ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Alain de Botton - Philosopher
Through his witty and literate books -- and his new School of Life -- Alain de Botton helps others find fulfillment in the everyday.

Why you should listen

It started in 1997, when Alain de Botton turned away from writing novels and instead wrote a touching extended essay titled How Proust Can Change Your Life, which became an unlikely blockbuster in the "self-help"category. His subsequent books take on some of the fundamental worries of modern life (am I happy? where exactly do I stand?), informed by his deep reading in philosophy and by a novelist's eye for small, perfect moments. His newest book is The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work.

In 2008, de Botton helped start the School of Life in London, a social enterprise determined to make learning and therapy relevant in today's uptight culture. His goal is (through any of his mediums) to help clients learn "how to live wisely and well."

More profile about the speaker
Alain de Botton | Speaker | TED.com
TEDGlobal 2009

Alain de Botton: A kinder, gentler philosophy of success

Alain de Botton: Brižljivija, nežnija filozofija uspeha

Filmed:
7,971,965 views

Alain de Botton istražuje naše viđenje uspeha i neuspeha - i preispituje pretpostavke koje leže u korenu naših stavova. Da li je uspeh uvek zaslužen? Da li je neuspeh? Na elokventan i duhovit način on prezentuje kako prevazići snobizam i naći pravo zadovoljstvo u onome što radimo.
- Philosopher
Through his witty and literate books -- and his new School of Life -- Alain de Botton helps others find fulfillment in the everyday. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
For me they normally happen, these career crises,
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Za mene one se normalno dešavaju,
mislim na krize u karijeri,
00:15
often, actually, on a Sunday evening,
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često u nedelju uveče,
00:17
just as the sun is starting to set,
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kad sunce počinje da zalazi,
00:19
and the gap between my hopes for myself,
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i razlika između nade u budućnost
00:22
and the reality of my life, start to diverge so painfully
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i realnosti, počinje da se povećava
00:26
that I normally end up weeping into a pillow.
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tako da obicno završim jecajući u jastuk.
00:29
I'm mentioning all this,
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Sve ovo spominjem,
00:31
I'm mentioning all this because I think this is not merely a personal problem.
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jer mislim da ovo nije samo moj problem.
00:34
You may think I'm wrong in this,
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Vi možda mislite da grešim.
00:36
but I think that we live in an age when our lives are regularly
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Ja mislim da živimo u vremenu
kad naši životi
00:38
punctuated by career crises,
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redovno upadaju u krize karijere,
00:40
by moments when what we thought we knew,
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i da na momente kada mislimo da znamo,
00:42
about our lives, about our careers,
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o našim zivotima, o našim karijerama,
00:44
comes into contact with a threatening sort of reality.
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dodjemo u kontakt sa surovom realnošću.
00:48
It's perhaps easier now than ever before to make a good living.
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Verovatno je lakše danas, nego ikada pre, da se dobro živi.
00:51
It's perhaps harder than ever before
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Verovatno je mnogo teže danas nego ikada pre,
00:54
to stay calm, to be free of career anxiety.
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da se ostane smiren, oslobodjen od anksioznosti u karijeri.
00:57
I want to look now, if I may,
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Želeo bih da bacim pogled sada
00:59
at some of the reasons why
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na neke od razloga zašto
01:01
we might be feeling anxiety about our careers.
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se osećamo anksioznim kad je u pitanju naša karijera.
01:04
Why we might be victims of these career crises,
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Zašto postajemo žrvte tih kriza,
01:06
as we're weeping softly into our pillows.
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dok tiho jecamo u naš jastuk.
01:10
One of the reasons why we might be suffering
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Jedan od razloga zašto mi možda patimo
01:13
is that we are surrounded by snobs.
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je zato što smo okruženi snobovima.
01:15
In a way, I've got some bad news,
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Na neki način, imam lose vesti,
01:18
particularly to anybody who's come to Oxford from abroad.
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naročito za svakog ko je došao u Oxford iz inostranstva.
01:21
There is a real problem with snobbery.
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Tu danas postoji problem sa snobizmom.
01:23
Because sometimes people from outside the U.K.
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Ljudi koji nisu iz Britanije zamišljaju
01:25
imagine that snobbery is a distinctively U.K. phenomenon
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da je snobizam fenomen samo u Britaniji
01:27
fixated on country houses and titles.
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vezan za kuće u prirodi i titule.
01:30
The bad news is that's not true.
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Loša vest je da to nije tačno.
01:32
Snobbery is a global phenomenon.
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Snobizam je svetski fenomen.
01:34
We are a global organization. This is a global phenomenon.
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Ovo je globalna organizacija, a to je globalni fenomen.
01:36
It exists. What is a snob?
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Šta je to snob? Snob je
01:38
A snob is anybody who takes a small part of you
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svako ko na osnovu malo informacija
01:41
and uses that to come to a complete vision of who you are.
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zaključi sve o tebi.
01:44
That is snobbery.
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To je snobizam.
