The Courage to Be Disliked

“‘Firstly, I want to debate this with you until I am satisfied, and then, if possible, I want to get you to retract this theory.’ PHILOSOPHER: ‘Ha-ha.’ YOUTH: ‘Because I have heard all about your reputation. The word is that there is an eccentric philosopher living here whose teachings and arguments are hard to ignore, namely, that people can change, that the world is simple and that everyone can be happy. That is the sort of thing I have heard, but I find that view totally unacceptable, so I wanted to confirm things for myself. If I find anything you say completely off, I will point it out and then correct you… But will you find that annoying?’”

This exchange is representative of the two characters’ initial dynamics. The youth uses “I” statements throughout his monologue in order to declare his goals to intellectually dominate the philosopher and prove himself correct: two goals that are diametrically opposed to the philosopher’s beliefs. At the end, the man finally asks the philosopher a question, but the wording of his query reveals his underlying desire to hear the philosopher’s opinions and learn new ideas despite his implicit claims of superiority.

“‘The world is simple and life is simple, too’—if there is anything in this thesis that might contain truth, it would be life from a child’s point of view. Children do not have any obvious duties, like paying taxes or going to work. They are protected by their parents and society, and can spend days free from care. They can imagine a future that goes on forever and do whatever they want. They don’t have to see grim reality—they are blindfolded. So, to them the world must have a simple form.”

This quote from the youth foreshadows his transformation and some of the philosopher’s arguments. The youth repeats this exact quote—“The world is simple and life is simple too”—as he leaves their final conversation, having fully internalized the philosopher’s message. Furthermore, his comments about the future and about being blindfolded foreshadow the philosopher’s suggestion to shine a bright spotlight on the present so as to avoid the temptation to try to see the future. Thus, the authors encapsulate the entirety of their arguments within this initial exchange, and the rest of the book is dedicated to unpacking each philosophical premise in detail and applying it to practical situations.