What we want

In this second instalment from Alain de Botton’s book The Consolations of Philosophy we look at what’s really important to have in our lives. De Botton calls this chapter the Consolation for Not Having Enough Money and enlists the aid of the philosopher Epicurus to consider what makes us happy.

Epicurus (341-270 BC) is most widely known today for giving his name to the descriptor Epicurean which we associate with rich food and luxurious lifestyle. He lived his life in a very different way however, although he did focus on the importance of pleasure:

Pleasure is the beginning and goal of a happy life.

After reviewing just what was important in life he concluded that we should not rush into trying to satisfy our first impulses, but rationally consider what we really need to satisfy and create a happy existence.

Before establishing what Epicurus finally considered to be the most important elements for a happy life, we should perhaps look at how de Botton opens this chapter. He provides us with a pre-Epicurian influenced list of what he (de Botton) would like. He entitles this: Happiness, an acquisition list.

His full descriptions of each item are wonderful but here I’ll just provide a snippet from each:

A neoclassical Georgian house in the centre of London (Kensington, Chelsea or Holland Park would be fine).
A Dassault Falcon 900c or Gulfstream IV executive jet stationed at Farnborough or Biggin Hill.
The Villa Orsetti in Marlia near Lucca.
A library with a large desk, a fireplace and a view on to a garden.
A dining room like that at Belton House in Lincolnshire.
A bed built into a niche in a wall (like one by Jean-Francois Blondel in Paris).
An immense bathroom with a tub in the middle on a raised platform, made of marble with cobalt blue seashell designs.
Money sufficient to allow one to live on the interest of the interest.
For weekends, a penthouse apartment at the tip of the Ile de la Cité decorated with pieces from the noblest period of French furniture, the reign of Louis XVI.
A reincarnation of Giovanni Bellini’s Madonna (from the Galleria dell’Accademia in Venice), whose melancholy expression would belie a dry sense of humour and spontaneity – and would dress in Agnes B and Max Mara for walks around the Marais.

Sounds pretty good to me.

However Epicurus determined that really all that we required for a happy life, free from the continuous torment of striving for what we don’t need and which is beyond our reach, was Friendship, Freedom and Thought.

As de Botton puts it:

Wealth is of course unlikely to make anyone miserable. But the crux of Epicurus’s argument is that if we have money without friends, freedom and an analysed life, we will never be truly happy. And if we have them, but are missing the fortune, we will never be unhappy.

I agree wholeheartedly, as does de Botton who modifies his Happiness, an acquisition list to:

1. A hut.
2. Friends.
3. To avoid superiors, patronisation, infighting and competition.
4. Thought.
5. A reincarnation of Giovanni Bellini’s Madonna (from the Galleria dell’Accademia in Venice), whose melancholy expression would belie a dry sense of humour and spontaneity – and would dress in manmade fibres from the sales racks of modest department stores.

Now whilst I also like that list, I still think it fun to consider the pre-Epicurian list of (selfish) desires. So here is mine. What’s yours?

A multilevel seaside home atop a cliff with private beach, yacht and moorings below.
A studio, high tech but recreated in renaissance style, equipped for painting, music and digital alchemy, with a balcony overlooking the sea and a domed roof which opens iris-like for astronomical observations.
A lifetime’s supply of Penfold’s Grange.
One of Childeric’s golden bees taken from the Imperial cloak of Napoleon and attached to a chain as a magical talisman.
Money sufficient to forget one needs it.
A private jet to carry family and friends around the world on a whim.
Apartments in the great cities of the world as required.
A world-renowned publishing imprint famous for its eclectic releases.
Safe passage to explore the sites and treasures of the ancient world.
A reincarnation of Domenico Feti’s Magdalene, whose haunting beauty will melt the heart during periods of reflection and from whose lips will come the secrets we need to hear.

Comments

Oh COME ON. The Lute Player? She's an absolute monster. I'd go out with the Little Mermaid from the Disney film, but only if she had legs.

[deb]

I particularly like this one...
"Money sufficient to forget one needs it."
That way we could naturally turn to concentrating on keeping friends and family feeling wanted/needed/loved... and having heaps of fun and adventures together.

[Paul]

Thanks Sheryl

Yes, unfortunately today I think safe passage is destined to remain a dream, but then again throughout recorded history it probably has always been so.

The bee is a very ancient symbol associated with mysteries of nature and science. It was used by many ancient societies to signify industry, bounty, collective wisdom and devotion. In the case I mention, the Merovingian kings of Southern France use the bee extensively as a royal symbol. They of course have been connected to the stories of the Magdalen coming to France and the creation of a bloodline that led to the Crusades, the Templars and beyond. Quite romantic speculation.

When the burial mound of Dagobert II was opened it was found to contain a number of beautiful golden bees – powerful magical symbols. When Napoleon was crowned Emperor he had these golden bees sewn on to his Imperial purple cloak to signify his link to these semi divine kings.

[Sheryl]

Yes...almost as you have listed except make my painting Carrivagio's 'The Lute Player'. Safe passage is a wonderous dream, no?
Your talisman is intriguing...