01:46
The dominant kind of snobbery
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Dominantni snobizam danas
01:48
that exists nowadays is job snobbery.
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je poslovni snobizam.
01:50
You encounter it within minutes at a party,
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Nakon nekoliko minuta na okupljanju
01:52
when you get asked that famous iconic question
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vas pitaju to čuveno famozno pitanje
01:55
of the early 21st century, "What do you do?"
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21. veka: "Čime se bavite?"
01:58
And according to how you answer that question,
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I u zavisnosti od odgovora
02:00
people are either incredibly delighted to see you,
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ljudi su ili oduševljeni
02:02
or look at their watch and make their excuses.
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ili nadju razlog da odu.
02:04
(Laughter)
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(smeh)
02:05
Now, the opposite of a snob is your mother.
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Suprotnost jednom snobu je vaša majka.
02:08
(Laughter)
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(smeh)
02:10
Not necessarily your mother, or indeed mine,
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Ne baš vaša majka, ili moja,
02:13
but, as it were, the ideal mother,
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ali idealna majka.
02:15
somebody who doesn't care about your achievements.
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Koju ne zanimaju vaša dostignuća.
02:17
But unfortunately, most people are not our mothers.
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Nažalost, ljudi nisu naše majke.
02:19
Most people make a strict correlation between how much time,
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Mnogo ljudi ispoljava korelaciju izmedju koliko vremena,
02:22
and if you like, love -- not romantic love,
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pa čak i ljubavi, ako hoćete,
02:24
though that may be something --
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ne romantične ljubavi,
02:26
but love in general, respect,
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ali generalno poštovanja,
02:28
they are willing to accord us, that will be strictly defined
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i spremni su da nam se posvete u skladu sa tim,
02:31
by our position in the social hierarchy.
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a od toga zavisi i naš status u društvu.
02:33
And that's a lot of the reason why we care so much about our careers
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I to je razlog zašto mi brinemo o karijeri.
02:36
and indeed start caring so much about material goods.
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I razlog zašto počinjemo da obraćamo pažnju na materijalne stvari.
02:40
You know, we're often told that we live in very materialistic times,
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Često cujemo da živimo u materijalnom svetu,
02:43
that we're all greedy people.
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i da smo svi pohlepni.
02:45
I don't think we are particularly materialistic.
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Ja ne mislim tako.
02:47
I think we live in a society
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Mislim da živimo u drustvu
02:49
which has simply pegged certain emotional rewards
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koje je spojilo emotivne nagrade
02:51
to the acquisition of material goods.
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sa sticanjem materijalnih dobara.
02:54
It's not the material goods we want. It's the rewards we want.
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Nije novac ono sto želimo, već su to nagrade.
02:57
And that's a new way of looking at luxury goods.
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I to je nov način gledanja na luksuzne stvari.
02:59
The next time you see somebody driving a Ferrari
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Sledeći put kad vidite nekog ko vozi Ferrari
03:01
don't think, "This is somebody who is greedy."
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nemojte da mislite, "Ovaj je pohlepan."
03:03
Think, "This is somebody who is incredibly vulnerable and in need of love."
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Mislite, "Ovo je neko ko je vrlo ranjiv i kome treba ljubav."
03:06
In other words -- (Laughter)
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Odnosno, (Smeh)
03:11
feel sympathy, rather than contempt.
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saosećajte se sa njima,
03:13
There are other reasons --
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radije nego da ih prezirete.
03:15
(Laughter)
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(smeh)
03:16
there are other reasons why it's perhaps harder now
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Postoje drugi razlozi zašto je teže danas
03:18
to feel calm than ever before.
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osećati se smirenije nego ikada pre.
03:20
One of these, and it's paradoxical because it's linked to something that's rather nice,
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Jedan od razloga je
03:23
is the hope we all have for our careers.
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što se svi nadamo uspešnim karijerama.
03:26
Never before have expectations been so high
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Nikada pre očekivanja nisu bila toliko velika
03:28
about what human beings can achieve with their lifespan.
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o tome šta ljudi mogu da urade u njihovom životu.
03:31
We're told, from many sources, that anyone can achieve anything.
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Govore nam da svako može da postigne sve.
03:34
We've done away with the caste system.
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Završili smo sa kastama.
03:36
We are now in a system where anyone can rise
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Živimo u sistemu gde svako moze da dostigne
03:38
to any position they please.
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bilo koju poziciju koju zeli.
03:40
And it's a beautiful idea.
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I to je lepa ideja.
03:42
Along with that is a kind of spirit of equality. We're all basically equal.
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Iz toga proizilazi ideja o jednakosti. Mi smo svi faktički jednaki.
03:46
There are no strictly defined
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Ne postoje strikno definisane
03:48
kind of hierarchies.
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neke vrste hijararhije.
03:50
There is one really big problem with this,
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Postoji jedan veliki problem.
03:52
and that problem is envy.
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A taj problem je zavist.
03:54
Envy, it's a real taboo to mention envy,
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Pravi je tabu spomenuti zavist,
03:57
but if there is one dominant emotion in modern society, that is envy.
