Living for Pleasure: An Epicurean Guide to Life
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- Create Date：2023-03-04 09:51:26
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Emily A. Austin
- ISBN：0197558321
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Summary
If we all want happiness and pleasure so much， then why are we so bad at getting it？
Pleasure feels amazing！ Anxiety， however， does not。 The Ancient Greek Philosopher Epicurus rolled these two strikingly intuitive claims into a simple formula for happiness and well-being--pursue pleasure without causing yourself anxiety。 But wait， is that even possible？ Can humans achieve lasting pleasure without suffering anxiety about failure and loss？ Epicurus thinks we can， at least once we learn to pursue pleasure thoughtfully。
In Living for Pleasure， philosopher Emily Austin offers a lively， jargon-free tour of Epicurean strategies for diminishing anxiety， achieving satisfaction， and relishing joys。 Epicurean science was famously far ahead of its time， and Austin shows that so was its ethics and psychology。 Epicureanism can help us make and keep good friends， prepare for suffering， combat imposter syndrome， build trust， recognize personal limitations， value truth， cultivate healthy attitudes towards money and success， manage political anxiety， develop gratitude， savor food， and face death。
Readers will walk away knowing more about an important school of philosophy， but moreover understanding how to get what they want in life--happiness--without the anxiety of striving for it。
Pleasure feels amazing！ Anxiety， however， does not。 The Ancient Greek Philosopher Epicurus rolled these two strikingly intuitive claims into a simple formula for happiness and well-being--pursue pleasure without causing yourself anxiety。 But wait， is that even possible？ Can humans achieve lasting pleasure without suffering anxiety about failure and loss？ Epicurus thinks we can， at least once we learn to pursue pleasure thoughtfully。
In Living for Pleasure， philosopher Emily Austin offers a lively， jargon-free tour of Epicurean strategies for diminishing anxiety， achieving satisfaction， and relishing joys。 Epicurean science was famously far ahead of its time， and Austin shows that so was its ethics and psychology。 Epicureanism can help us make and keep good friends， prepare for suffering， combat imposter syndrome， build trust， recognize personal limitations， value truth， cultivate healthy attitudes towards money and success， manage political anxiety， develop gratitude， savor food， and face death。
Readers will walk away knowing more about an important school of philosophy， but moreover understanding how to get what they want in life--happiness--without the anxiety of striving for it。
Reviews
Qapsl0ck
，
Easy to read introduction to the philosoph of Epicurus。
Wes Robertson
，
Prof Austin does a great job selling Epicurus as a worthy competitor to Ryan Holiday’s ubiquitous Stoics， and perhaps as a better alternative。 I’m eclectic in approach anyway so pursuit of pleasure as Epicurus defines it seems worth considering as a cognate to Buddhist life。 I see considerable overlap。 E’s focus on necessary pleasures like food， shelter， friendship and memorable experiences in lieu of dogged pursuit of wealth， power， beauty， etc。， provides a hopeful counterbalance to the destruc Prof Austin does a great job selling Epicurus as a worthy competitor to Ryan Holiday’s ubiquitous Stoics， and perhaps as a better alternative。 I’m eclectic in approach anyway so pursuit of pleasure as Epicurus defines it seems worth considering as a cognate to Buddhist life。 I see considerable overlap。 E’s focus on necessary pleasures like food， shelter， friendship and memorable experiences in lieu of dogged pursuit of wealth， power， beauty， etc。， provides a hopeful counterbalance to the destructive excesses our culture seems to require。 。。。more
Hiram Crespo
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This one of the latest books propagating Epicurean philosophy as a practice and as an answer to modern philosophical questioning， rather than as a museum piece or the ruins of an ancient creed。 It is non-academic， written in a style that is friendly and easy to follow， and most modern Epicureans who have read the book seem to have a positive opinion of the book， as do I。One of the ideas I appreciate （because this is such a prominent problem today） is her treatment of anxiety and how it relates t This one of the latest books propagating Epicurean philosophy as a practice and as an answer to modern philosophical questioning， rather than as a museum piece or the ruins of an ancient creed。 It is non-academic， written in a style that is friendly and easy to follow， and most modern Epicureans who have read the book seem to have a positive opinion of the book， as do I。One of the ideas I appreciate （because this is such a prominent problem today） is her treatment of anxiety and how it relates to taraxis / perturbation。 Epicurean philosophy helps us to diagnose （by signs） hindrances to happiness， and to tackle them rather than be avoidant。 