Artful Prudence

On Charming the ‘Right’ Woman

June 5, 2021 by Artful Prudence Leave a Comment

Where female attraction is involved, selection is of the essence. Your choosing will dictate a great deal of what follows. Your choice of woman does not have definite attributes or the same inclinations in occupation or ambition. The ‘ideal’ woman to seduce is one that excites you in an inexpressible way; the energy she conveys is not shallow, but thorough. Before setting out to entice, you shall inquire into the woman, gauging her sensitivity, openness and vulnerability to your appeal. A suitable woman is one whose void you can charge, and who notices in you a striking titillation and foreignness. Such women are many a time off the beaten track, as it were, or perhaps, due to fresh unfavourable situations, rather dissatisfied and down. Really, a totally pleased woman is not worth seducing, since she lacks the need to be persuaded.

Risk, Thrill and Pleasure

Most women long to be enticed by a domineering man, they want to be extricated from their usual groove and set foot in a world of ardour, where they leave behind their difficulties and anxieties. In general, what normally grips us is the inkling that someone is endowed with something we covet but do not possess. Similarly, the suitable woman is one who believes you have something she lacks and craves. It is the contrasting nature between the masculine and feminine temper that breeds a thrilling tightness. In quite the opposite, you should mostly stay away from women who are inordinately immersed in their career. For, enchantment desires attention and forceful women have much confusion to take in hand to bend to temptation – they actually become rather obstinate and overbearing. Consequently, risk, thrill and pleasure are among the greatest shortages that charming lure provides to a woman.

It is arduous trying to charm a very jovial woman, for her fulfilment makes her out of reach – this is why women who are a little beset by problems are easier to attract. That being so, a dash of unhappiness too is suggestive where temptation is concerned. But, if there is one requisite that would heighten a seduction, it is a woman’s capacity for imagination. A woman’s imagination will assist the conundrum, as it were, and turn her relationship with you into a flight of fancy where your every gesture takes on a meaning of its own in her brain. A stupefied woman is captured by the dangerous and uncertain; she can be quite innocent and gullible if you play your cards right and nourish a degree of pleasure and amusement.

Gauge the Waters Before You Wish

Oddly, though, a woman is often convinced that she is unsusceptible to charm, in spite of the fact that the greater part of man are virtually liable to other people’s baits, by way of nature. In truth, no matter how compelling a seduction, it is vain if the woman is unduly ill-disposed to your authority. Therefore, it is helpful to know how to gauge the waters before you fish; when you know she is subject to your influence, you can get going. Though the underlying nature of the feminine is alike, temperaments differ from woman to woman – e.g. restrained natures are fitting and inclined to be seduced, as women who hold back their hunger for sexual gratification are ready and lamenting to mislay their inhibition.

What’s more, do not dart towards the first person who is attracted to you; an insecure man is rash and within easy reach, too available and unduly vulnerable. A little anxiety is useful, it is not necessarily a bad thing if she reveres you or feels unsettled by your appearance – there is a titillating potentiality in this kind of sexual tension; it will make your relationship full of life and energy. Not so strangely, love is a kind of fancy for a deliberate pursuit. A hankering for an undertaking that call for an interminable variety of impetus to oppose capability. For that reason, the Don Juan picks a woman with a bright imagination that lives in a world of invention and speculation – where every action is glazed with added intensity and depth. In parallel, neither too cheery a woman nor one short of imagination makes for a fitting option for an expressive seduction.

Her Unconscious Bearing

Ordinarily, though, a feminine woman who conveys a sincere interest is more susceptible to your charm and will readily submit to your authority if you play your cards appropriately and bear your strength firmly. An intrigued feminine woman is more liable to exercise her imagination if she is properly contained and regulated by a clever and dominant man who neither tries to clutch nor dislodge her femininity. Time and again, a ladykiller would rather have the odds stacked against him, for he longs the tremor of the pursuit; the more passionate the hunt, the more rapturous. If you want to lay bare a woman’s intentions, do not pay ample notice to her purposive answers, pay more heed to her unthinking responses in her behaviour, such as facial flush, hair playing, mirroring, nervous twitches, rapid blinking, lip biting, physical contact etc. A woman has finite control over her unconscious bearing, and a man capable of decoding social cues will validly gauge a woman’s attraction by her manners, for they unveil her vulnerability to your influence.

