Alain de Botton

Interested in wisdom and action. Writer; most recently of 'Plato's Vajazzle'.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

Strange Britishness that sex occupies so much of our thinking, yet so little of our conversation: it is the opposite of weather.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

In a vale of tears, swimming becomes a necessity. Front crawl provides distance, but breaststroke is more fun.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

The most soothing of the greatest poetry answers precisely the same questions that it asks.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

We torture ourselves in envying artistry: 'Tortured artist' archetype persists because we want to punish those successful.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

The less attainable an ideal, the harder it is for us to reach it.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

Even the most powerful sense of masculinity can be undermined by an unexpectedly long pause at a busy urinal.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

We feel disturbed to suddenly notice a ticking watch: really we are worried about what other constant truths we are not noticing.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

True Olympian spirit, to be an artisan of how to use your body.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

Athletic achievement is enjoyable to witness because you could not have done it yourself: genuine artistic achievement is the same.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

A certain logic to increased surveillance around the Olympics: we all at some point ask ourselves what East London is really like.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

Popular notion that an olive-oil rack is an indulgence: how many ways of making our lives simpler must we deny ourselves to feel simple?

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

Delighted to be invited to speak at Chatham House next Wednesday on my new book, "Plato's Vajazzle". All welcome.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

Sometimes, a heart in your latte is just a heart in your latte. At other times, it's bodily fluid. A good lover tips well.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

The screen cracks, your battery flies across the busstop. You curse ever having signed the contract and decide to upgrade to a newer model.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

In many ways, sex is like a smart phone; your fingers fumble on first use, soon it's second nature. Then you drop in on the pavement, drunk.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

A lover is like a book. You bore easily of the cheap ones, whilst you can enjoy a good one for a lifetime. If you don't break the spine.

[Alain de Botton @aIaindebotton]

In many ways, sex is a lot like #Leveson. There are disclosures that reveal deep truths, and each session ends with a sense of disgust.