Ifambition is to be well regarded, the rewards of ambition—wealth,distinction, control over one’s destiny—must be deemedworthy of the sacrifices made on ambition’s behalf. If the tradition ofambition
A history of longand effortless success can be a dreadful handicap, but, if properly handled, itmay become a driving force. When the United States entered just such a glowingperiod after the end of th
Being a man hasalways been dangerous. There are about 105 males born for every 100 females,but this ratio drops to near balance at the age of maturity, and among70-year-olds there are twice as many wo
When a new movementin art attains a certain fashion, it is advisable to find out what itsadvocates are aiming at, for, however farfetched and unreasonable theirprinciples may seem today, it is possibl
In spite of “endless talkof difference,”American society is an amazing machine for homogenizing people.There is “the democratizing uniformity of dress and discourse, and thecasualness and absence of d
Americans no longerexpect public figures, whether in speech or in writing, to command the Englishlanguage with skill and gift. Nor do they aspire to such command themselves. Inhis latest book, Doing O
Everybody loves afat pay rise. Yet pleasure at your own can vanish if you learn that a colleaguehas been given a bigger one. Indeed, if he has a reputation for slacking, youmight even be outraged. Suc
Do you rememberall those years when scientists argued that smoking would kill us but thedoubters insisted that we didn’t know for sure? That the evidence was inconclusive, the scienceuncertain? That t
Of all thecomponents of a good night’s sleep, dreams seem to be least within our control. In dreams, awindow opens into a world where logic is suspended and dead people speak. Acentury ago, Freud form
Americans no longerexpect public figures, whether in speech or in writing, to command the Englishlanguage with skill and gift. Nor do they aspire to such command themselves. Inhis latest book, Doing O