trying to get it through the back-door merely by pushing away the bad (sub specie mali). Minimizing misery is not the same as maximizing joy. And aspiring only to a flat-line condition, neither happy nor excessively sad, is selling short your potential for real flourishing.

One more thing: she selects really good epigrams. "My advice to you is not to inquire why or whither, but just enjoy your ice cream while it's on your plate." (Thornton Wilder)

And I especially like this bit of seasoned wisdom from Santayana, in ch.10: "To be interested in the changing seasons is a happier state of mind than to be hopelessly in love with spring." Very true, particularly in September.

Now for Jonathan Haidt.