“You are ill, my dear fellow,” he said firmly. “Perhaps it is only physical, and if so, you can soon find a remedy. You must then go into the country, work hard and not eat any meat. But I don’t think it is that. You are mentally sick.” “Do you think so?” “Yes. You are suffering from a sickness, one that is fashionable, unfortunately, and that one comes across every day among sensitive people. It is related to moral insanity and can also be called individualism or imaginary loneliness. Modern books are full of it. It has insinuated itself into your imagination; you are isolated; no one troubles about you and no one understands you. Am I right?” “Almost,” I admitted with surprise. “Listen. Those who suffer from this illness need only a couple of disappointments to make them believe that there is no link between them and other people, that all people go about in a state of complete loneliness, that they never really understand each other, share anything or have anything in common. It also happens that people who suffer from this sickness become arrogant and regard all other healthy people who can understand and love each other as flocks of sheep. If this sickness were general, the human race would die out, but it is only found among the upper classes in Central Europe. It can be cured in young people and it is, indeed, part of the inevitable period of development.”
Did this cynical german from the 19th century just lay bare the soul of the average ronery Veeky Forumstard? Quite a nerve he's got!
>but it is only found among the upper classes in Central Europe So only superior people feel this?
Eli Morris
Beautiful
Ryan Reed
That doesn't mean anything.
Lucas Price
Find another you can sincerely care about and who sincerely loves you. Try, despite their flaws, to love your parents. Above all, work every day to love yourself
Seek contact with others and try to not force your past experiences on what you are living through. Live entirely through what your body tells you. Like all things worth while its needs time to grow, so give it time, awareness and patience. You are a pulsating being who strives for development, always. The fact that you feel so lonely and trapped is a proof of it.
Jordan Campbell
That's the point.
David Garcia
...
Julian Diaz
Best and only good advice
Nolan Roberts
Sarcastic little fucker he was
Luke Clark
Do everything society tells you, be a good boy and then you can live and die happily.
Sebastian Harris
“Forgive me,” he said kindly. “You are suffering from the sickness itself, not the popular caricature of it. But there really is a cure for it. It is pure fiction that there is no bridge between one person and another, that everyone goes about lonely and misunderstood. On the contrary. What people have in common with each other is much more and of greater importance than what each person has in his own nature, what makes him different from others.” “That is possible,” I said. “But what good does it do me to know all this? I am not a philosopher and I am not unhappy because I cannot find truth. I only want to live a little more easily and contentedly.” “Well, just try! There is no need for you to study any books or theories. But as long as you are ill, you must believe in a doctor. Will you do that?” “I will try.” “Good! If you were physically ill and a doctor advised you to take baths or drink medicine or go to the seaside, you might not understand why this or that remedy should help, but you would try it and obey his instructions. Now do the same with what I advise you. Learn to think more about others than yourself for a time. It is the only way for you to get better.” “How can I do that? Everyone thinks about himself first.” “You must overcome that. You must cultivate a certain indifference toward your own well-being. Learn to think, what can I do? There is only one expedient. You must learn to love someone so much that his or her well-being is more important than your own. I don’t mean that you should fall in love. That would give the opposite result!” “I understand, but with whom shall I try it?” “Begin with someone close to you, a friend or a relation. There is your mother. She has had a great loss; she is now alone and needs someone to comfort her. Look after her and try to be of some help to her.” “My mother and I don’t understand each other very well. It will be difficult.” “If your good intentions stop short, it will indeed be difficult. It’s the old story of not being understood! You don’t always want to be thinking that this or that person does not fully understand you and is perhaps not quite fair to you. Try yourself to understand other people, try to please them and be just to them. You do that and begin with your mother. Look, you must say to yourself: Life does not give me much pleasure in any case, so why shouldn’t I try it this way for once? You have lost interest in your own life, so don’t give it much thought. Give yourself a task, inconvenience yourself a little.”