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ali zavist je dominantna emocija u modernom društvu.
04:00
And it's linked to the spirit of equality. Let me explain.
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I povezana je sa idejom jednakosti. Pojasniću.
04:04
I think it would be very unusual for anyone here, or anyone watching,
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Mislim da bi bilo veoma čudno,
04:07
to be envious of the Queen of England.
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da zavidimo Kraljici Engleske.
04:09
Even though she is much richer than any of you are.
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Iako je ona mnogo bogatija od svih nas.
04:12
And she's got a very large house.
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I ima veoma veliku kuću.
04:15
The reason why we don't envy her is because she's too weird.
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Razlog zašto joj ne zavidimo je
04:19
She's simply too strange.
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što je previse čudna.
04:21
We can't relate to her. She speaks in a funny way.
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Ne možemo da se poistovetimo sa njom.
04:23
She comes from an odd place.
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Priča čudno.
04:25
So we can't relate to her. And when you can't relate to somebody, you don't envy them.
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A kada ne možete da se poistovetite sa nekim, ne možete da im zavidite.
04:29
The closer two people are, in age, in background,
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Što su dvoje ljudi bliže, po godinama, po poreklu,
04:32
in the process of identification, the more there is a danger of envy --
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veća je opasnost od zavisti.
04:35
which is incidentally why none of you should ever go to a school reunion --
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To je razlog zašto niko od vas ne treba da ide na godišnjice mature.
04:38
because there is no stronger reference point
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Jer ne postoji jača veza nego
04:41
than people one was at school with.
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izmedju ljudi koji su išli zajedno u školu.
04:43
But the problem, generally, of modern society, is that it turns the whole world
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Problem modernog drustva je da pretvara ceo svet u školu.
04:46
into a school. Everybody is wearing jeans, everybody is the same.
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Svi nose farmerke, svi su jednaki,
04:48
And yet, they're not.
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ali ustvari nisu.
04:50
So there is a spirit of equality, combined with deep inequalities.
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Postoji prividan duh jednakosti,
04:53
Which makes for a very -- can make for a very stressful situation.
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zajedno sa velikim nejednakostima.
04:56
It's probably as unlikely that you would nowadays
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Podjednako je neverovatno da danas
04:58
become as rich and famous as Bill Gates,
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postanete bogati i kao Bill Gates,
05:00
as it was unlikely in the 17th century
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kao što je bilo neverovatno u 17. veku
05:02
that you would accede to the ranks of the French aristocracy.
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da postanete Francuska aristokratija.
05:05
But the point is, it doesn't feel that way.
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Ali to ljudi ne osećaju.
05:07
It's made to feel, by magazines and other media outlets,
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Ustvari mediji stvaraju osećaj,
05:10
that if you've got energy, a few bright ideas about technology,
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da ako imas energiju, nekoliko ideja o tehnologiji,
05:13
a garage, you too could start a major thing.
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i garažu, i ti možes da započnes veliku stvar.
05:17
(Laughter)
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(Smeh)
05:18
And the consequences of this problem make themselves felt in bookshops.
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I posledice se osećaju u knjizarama.
05:21
When you go to a large bookshop and look at the self-help sections,
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u sekciji sa knjigama "kako da sami sebi pomognete".
05:24
as I sometimes do,
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a ponekad ih obiđem,
05:26
if you analyze self-help books that are produced
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i ako analizirate te knjige,
05:28
in the world today, there are basically two kinds.
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postoje samo dve vrste knjiga.
05:30
The first kind tells you, "You can do it! You can make it! Anything is possible!"
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Prva kaže: "Ti to možes! Uspećes! Sve je moguće!"
05:33
And the other kind tells you how to cope
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A druga kaže kako da se suočite
05:36
with what we politely call "low self-esteem,"
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sa tzv. "nedostatkom samopoštovanja",
05:39
or impolitely call "feeling very bad about yourself."
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tj. misliti loše o sebi.
05:41
There is a real correlationship,
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Postoji realna korelacija,
05:43
a real correlation between a society that tells people that they can do anything
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izmedju društva koje govori da mogu sve da postignu,
05:47
and the existence of low self-esteem.
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i nedostatka samopoštovanja.
05:49
So that's another way in which something that is quite positive
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I to nije mnogo dobro.
05:51
can have a nasty kickback.
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Postoji još jedan razlog
05:53
There is another reason why we might be feeling more anxious,
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zašto smo mi danas previse anksiozni
05:56
about our careers, about our status in the world today, than ever before.
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u vezi sa našim statusom u društvu.
06:00
And it is, again, linked to something nice,
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A razlog je meritokratija (merit (eng.) = zasluga),
06:02
and that nice thing is called meritocracy.
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i to je opet u vez sa nečim dobrim.
06:05
Everybody, all politicians on Left and Right,
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Danas se svi, pa i političari,
06:07
agree that meritocracy is a great thing,
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slažu da je meritokratija dobra stvar,
06:09
and we should all be trying to make our societies really, really meritocratic.