Epicureans do not use philosophy to escape nature， but to thrive in it and live pleasantly。 This book discusses the many issues that are tackled directly by Epicurean therapeutics， and how Epicurus and the other Epicurean Guides act as life-coaches， helping us to address all the important philosophical projects related to our happiness。The book also demonstrates how one may practice paraphrasing the Kyriai Doxai （a didactic method utilized by Philodemus of Gadara， most famously， in the Tetrapharmakos）， as a way of memorizing them and gaining full cognitive assimilation of them。 In this case， she paraphrases Principal Doctrine 29 （“the hierarchy of desires”）， which says: "Among desires， some are natural and necessary， some are natural and unnecessary， and some are unnatural and unnecessary （arising instead from groundless opinion）"。 Austin re-labels the three categories as natural （natural and necessary）， extravagant （natural， unnecessary） and corrosive （neither natural nor necessary） desires。 She uses this terminology throughout the book。 I believe this technique of paraphrasing works well， and is a great way for Kyriai Doxai to adapt and become native to our modern， English language。Austin argues that in addition to studying the Epicurean sources， the student should also write his own epitomes and essays of Epicurean philosophy， rehashing and expressing Epicurean ideas in her own vernacular。 This practice of reading and writing about Epicurus and his teachings is a great auto-didactic method。 It was used in the days of the founders， who encouraged their pupils to keep outlines and summaries of the teachings。 Much later， in Roman times， the Epicurean Guide Philodemus of Gadara instructed his own students to keep an outline of the doctrines on wealth。 This demonstrates that the reading-and-writing method has been used to help students become experts in both the general points of the philosophy， and in the specific aspects。Overall， this book is a great new addition to the modern study of Epicurus， and makes a great gift to a friend that we wish to introduce to the practice of Epicurean philosophy。 You'll find a more complete version of this review here: https://societyofepicurus。com/living-。。。 。。。more
Samuel
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Wonderful。 Possibly life-changing。 May write to the author to thank her profusely。 *edit* I did write to the author to thank her profusely。Brace yourselves for many more books by and about Epicurus。
Rick
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I've been reading a lot of Stoicism， thanks to Ryan Holiday， and I've become aware that the Stoics and the Epicureans of ancient Greece were antagonists， which I didn't understand。 The subject book gave me a lot of insight into Epicureanism， which I now appreciate。 The chapters are short， but the material is still relatively dense。 I couldn't read more than a couple of chapters at a time。 It would be helpful if the author started a Daily Epicurean newsletter like Ryan Holiday's Daily Stoic。 I've been reading a lot of Stoicism， thanks to Ryan Holiday， and I've become aware that the Stoics and the Epicureans of ancient Greece were antagonists， which I didn't understand。 The subject book gave me a lot of insight into Epicureanism， which I now appreciate。 The chapters are short， but the material is still relatively dense。 I couldn't read more than a couple of chapters at a time。 It would be helpful if the author started a Daily Epicurean newsletter like Ryan Holiday's Daily Stoic。 。。。more
William Wilson
，
For me， this book was a revelation。 It staggered me that an ancient Greek could formulate a philosophy so well suited for the modern era， and so scientifically valid。 Very readable， with examples from the present day， I found myself putting it aside after a few pages to think about its implications to my life。As I began this book， I said to myself， “hey， I'm already leading an epicurean life – I'm a natural。” And then I found out that I wasn't really， and in significant ways。 While I've rarely b For me， this book was a revelation。 It staggered me that an ancient Greek could formulate a philosophy so well suited for the modern era， and so scientifically valid。 Very readable， with examples from the present day， I found myself putting it aside after a few pages to think about its implications to my life。As I began this book， I said to myself， “hey， I'm already leading an epicurean life – I'm a natural。” And then I found out that I wasn't really， and in significant ways。 While I've rarely been afflicted by the “corrosive” influence of greed in its many forms， I often fail at nurturing friendships， which Epicurus found to be central to the good life。 As I've grown older， death has become a more ominous concern， and Epicurus shows how to come to grips with those fears。 I could go on， but， do yourself a favor and read this yourself。 。。。more
Roy Kenagy
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BN PICKLIST
Susan Dunn
