Why You Should Read Self-help Books

Summary

This script challenges the disdain for self-help books, arguing they are unfairly maligned due to a romanticized view that dismisses emotional education. It posits that in ancient Greece and Rome, self-help was a literary pinnacle, with works by esteemed thinkers like Plato and Seneca. The script suggests that many acclaimed works, such as Tolstoy's 'War and Peace' and Proust's 'In Search of Lost Time,' are unrecognized self-help books, aiming to guide us towards more authentic living. It envisions a future where self-help is recognized as a prestigious genre, housing some of the world's most distinguished literature.

Takeaways

• 😅 Self-help books are often ridiculed and dismissed by intellectuals.
• 🎓 Prestigious institutions and highbrow journals typically overlook self-help literature.
• 🏛️ In ancient Greece and Rome, self-help was a central genre, aiming for emotional education and fulfillment.
• 📚 Historically, great thinkers like Plato, Aristotle, and Seneca wrote self-help books to guide living and dying well.
• 📈 The current disdain for self-help books may deter top writers and thinkers from contributing to the genre.
• 🌟 Works like Seneca’s 'On Anger' and Marcus Aurelius’s 'Meditations' are both literary masterpieces and self-help books.
• 📚 Tolstoy’s 'War and Peace' and Proust’s 'In Search of Lost Time' are examples of self-help books in disguise.
• 💡 Self-help books aim to guide us towards more compassionate, calm, and authentic lives.
• 🌈 The script suggests a reevaluation of self-help as a prestigious genre in a utopian bookstore setting.
• 🔔 The video encourages viewers to subscribe and enable notifications for more content.

Q & A

Why are self-help books often ridiculed and looked down upon?

Self-help books are often ridiculed due to a Romantic prejudice that regards offering explicit emotional education as beneath the dignity of any serious writer, implying that intelligent people should already know how to live.

What is the impact of this disdain on the quality of self-help books?

The disdain for self-help books has led to a degradation in their quality, as the most accomplished writers and thinkers feel ashamed to associate their names with a genre that is often relegated to the least prestigious sections of bookstores.

How did ancient Greek and Roman cultures view self-help literature?

In ancient Greece and Rome, self-help literature was highly regarded, with the highest ambition of authors being to provide emotional education to guide readers towards fulfillment (Eudaimonia).

Which renowned philosophers from classical culture wrote self-help books?

Philosophers such as Plato, Aristotle, Cicero, Seneca, Plutarch, and Marcus Aurelius wrote self-help books aimed at teaching how to live and die well, using their intelligence, wit, and style.

Why are Seneca’s 'On Anger' and Marcus Aurelius’s 'Meditations' considered both great literature and self-help books?

These works are considered both great literature and self-help books because they are written with high literary quality and also serve the purpose of guiding readers towards better emotional and intellectual lives.

How does the script challenge the modern perception of self-help books?

The script challenges the modern perception by suggesting that many esteemed works of literature, such as 'War and Peace' by Tolstoy and 'In Search of Lost Time' by Proust, should be recognized as self-help books due to their educational and guiding nature.

What is the script's view on the role of culture in emotional education?

The script views culture as a tool for emotional education, suggesting that many works of culture, when seen through this lens, are in fact self-help books that aim to guide us towards more authentic lives.

Why does the script suggest that self-help books should not be considered low-grade?

The script argues that the desire to guide and teach wisdom is central to all ambitious writing, and thus self-help books, which aim to do just that, should not be marginalized but recognized for their importance.

What is the utopian vision for self-help books presented in the script?

In a utopian vision, self-help books would be the most prestigious section in bookstores, housing many of the most distinguished works of world literature, returned to their rightful place of honor.

How does the script redefine the term 'self-help book' in the context of great literature?

The script redefines 'self-help book' not as a derogatory term but as a descriptor of works that aim to guide us away from folly and towards more sincere and authentic lives, thus recognizing the educational ambitions of great literature.