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i da naše društvo treba da bude meritokratsko.
06:13
In other words, what is a meritocratic society?
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A šta je to meritokratsko društvo?
06:17
A meritocratic society is one in which
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Meritokratsko društvo je ono u kome
06:19
if you've got talent and energy and skill,
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ako imaš talenta i energije i veštine,
06:21
you will get to the top. Nothing should hold you back.
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uspećeš da dodjes na vrh.
06:23
It's a beautiful idea. The problem is
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Dobra ideja, ali problem je da
06:26
if you really believe in a society
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ako stvarno verujete u društvo
06:28
where those who merit to get to the top, get to the top,
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gde ljudi koji zaslužuju da dodju na vrh, dodju na vrh,
06:31
you'll also, by implication, and in a far more nasty way,
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onda takodje misite, implicitno,
06:34
believe in a society where those who deserve to get to the bottom
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da oni koji zaslužuju da dodju na dno,
06:37
also get to the bottom and stay there.
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dodju na dno.
06:40
In other words, your position in life comes to seem not accidental,
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Vaša pozicija u životu više nije slučajna,
06:43
but merited and deserved.
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vec zaslužena.
06:45
And that makes failure seem much more crushing.
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I to čini neuspeh jos težim.
06:48
You know, in the Middle Ages, in England,
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U srednjem veku,
06:50
when you met a very poor person,
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kada vidite siromašnu osobu,
06:52
that person would be described as an "unfortunate" --
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kaze se da "nema sreću", nesrećnik.
06:55
literally, somebody who had not been blessed by fortune, an unfortunate.
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Drugim rečima, neko ko nije bio blagosloven srećom.
06:59
Nowadays, particularly in the United States,
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Danas, pogotovu u SAD,
07:01
if you meet someone at the bottom of society,
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kada sretnete nekog siromašnog,
07:03
they may unkindly be described as a "loser."
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ljudi kažu da je "luzer".
07:06
There is a real difference between an unfortunate and a loser,
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Postoji realna razlika izmedju nesrećnika i luzera.
07:09
and that shows 400 years of evolution in society
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I to pokazuje 400 godina evolucije u društvu,
07:12
and our belief in who is responsible for our lives.
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i verovanja ko je odgovoran za naše živote.
07:15
It's no longer the gods, it's us. We're in the driving seat.
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To vise nisu bogovi, to smo mi.
07:18
That's exhilarating if you're doing well,
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To je vrlo uzbudljivo ako nam ide dobro,
07:20
and very crushing if you're not.
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i veoma surovo u suprotnom slučaju.
07:22
It leads, in the worst cases, in the analysis of a sociologist
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U najgorem slučaju, po analizi sociologa kao što je Emil Durkheim,
07:25
like Emil Durkheim, it leads to increased rates of suicide.
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to vodi ka povećanom broju samoubistava.
07:29
There are more suicides in developed individualistic countries
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Više samoubistava se dešava u razvijenim individualističkim zemljama
07:32
than in any other part of the world.
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nego u bilo kom drugom kraju sveta.
07:34
And some of the reason for that is that people take what happens
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I jedan od razloga za to je što ljudi sve što im se desi
07:36
to them extremely personally.
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doživljavaju veoma lično.
07:38
They own their success. But they also own their failure.
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Oni su zaslužni za svoj uspeh, ali i neuspeh.
07:42
Is there any relief from some of these pressures
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Ali ja mislim da postoji olakšanje
07:44
that I've just been outlining?
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od ovih pritisaka.
07:46
I think there is. I just want to turn to a few of them.
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I hteo bih da spomenem nekoliko njih.
07:48
Let's take meritocracy.
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Uzmimo za primer meritokratiju.
07:50
This idea that everybody deserves to get where they get to,
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Ideju da svako dobije onoliko koliko radi i zaslužuje.
07:53
I think it's a crazy idea, completely crazy.
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To je po meni luda ideja,
07:56
I will support any politician of Left and Right,
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Podrzaću svakog političara,
07:58
with any halfway decent meritocratic idea.
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sa bilo kakvom meritokratskom idejom.
08:00
I am a meritocrat in that sense.
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Ja sam meritokrata i to je to.
08:02
But I think it's insane to believe that we will ever
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Ali mislim da je ludo da verujemo
08:04
make a society that is genuinely meritocratic. It's an impossible dream.
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da će naše društvo ikada biti meritokratsko.
08:08
The idea that we will make a society
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Ideja da ćemo napraviti društvo
08:10
where literally everybody is graded,
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gde su svi klasifikovani,
08:12
the good at the top, and the bad at the bottom,
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dobri na vrhu, a loši na dnu,
08:14
and it's exactly done as it should be, is impossible.
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i da smo sve ispravno uradili - to je nemoguće.
08:16
There are simply too many random factors:
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Postoji suviše slučajnih faktora.
08:18
accidents, accidents of birth,
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Nesreće, bolesti,
08:20
accidents of things dropping on people's heads, illnesses, etc.
