Philosophical ideas are able to transcend time and place. In our contemporary connected world ideas travel faster than ever. Since the publication of Michael Puett’s The Path millions of western readers have shown interest in what Chinese philosophers have to say about the good life. Something similar, but in the opposite direction, happened to the book The Courage To Be Disliked, written by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga.
Since its publication in 2013 this book has sold millions of copies in Japan, China and South Korea. So does this book introduce ancient Greek philosophy to an Eastern audience? Not exactly. The Courage To Be Disliked is about the philosophy of life developed by Alfred Adler.
Who is Alfred Adler? If you never heard of him, there is no reason to feel ashamed. Alfred Adler is the “unknown third giant” of Austrian psychology, a younger contemporary of Freud and Jung. He was one of the original core members of the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society, but he departed from it to establish his own school of thought that became known as Adlerian psychology. In several ways the psychology of Adler became the very opposite of psychoanalysis.
Ichiro Kishimi
One of the writers of The Courage To Be Disliked, Ichiro Kishimi, is one of the leading authorities on Alfred Adler. He is a certified counselor and consultant for the Japanese Society of Adlerian Psychology. He translated several of his books into Japanese and wrote an introduction to Adlerian psychology.
Ichiro Kishimi has been studying Ancient Greek philosophy from an early age. While scholars in the West would probably pose solid boundaries between philosophy and psychology or between classical and modern Western thought, from his Eastern perspective Ichiro Kishimi has no hesitations to place Alfred Adler in the tradition of classical Greek philosophy.
The Courage To Be Disliked presents Adlerian Psychology in the form of a Platonic dialogue between a philosopher and a young student. This form is also a kind of role play between the two writers Kishimi and Koga.
The dialogue form works very well to explain Adlerian psychology step by step and deal with possible criticisms. As a reader you find yourself constantly switching sides between the teachings of the philosopher and the objections of the student.
In the end it is up to the reader to accept or reject Adlerian psychology, but the book will certainly confront all readers with several challenging ideas about life and the possibilities to take control over one’s own happiness.
The Courage To Be Disliked may be a life changing book, even though it may take many years to fully grasp and internalize its teachings.
Adlerian psychology
It is difficult to summarize and do justice to Adlerian psychology in the way it is presented in The Courage To Be Disliked. Without the Platonic dialogue many arguments for and against Adlerian psychology will be lost here.
Adlerian psychology teaches us that we are not so much determined by our past as by the goals we set in our lives. At the same time it does not consider life as a linear process towards these goals. According to Adlerian psychology life is more like collection of dots or moments. We have to live in the present moment and enjoy all our little steps towards our goals like a dance.
In order to develop real happiness according to Adlerian psychology we should not set self-centered goals. Happiness comes from a feeling of belonging. We should develop a sense of community and always aim to contribute to the common good. Adler had a very broad and cosmopolitic concept of community. It included practically everything in the universe.
His concept of contribution was also very broad and not limited to beneficial acts. On the level of being practically everyone, even the incapacitated, can contribute to the community as a whole.
In Adlerian psychology all our problems are considered interpersonal relationship problems. Everything we do or think takes place within a social context. As long as we continue to see society as a place of competition and hierarchy, we will never be free and find happiness. We should therefore put our confidence in others – even at the risk that people take advantage of us – and strive to build horizontal relationships.
We should also be very clear about what our own tasks in life are and not interfere in the tasks of other people. We should certainly not worry about what other people may think of us. These judgements are none of our business. We should simply concentrate on our own business, find the courage to develop our talents, make a contribution to the community and ignore the things we cannot change.
If you want to place Adler in a classical tradition, you may find some resemblance with Stoic thought here.
Adlerian revival?
It is easy to see why Adlerian psychology with its emphasis on personal freedom combined with a strong sense of community and harmony attracts so many readers in the East. Adlerian psychology offers a way out of hierarchy, high expectations, conformity and the fear of losing face in the eyes of others.
The Courage to be Disliked has now been translated into various Western languages. It is too early to tell whether this book will lead to a broad reappraisal of Adlerian psychology in the West.
Ideas may flow quickly between East and West, but there may be unexpected cultural barriers that prevent the reimportion of ideas. I really doubt whether many Chinese people are willing to listen to Michael Puett’s teachings about their very own Confucius.
In Western countries many people seem to be very open right now to read about Japanese cultural phenomena like Ikigai, Shinrin-yoku, Wabi Sabi and Kintsugi/Kintsukuroi. Also Japanese books on cleaning (Maria Kondo), minimalism (Fumio Sasaki) and longevity (Junko Takahashi) are very popular today.
The Japanese do have a tradition to import ideas, improve on them and successfully export better versions. We have to wait and see what will happen to Adlerian psychology after this Japanese treatment.