Outlines

00:00

📚 The Disregard for Self-Help Books

The paragraph discusses the widespread disdain for self-help books, particularly among intellectuals who view them as beneath serious literary consideration. It suggests that this disdain is rooted in a Romantic-era prejudice against the concept of emotional education, which self-help books explicitly offer. The author argues that the quality of self-help books has suffered as a result, with talented writers and thinkers avoiding the genre due to its stigma. However, the paragraph also points out that in ancient Greece and Rome, self-help was highly esteemed, with philosophers like Plato and Aristotle writing works aimed at guiding readers towards a fulfilling life. The paragraph concludes by suggesting that if we view culture as a tool for emotional education, many classic works of literature, such as Tolstoy's 'War and Peace' and Proust's 'In Search of Lost Time,' can be seen as self-help books, despite not being labeled as such.

Keywords

💡Self-help book

A self-help book is a literary genre that offers advice on personal improvement, often focusing on aspects like motivation, relationships, and success. In the script, self-help books are initially portrayed as ridiculed and dismissed by intellectuals, yet the video argues for their historical significance and the profound impact they can have on guiding readers towards a more fulfilling life, as exemplified by works of ancient philosophers.

💡Romantic prejudice

Romantic prejudice refers to a critical or disdainful attitude towards certain ideas or genres, in this case, self-help literature, that is rooted in the Romantic era's emphasis on individual emotion and authenticity. The script suggests that this prejudice has led to a devaluation of self-help books, as they are seen as beneath the dignity of serious writers and not intellectually rigorous enough.

💡Emotional Education

Emotional Education is the process of learning how to manage and understand one's emotions to lead a more fulfilling life. The video posits that self-help books are a form of emotional education, aiming to guide readers towards eudaimonia, a state of flourishing or happiness. This concept is central to the video's argument that self-help books are not just about practical advice but also about emotional and intellectual growth.

💡Eudaimonia

Eudaimonia, derived from the Greek word meaning 'human flourishing,' refers to a state of well-being and happiness that is achieved through living a meaningful and morally good life. The script uses eudaimonia to illustrate the ultimate goal of self-help books in ancient Greece and Rome, where the works of philosophers were designed to guide readers towards this state of fulfillment.

💡Classical culture

Classical culture refers to the cultural and intellectual traditions of ancient Greece and Rome, which valued reason, aesthetics, and moral philosophy. The video highlights that in classical culture, self-help books were highly esteemed, with great thinkers like Plato and Aristotle contributing to the genre, aiming to provide readers with guidance on living a good life.

💡Intellectuals

Intellectuals are individuals who are engaged in critical thinking, intellectual pursuits, and the dissemination of knowledge. In the context of the video, intellectuals are portrayed as those who typically scorn self-help books, viewing them as lacking intellectual rigor. However, the video challenges this view by arguing for the intellectual and emotional value of self-help literature.

💡Stylists and thinkers

Stylists and thinkers refer to individuals who are skilled in the art of writing and possess sharp intellectual abilities. The script suggests that due to the current disdain for self-help books, accomplished stylists and thinkers would be hesitant to associate their names with such works, despite their potential to offer valuable emotional education.

💡Cultural guardians

Cultural guardians are those who are responsible for preserving and promoting cultural values, often through institutions like universities and literary journals. The video implies that these guardians have contributed to the marginalization of self-help books by not recognizing their value and not including them in prestigious reading lists or awards.

💡Tolstoy's War and Peace

War and Peace is a novel by Leo Tolstoy that, while not traditionally categorized as a self-help book, is highlighted in the video as an example of literature that offers guidance on various aspects of life, such as compassion, calm, and forgiveness. The video argues that such works should be recognized as part of the self-help genre for their educational and transformative potential.

💡Marcel Proust's In Search of Lost Time

In Search of Lost Time is a novel by Marcel Proust that, like Tolstoy's War and Peace, is not typically considered a self-help book but is identified in the video as having self-help elements. It teaches readers to reevaluate their attachments to romantic love and social status, suggesting a focus on art and thought as a path to a more authentic life.

💡Utopia

Utopia refers to an ideal society or community, often used to critique current societal norms and suggest improvements. In the video, the concept of a utopia is used to envision a society where self-help books are not marginalized but are instead the most prestigious, reflecting a cultural shift in valuing emotional education and personal growth.