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slučajnost da ti padne stvar na glavu, itd.
08:23
We will never get to grade them,
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Nikada nećemo moći
08:25
never get to grade people as they should.
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da klasifikujemo ljude kako treba.
08:27
I'm drawn to a lovely quote by St. Augustine in "The City of God,"
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Sv. Augustin u knjizi "Božiji grad"
08:30
where he says, "It's a sin to judge any man by his post."
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kaže: "Greh je oceniti nekoga sudeći po njegovom stubu".
08:34
In modern English that would mean
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Na modernom engleskom to znači
08:36
it's a sin to come to any view of who you should talk to
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greh je donositi zaključke o nekom
08:38
dependent on their business card.
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sudeći po njihovoj biznis kartici.
08:40
It's not the post that should count.
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Nije stub taj koji treba da se računa.
08:42
According to St. Augustine,
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I po Sv. Agustinu,
08:44
it's only God who can really put everybody in their place.
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samo je Bog taj koji može da sudi.
08:46
And he's going to do that on the Day of Judgment
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I to će se desiti kad dodje Sudnji Dan.
08:48
with angels and trumpets, and the skies will open.
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sa andjelima i trubama, i nebo će se otvoriti.
08:50
Insane idea, if you're a secularist person, like me.
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Luda ideja, za nekog ko je sekularan, kao ja.
08:53
But something very valuable in that idea, nevertheless.
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Ali ipak postoji nešto veoma vredno u toj ideji.
08:55
In other words, hold your horses when you're coming to judge people.
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a to je: ne žuri kad donosiš zaključke o ljudima.
08:59
You don't necessarily know what someone's true value is.
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Moguće je da ne znaš u prvi mah kakav je neko.
09:02
That is an unknown part of them.
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To je nepoznati deo njih.
09:04
And we shouldn't behave as though it is known.
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I mi ne treba da se ponašamo kao da je poznat.
09:07
There is another source of solace and comfort for all this.
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Postoji još jedan izvor utehe
09:10
When we think about failing in life, when we think about failure,
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kada razmišljamo o neuspehu u životu,
09:13
one of the reasons why we fear failing is not just
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jedan od razloga zasto se plašimo neuspeha nije samo
09:15
a loss of income, a loss of status.
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gubitak prihoda i statusa.
09:17
What we fear is the judgment and ridicule of others. And it exists.
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Ono čega se plašimo je osuda i ismejavanje od drugih.
09:21
You know, the number one organ of ridicule
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A broj jedan medij za ismejavanje
09:23
nowadays, is the newspaper.
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su novine.
09:25
And if you open the newspaper any day of the week,
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Ako otvorite novine bilo koji dan u nedelji,
09:27
it's full of people who've messed up their lives.
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prepune su ljudi koji su uradili nesto pogrešno.
09:29
They've slept with the wrong person. They've taken the wrong substance.
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Spavali su sa pogrešnom osobom. Uzeli su pogrešnu supstancu.
09:32
They've passed the wrong piece of legislation. Whatever it is.
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Doneli su pogrešan zakon.
09:34
And then are fit for ridicule.
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I oni su pogodni za ismejavanje.
09:37
In other words, they have failed. And they are described as "losers."
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Drugim rečima, okarakterisani su kao gubitnici.
09:40
Now is there any alternative to this?
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Da li postoji neka alternativa za ovo?
09:42
I think the Western tradition shows us one glorious alternative,
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Ja mislim da nam zapadna tradicija pokazuje jednu veličanstvenu alternativu.
09:44
and that is tragedy.
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A to je tragedija.
09:47
Tragic art, as it developed in the theaters of ancient Greece,
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Tragična umetnost, koja je nastala u teatrima stare Grčke,
09:50
in the fifth century B.C., was essentially an art form
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u Petom veku p.n.e. je u suštini umetnost
09:52
devoted to tracing how people fail,
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posvećena ljudima koji doživljavaju neuspeh.
09:55
and also according them a level of sympathy,
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i koja im pripisuje odredjen nivo saosećanja.
09:59
which ordinary life would not necessarily accord them.
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Saosećanje koje im obican život obično ne bi dao.
10:03
I remember a few years ago, I was thinking about all this,
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Pre nekoliko godina
10:04
and I went to see "The Sunday Sport,"
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otišao sam da vidim redakciju jednih novina,
10:06
a tabloid newspaper that I don't recommend you to start reading
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koju ne preporučjem da počnete da čitate,
10:09
if you're not familiar with it already.
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ako već niste upoznati.
10:11
I went to talk to them
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I otišao sam da razgovaram
10:13
about certain of the great tragedies of Western art.
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o odredjenim poznatim tragedijama Zapadne umetnosti.
10:16
I wanted to see how they would seize the bare bones
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I hteo sam da vidim kako oni vide suštinu
10:18
of certain stories if they came in as a news item
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odredjenih priča, ako bi se pojavile kao vesti
10:21
at the news desk on a Saturday afternoon.
