Chapter 1 Summary and Analysis

Author De Botton starts with, "There are few things humans are more dedicated to than unhappiness" (pg. 3.) He reasons that there are plenty of things to be unhappy about, including the frailty of our bodies and the insincerities of social life.

To begin to explore the subject, author Marcel Proust, De Botton starts with a Paris newspaper of the 1920s called L'Intransigeant. The newspaper had a popular column that polled celebrities on interesting questions. One column in particular posed a scenario in which the end of the world is scientifically certain and it is announced to the world. In this scenario, the column asked, what would be the effect on people and how would they behave?

Various celebrities of the day chimed in with responses, including writer Henri Bordeaux, actress Berthe Bovy, and palm reader Madame Fraya. Answers ran the gamut...