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Alain de Botton Quotes

born 1969 United Kingdom

Alain de Botton (born 20 December 1969) is a Swiss-born British philosopher and author. His books and television programs discuss various contemporary subjects and themes in a philosophical style, emphasizing philosophy's relevance to everyday life.

United Kingdom
Philosophers

Random Alain de Botton quote

43 quotes

It wasn't only fanatics and drunkards who began conversations with strangers in public.

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

The greatest works of art speak to us without knowing us.

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

We should not be frightened by appearances.

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

To look at the paper is to raise a seashell to one’s ear and to be overwhelmed by the roar of humanity.

The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work (2009)

A virtuous, ordinary life, striving for wisdom but never far from folly, is achievement enough.

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

Newspapers are being read all around. The point is not, of course, to glean new information, but rather to coax the mind out of its sleep-induced introspective temper.

The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work (2009)

In their different ways, art and philosophy help us, in Schopenhauer's words, to turn pain into knowledge.

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

There may be no good reason for things to be the way they are.

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

It is by finding out what something is not that one comes closest to understanding what it is.

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

True respectability stems not from the will of the majority but from proper reasoning.

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

Arguments are like eels: however logical, they may slip from the minds weak grasp unless fixed there by imagery and style.

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

Booksellers are the most valuable destination for the lonely, given the numbers of books that were written because authors couldn't find anyone to talk to.

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

It would be foolish to describe the logistics hub as merely ugly, for it has the horrifying, soulless, immaculate beauty characteristic of many of the workplaces of the modern world.

The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work (2009)

Responsible for wrapping the iron fist of authority in its velvet glove is Jane Axtell, head of the accountancy firm’s Human Resources department.

The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work (2009)

Happiness may be difficult to obtain. The obstacles are not primarily financial.

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

Why, then, if expensive things cannot bring us remarkable joy, are we so powerfully drawn to them?

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

It is striking how much more seriously we are likely to be taken after we have been dead a few centuries.

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

Our greatest furies spring from events which violate our sense of the ground of our existence.

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

Our bodies hold our minds hostage to their whims and rhythms.

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

We will cease to be angry once we cease to be so hopeful.

The Consolations of Philosophy (2000)

Attribution

Quotes and notes from Wikiquote: Alain de Botton (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0.