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u njihovoj redakciji. I počnem sa Otelom.
10:24
So I told them about Othello. They had not heard of it but were fascinated by it.
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Oni nikad čuli ali im se svidela priča.
10:26
(Laughter)
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(Smeh)
10:27
And I asked them to write the headline for the story of Othello.
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I pitao sam ih kako bi oni napisali naslov za Otelo.
10:30
They came up with "Love-Crazed Immigrant Kills Senator's Daughter"
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Smislili su: "Ludo-zaljubljeni imigrant ubio senatorovu ćerku"
10:33
splashed across the headline.
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ogromnim slovima preko naslovne strane.
10:35
I gave them the plotline of Madame Bovary.
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Slično i za Madam Bovari.
10:37
Again, a book they were enchanted to discover.
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Opet, nikad čuli ali im se svidelo.
10:39
And they wrote "Shopaholic Adulteress Swallows Arsenic After Credit Fraud."
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Kažu: "Razvratna preljubnica popila arsenik posle kredine malverzacije"
10:44
(Laughter)
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(Smeh)
10:45
And then my favorite.
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I moj favorit.
10:47
They really do have a kind of genius all of their own, these guys.
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Ti ljudi stvarno imaju neku genijalnost.
10:49
My favorite is Sophocles' Oedipus the King:
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Sofokleov "Kralj Edip"
10:51
"Sex With Mum Was Blinding"
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"Seks sa majkom je bio zaslepljujući"
10:54
(Laughter)
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(Smeh)
10:57
(Applause)
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(Aplauz)
10:59
In a way, if you like, at one end of the spectrum of sympathy,
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Na neki način na jednom kraju
11:02
you've got the tabloid newspaper.
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imate tabloidne novine.
11:04
At the other end of the spectrum you've got tragedy and tragic art,
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A na drugom kraju tragediju i tragičnu umetnost.
11:07
and I suppose I'm arguing that we should learn a little bit
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I ovim želim da skrenem malo više pažnju
11:09
about what's happening in tragic art.
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na tragičnu umetnost.
11:11
It would be insane to call Hamlet a loser.
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Bilo bi ludo da nazovemo Hamleta luzerom.
11:14
He is not a loser, though he has lost.
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On nije gubitnik, iako jeste mnogo izgubio.
11:17
And I think that is the message of tragedy to us,
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I to je poruka tragedije za sve nas,
11:19
and why it's so very, very important, I think.
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i mislim da je ona veoma bitna.
11:22
The other thing about modern society
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Još jedna stvar modernog društva,
11:24
and why it causes this anxiety
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koja prouzrukuje anksioznost,
11:26
is that we have nothing at its center that is non-human.
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je da nemamo ništa u centru društva što nije čovek.
11:29
We are the first society to be living in a world
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Kao moderno društvo
11:31
where we don't worship anything other than ourselves.
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mi ne obožavamo ništa drugo osim nas samih.
11:34
We think very highly of ourselves, and so we should.
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i imamo visoko mišljenje o nama.
11:36
We've put people on the moon. We've done all sorts of extraordinary things.
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A i treba. Poslali smo ljude na mesec, i svašta još zanimljivo.
11:39
And so we tend to worship ourselves.
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I zbog toga sebe obožavamo.
11:41
Our heroes are human heroes.
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Naši heroji su ljudi.
11:43
That's a very new situation.
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Medjutim, druga društva su imala
11:45
Most other societies have had, right at their center,
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tašno u njihovom centru,
11:47
the worship of something transcendent: a god,
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nešto transcedentno kao Bog,
11:49
a spirit, a natural force, the universe,
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duh, prirodnu silu, univerzum.
11:51
whatever it is, something else that is being worshiped.
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Šta god da je, nije čovek koji je obožavan.
11:54
We've slightly lost the habit of doing that,
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Mi smo tu naviku izgubili.
11:56
which is, I think, why we're particularly drawn to nature.
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Što je razlog zašto smo naročito privučeni prema prirodi.
11:58
Not for the sake of our health, though it's often presented that way,
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Ne zbog koristi za naše zdravlje, kako ljudi obično misle.
12:01
but because it's an escape from the human anthill.
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Nego zato što je to beg od "ljudskog mravinjaka".
12:05
It's an escape from our own competition,
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od našeg sopstvenog nadmetanja
12:07
and our own dramas.
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od naše sopstvene drame.
12:09
And that's why we enjoy looking at glaciers and oceans,
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I to je razlog zašto uživamo u prirodi,
12:11
and contemplating the Earth from outside its perimeters, etc.
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i razmišljamo o Zemlji izvan njenih granica.
12:15
We like to feel in contact with something that is non-human,
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Mi osećamo potrebu da smo u kontaktu sa nečim sto nije ljudsko.
12:19
and that is so deeply important to us.
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I to je veoma važno za nas.
12:23
What I think I've been talking about really is success and failure.
