14 How purely this is the misery of a man of culture! A peasant would not have gone so far.
About This Book
A series of letters offering practical and philosophical guidance for cultivating an intellectual life within ordinary conditions. The author treats intellect as a disciplined habit that must be nourished despite bodily frailty, limited time, financial constraints, social custom, and moral challenges, and he offers tailored counsel to readers in diverse situations. Emphasis falls on choosing higher thoughts over lesser ones, making surrounding people and things into teachers, using time and study pragmatically, and shaping circumstances so they yield steady intellectual growth and refinement.