Highlights

Self-help books are often ridiculed and not considered prestigious literature.

Intellectuals scorn the idea of self-help books and they are not featured in highbrow reading lists or journals.

The disdain for self-help books is a symptom of a Romantic prejudice against emotional education.

In ancient Greece and Rome, self-help books were at the pinnacle of literature, aiming to guide readers towards fulfilment.

Great thinkers like Plato, Aristotle, Cicero, Seneca, Plutarch, and Marcus Aurelius wrote self-help books.

Works like Seneca’s On Anger and Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations are both great literature and self-help books.

Tolstoy’s War and Peace and Proust’s In Search of Lost Time are examples of self-help books in disguise.

Self-help books aim to guide us away from folly towards more sincere and authentic lives.

The desire to guide and teach wisdom is central to all ambitious writing, not just self-help.

In an ideal world, self-help books would be the most prestigious section in bookstores.

Self-help books should not be considered low-grade; they offer valuable guidance and wisdom.

The current perception of self-help books is degraded due to a lack of involvement from accomplished writers.

Ancient self-help books were written with intelligence, wit, and style to engage both the intellectual and emotional faculties.

Self-help books have been historically misunderstood and undervalued in their role in emotional education.

By viewing culture as a tool for emotional education, many works of literature can be reclassified as self-help.

Self-help books should be recognized for their ambition to improve our lives and not be marginalized.

The channel invites viewers to subscribe and turn on notifications for more content.

Transcripts

There is no more ridiculed literary genre than the self-help book. Intellectually-minded

people universally scorn the idea of them. Self-help books don’t appear on reading

lists at any prestigious university, they’re not reviewed by highbrow journals and it’s

inconceivable that a major literary prize could ever be awarded to one of their authors.

This concerted attack on the entire genre of self help is a symptom of a Romantic prejudice

against the idea of Emotional Education. Offering explicit Emotional Education is regarded as

beneath the dignity of any serious writer. We should - if we are at all intelligent - know

how to live already. Unsurprisingly therefore, the quality of all

self-help books is at present highly degraded. The most accomplished stylists and sharpest

thinkers would feel ashamed to put their name to a work which would be destined to end up

on the most ludicrous shelves of any book shop.

Yet not all eras have shared this dismissive attitude. In the classical culture of ancient

Greece and Rome, it was taken for granted that the highest ambition of any author was

to offer the reader an Emotional Education that could guide them towards fulfilment (Eudaimonia).

Self-help books were at the pinnacle of literature. The most admired thinkers - Plato, Aristotle,

Cicero, Seneca, Plutarch and Marcus Aurelius - all wrote self-help books, whose aim was

to teach us to live and die well. Furthermore, they deployed every resource of intelligence,

wit and style in writing their manuals so as to ensure that their messages would delight

the intellectual as well as the emotional faculties. Seneca’s On Anger and Marcus

Aurelius’s Meditations are among the greatest works of literature of any nation or era.

They are also, undeniably, self-help books. It can look as if humans stopped writing good

self-help after the Fall of Rome. But once we view Culture as a tool for Emotional Education,

many more works emerge as, in fact, belonging to the currently much maligned genre of self-help.

For example, Tolstoy’s War and Peace explicitly aims to teach compassion, calm and forgiveness;

it offers guidance around money, manners, relationships and career development; it seeks

to show us how to be a good friend and how to be a better parent. It clearly is a self-help

book - it just doesn’t happen to be officially described this way by the current guardians

of Culture. Marcel Proust’s In Search of Lost Time is, similarly, also a self-help

book, teaching us how to surrender our attachment to romantic love and social status in favour

of a focus on art and thought. It’s not an insult to describe such masterpieces

as self-help books. It’s a way of correctly identifying their ambitions, which are to

guide us away from folly towards more sincere and authentic lives. Such works show us that

self-help shouldn’t be a low-grade marginal undertaking: the desire to guide and teach

wisdom is at the core of all ambitious writing. In the bookstores of the utopia, the self-help

shelves would be the most prestigious of them all and on them would sit many of the most

distinguished works of world literature - returned, at last, to their true home.

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