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Do sada sam govorio o uspehu i neuspehu,
12:26
And one of the interesting things about success
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ali jedna interesantna stvar u vezi sa uspehom
12:29
is that we think we know what it means.
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je sto mi mislimo sta to znači.
12:31
If I said to you that there is somebody behind the screen
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Ako vam kažem da je neko uspešan,
12:33
who is very very successful, certain ideas would immediately come to mind.
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odredjene ideje bi vam odmah pale na pamet.
12:36
You would think that person might have made a lot of money,
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Mislili biste da je taj neko bogat,
12:38
achieved renown in some field.
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ili slavan u nekoj oblasti.
12:41
My own theory of success -- and I'm somebody
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Ja imam svoju teorija uspeha,
12:43
who is very interested in success. I really want to be successful.
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a ja sam neko ko je veoma zainteresovan za uspeh.
12:46
I'm always thinking, "How could I be more successful?"
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ali što sam stariji,
12:48
But as I get older, I'm also very nuanced
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postajem više iznijansiran
12:50
about what that word "success" might mean.
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šta ta rec "uspeh" zapravo znači.
12:52
Here's an insight that I've had about success.
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Evo šta ja mislim.
12:54
You can't be successful at everything.
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Ne možete da budete uspešni u svemu.
12:57
We hear a lot of talk about work-life balance.
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Slušamo puno o balansu u životu.
12:59
Nonsense. You can't have it all. You can't.
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Gluposti. Ne možete imati sve. Ne možete.
13:02
So any vision of success
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Bilo koja vizija uspeha
13:04
has to admit what it's losing out on,
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mora da kaže gde to gubimo,
13:06
where the element of loss is.
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I mislim da će svako
13:08
I think any wise life will accept,
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ko je mudar, da prihvati ovo što kažem,
13:11
as I say, that there is going to be an element where we are not succeeding.
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da uvek postoji deo života u kome nismo uspešni.
13:14
Thing about a successful life
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I jedna stvar u vezi sa uspešnim životom,
13:16
is, a lot of the time, our ideas
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je što vrlo često, naše ideje
13:18
of what it would mean to live successfully are not our own.
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o tome sta znači živeti uspešsno, nisu ustvari naše.
13:21
They are sucked in from other people:
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One su usisane od drugih ljudi.
13:23
chiefly, if you're a man, your father,
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Prvenstveno, ako ste muškarac od vašeg oca.
13:25
and if you're a woman, your mother.
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A ako ste žena od vaše majke.
13:27
Psychoanalysis has been drumming home this message for about 80 years.
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Psihoanaliza dobošari ovu poruku vec 80 godina
13:30
No one is quite listening hard enough, but I very much believe that that's true.
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Niko ustvari ne sluša dovoljno pažljivo.
13:33
And we also suck in messages
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Takodje, mi usisavamo poruke sa svih strana
13:35
from everything from the television, to advertising,
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počev od televizije, preko reklama,
13:37
to marketing, etc.
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do marketinga, i tako dalje.
13:39
These are hugely powerful forces
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Sve ovo su ogromne moćne sile
13:41
that define what we want and how we view ourselves.
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koje definišu sta hoćemo, i kako mi vidimo sebe.
13:45
When we're told that banking is a very respectable profession
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Kada nam kažu da je bankarstvo popularno
13:48
a lot of us want to go into banking.
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puno nas hoće da se bavi bankarstvom.
13:50
When banking is no longer so respectable, we lose interest in banking.
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Kada bankarstvo vise nije popularno, mi gubimo interesovanje.
13:53
We are highly open to suggestion.
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Mi smo veoma podložni sugestijama.
13:56
So what I want to argue for is not that we should give up
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Ono za šta hoću da se založim, nije da odustanemo
13:59
on our ideas of success,
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od naših ideja o uspehu.
14:01
but we should make sure that they are our own.
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Nego da utvrdimo da su te ideje potekle od nas.
14:03
We should focus in on our ideas
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Treba se fokusirati na naše ideje.
14:05
and make sure that we own them,
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Utvrditi da su samo naše,
14:08
that we are truly the authors of our own ambitions.
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i da smo mi pravi autori.
14:10
Because it's bad enough, not getting what you want,
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Zato što je dovoljno loše ne dobiti ono što hoćete.
14:12
but it's even worse to have an idea
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Ali je još gore imati ideju
14:15
of what it is you want and find out at the end of a journey,
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o tome šta je to što hoćete, i saznati na kraju puta,
14:18
that it isn't, in fact, what you wanted all along.
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da to ustvari nije ono sto šte stvarno želeli.
14:21
So I'm going to end it there.
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Tako da ću tu i da završim.
14:23
But what I really want to stress is
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Ali ono što stvarno hoću da naglasim
14:26
by all means, success, yes.
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je biti uspešan, svakako.
14:28
But let's accept the strangeness of some of our ideas.
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ali hajde da prihvatimo čudnost naših ideja.
14:30
Let's probe away at our notions of success.
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Hajde da stavimo na test neke od naših ideja o uspehu.