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Such an absolutely beautiful book I won on Goodreads。 I’m very thankful to have this in my Library && I am at Peace。
LUCAS H。 GOLDING
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This is a really great book on the philosophy of Epicureanism。 It’s not just about indulging in the pleasures of life， like gorging ourselves on ice cream or sex。 in fact I think the author makes a pretty good argument that is not what Epicureanism is about at all。 Epicureanism is about having gratitude for the pleasurable experiences that the world has to offer， and at the same time understanding that there is a balance on the teeter totter of life when it comes to those pleasures。 Getting too This is a really great book on the philosophy of Epicureanism。 It’s not just about indulging in the pleasures of life， like gorging ourselves on ice cream or sex。 in fact I think the author makes a pretty good argument that is not what Epicureanism is about at all。 Epicureanism is about having gratitude for the pleasurable experiences that the world has to offer， and at the same time understanding that there is a balance on the teeter totter of life when it comes to those pleasures。 Getting too much of anything robs us of the perspective of that gratitude。 I was also surprised at the depth of this philosophy。 It encourages us to develop and work towards that which is universally valued， such as Friendship， Love and community。 It emphasizes cultivation of those values。 I also really appreciated the author’s anecdotes and analogies to our current 21st century internet society and how even though everything is different today then in Epicurious’ time， it really isn’t。 The chapter on the Covid pandemic being analogous to the plague in Epicurious’s time was very insightful。All in all this is a great book on Epicureanism。 I recommend it to anyone who’s looking to learn and understand this often misunderstood philosophy。 。。。more
Jennifer
，
My only reference to Epicurus before this was related to food and wine - and usually of a gluttonous， YOLO type of nature。This was a very relatable and real look into what Epicurus actually believed， tried to explain and attempted to live himself。 And those who followed him after。I found myself laughing out loud throughout the book。 And feeling much of it all hit home in a "too-close to home" sort of way。 Epicurus definitely has more to him than just eating， drinking and some of the other philos My only reference to Epicurus before this was related to food and wine - and usually of a gluttonous， YOLO type of nature。This was a very relatable and real look into what Epicurus actually believed， tried to explain and attempted to live himself。 And those who followed him after。I found myself laughing out loud throughout the book。 And feeling much of it all hit home in a "too-close to home" sort of way。 Epicurus definitely has more to him than just eating， drinking and some of the other philosophies that are attributed to him - this takes a nuanced look at all of them and helps put it all in perspective for living life - not just in his time but today 2000 years later。 Actually it's shocking how relevant he is to today's world。 Definitely has me intrigued and looking more into this as a philosophy and way of life。 。。。more
Joe Waters
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Great book on Epicureanism！This is just such a readable， practical book that makes philosophy so useful。 The best outcome is that I want to read and learn more about Epicureanism！Bravo to the author for such a wonderful book。 I look forward to reading your next！
Amelia
，
“We desire not only that we get something， but that we be pleased when we get it。”Austin provides us with a fantastic primer on Epicurean philosophy。 Pulling on translations and academic critiques， she offers insight into Epicurus' peers and his philosophy in that living for pleasure isn't an inherently bad thing to do。 Of course， we must keep in mind that we should not seek pleasure that outright harms others， but instead focus on the joys in our lives。 Covering a plethora of topics such as fri “We desire not only that we get something， but that we be pleased when we get it。”Austin provides us with a fantastic primer on Epicurean philosophy。 Pulling on translations and academic critiques， she offers insight into Epicurus' peers and his philosophy in that living for pleasure isn't an inherently bad thing to do。 Of course， we must keep in mind that we should not seek pleasure that outright harms others， but instead focus on the joys in our lives。 Covering a plethora of topics such as friendship， romantic love， death， and food， she creates a guidebook that is so convincing that it might just make you rethink where you are and start thinking in greater terms of what happiness and pleasure are， and how one such as yourself can attain it。 。。。more
Anthony Melita
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A perfect intro to epicurean Philosophy， accessible and enjoyable
Belle
，
Very approachable and easy to follow。
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