14:33
Let's make sure our ideas of success are truly our own.
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Hajde da utvrdimo da su te ideje stvarno naše.
14:37
Thank you very much.
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Hvala vam.
14:39
(Applause)
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(Aplauz)
14:55
Chris Anderson: That was fascinating. How do you reconcile
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Chris Anderson: Fascinantno.
14:57
this idea of someone being --
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Kako se ova ideja
15:02
it being bad to think of someone as a loser
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da je loše misliti o nekom kao o luzeru,
15:05
with the idea, that a lot of people like, of seizing control of your life.
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može pomiriti sa idejom koju mnogi ljudi vole, a to je kontrolisati sopstveni zivot.
15:09
And that a society that encourages that
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I da društvo koje to podstiče
15:12
perhaps has to have some winners and losers.
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možda mora da ima pobednike i gubitnike.
15:15
Alain de Botton: Yes. I think it's merely the randomness
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Alain de Botton: Ja mislim da je sama slučajnost
15:18
of the winning and losing process that I wanted to stress.
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da neko dobije ili izgubi ono što ja hoću da naglasim.
15:20
Because the emphasis nowadays is so much
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Zato sto je naglasak danas previše
15:22
on the justice of everything,
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na pravdi u vezi sa svime.
15:24
and politicians always talk about justice.
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I političari stalno govore o pravdi.
15:26
Now I am a firm believer in justice, I just think that it is impossible.
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Ja sam čvrst vernik u pravičnost. Samo što mislim da je nemoguća.
15:29
So we should do everything we can,
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Tako da mi moramo da učinimo
15:31
we should do everything we can to pursue it.
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sve što možemo da dostignemo pravdu.
15:33
But at the end of the day we should always remember
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Ali na kraju dana moramo da se uvek setimo
15:35
that whoever is facing us, whatever has happened in their lives,
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da šta god se nekom desilo u zivotu,
15:38
there will be a strong element of the haphazard.
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postojaće velika doza slučajnosti.
15:41
And it's that that I'm trying to leave room for.
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I to je ono za šta hoću da ostavim malo prostora.
15:43
Because otherwise it can get quite claustrophobic.
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Zato sto u suprotnom postaje jako klaustrofobično.
15:45
CA: I mean, do you believe that you can combine
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Chris: Da li veruješ da možeš da ukombinuješ
15:47
your kind of kinder, gentler philosophy of work
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tvoju vrstu brižljive, nežnije filozofije rada,
15:49
with a successful economy?
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sa uspešnom ekonomijom?
15:53
Or do you think that you can't?
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Ili misliš da ne možeš ali to nije ni bitno
15:55
But it doesn't matter that much that we're putting too much emphasis on that?
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jer mi stavljamo previše naglaska na ekonomiju?
15:57
AB: The nightmare thought
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Alain: Najgora misao
16:00
is that frightening people is the best way to get work out of them,
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je da će se zaplašivanjem ljudi naterati da rade najbolje.
16:04
and that somehow the crueler the environment
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I da na neki nacin, što je okrutnije okruženje
16:07
the more people will rise to the challenge.
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to će ljudi više da daju svoj maksimum.
16:09
You want to think, who would you like as your ideal dad?
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Treba razmišljati ovako: koga bi vi voleli za vašeg idealnog oca?
16:13
And your ideal dad is somebody who is tough but gentle.
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I vaš idealan otac je neko ko je čvrst ali opet blag.
16:16
And it's a very hard line to make.
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I veoma je teško da povučete crtu izmedju ta dva.
16:18
We need fathers, as it were, the exemplary father figures in society,
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Nama trebaju očevi, primeri očinskih figura
16:22
avoiding the two extremes,
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izmedju ta dva ekstrema.
16:24
which is the authoritarian, disciplinarian, on the one hand,
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A to su diktatorski i strog, sa jedne strane.
16:28
and on the other, the lax, no rules option.
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I sa druge, labav i spontan.
16:32
CA: Alain de Botton.
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Chris: Alain de Botton.
16:34
AB: Thank you very much.
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Alain de Botton: Hvala mnogo.
16:36
(Applause)
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(Aplauz)
Translated by Nenad Bozinovic
Reviewed by Ilija Bilic

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Alain de Botton - Philosopher
Through his witty and literate books -- and his new School of Life -- Alain de Botton helps others find fulfillment in the everyday.

Why you should listen

It started in 1997, when Alain de Botton turned away from writing novels and instead wrote a touching extended essay titled How Proust Can Change Your Life, which became an unlikely blockbuster in the "self-help"category. His subsequent books take on some of the fundamental worries of modern life (am I happy? where exactly do I stand?), informed by his deep reading in philosophy and by a novelist's eye for small, perfect moments. His newest book is The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work.

In 2008, de Botton helped start the School of Life in London, a social enterprise determined to make learning and therapy relevant in today's uptight culture. His goal is (through any of his mediums) to help clients learn "how to live wisely and well."

More profile about the speaker
Alain de Botton | Speaker | TED.com

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