Besides, when a woman puts up a small opposition, it normally brings about a sense of liveliness, compelling you to be ingenious and inspired to outdo her aversion. After all, a slight hostility only incites stirred passions and enflames the brilliant fire. It will taint the woman with the risky impression that she has more control over the state of affairs, even though you are fundamentally controlling the dynamic by making her fervent and feeling at precisely the right points, going back and forth like a good drama. Expressively, the unconscious manner of the feminine lures the man before he dares to seduce her. A woman’s uninhibited gestures are enchanting and candid, spurring a man’s compulsions to attract and pollute her emotions with his marrow.

Purpose, Pain and Progress

May 28, 2021 by Artful Prudence Leave a Comment

‘What gives value to a diamond is its cost, to virtue, its difficulty, to penance, its suffering; to medicines their bitter taste.’
Michel De Montaigne

Recently, I wrote this on twitter: ‘Don’t let your insufficient self undermine who you could be.’ I had that thought as I was closing a heavy set at the gym. Immediately, I thought ‘There’s no way I can let this (thought) slip’ as I briskly went ahead and wrote it down. Luckily, it didn’t, and I’m glad as it encouraged this piece.

Oddly, it appeared especially significant at that point in time. When you’re struggling with weight, rigidly putting your vital force in it, you get a rather meditative flow of thought that drifts candidly and involuntarily. In fact, any time I do any tough training, my mind tends to naturally engender creative thoughts; some are more interesting than others, of course.

Nonetheless, it is always somewhat beguiling to me how remedial this rivalry comes to be – it injects every struggle with impassioned fire, agony, and a fierce sense of commitment.

Direction and Intent

Where passion is concerned, weightlifting has always served me as a way to discharge and release. It realigns you with your immanent strength and purifies your masculine spirit. And, I find it rather incongruous how of all good things lead by proper lifting, most men find the upgrade in appearance the most likeable reward. But I shall digress with this judgement; if you look below the surface, you would find that the most worthwhile reward is the continuous refinement of your manly nature. Rigorous training not only expands your strengths, it uncovers your defects, giving you the right occasion to mend them to your benefit. Traits such as discipline, diligence, persistence, and constancy are highlighted in the weightroom; they are tested and fortified by struggle.

Most men I see at the gym are strayed, they lack direction and understanding; both of what they are doing and why they are doing it. It appears like they made it there fortuitously and not deliberately. It is not so useful for me to pressure you to hit the gym when your frame of mind is radically messy and you are merely adhering by obligation, not purpose. If you don’t have an objective, your plan is ill-defined and undecided. You must specifically define your incentive, with an evident purpose, direction and plan of action. If you don’t know the necessary what’s and why’s, what merit do you pick out from it? Hardly anything effective.

Man ought to know why something is good for him and how to apply himself appropriately for a certain practice; you should not feel compelled to get a membership simply to abide by convention, this is fruitless and silly. If your necessity is ignorant obedience, you are not training for yourself but for others who are just as blind. You may think compliance is fruitful for a little while, but it quickly fades away by fickleness and instability – when there’s no heartfelt intent and a firm purpose, constancy is transient and idleness an irresistible impulse. In truth, it is genuine intent that holds you liable, fueling your needfulness and driving you to carry out your duties.

Competence and Persistent Practice

In the absence of intent, man starts to wander aimlessly with no explicit point of focus. Part of having an unmistakable course is good knowledge and a sound method that is useful and practical. But the larger part of men who undertake strength training lack will and purpose, hardly moving forward. I would go so far to say it is better to have intent yet lack understanding, if you can’t have both, rather than vice versa. Intent without understanding will make progress, acquiring knowledge from failure, but understanding without intent will faintly make strides; it will be held back by inertia, unsureness, doubt, and lack of discipline. On the other hand, intent is persistent, devoted, firm and reliable.

‘A man’s worth and reputation lie in the mind and in the will: his true honour is found there.’
Michel De Montaigne

Consequently, it will discover what is useful and good by way of experience through sheer resolve, interest, ability and competence. Intent is an essential fragment of competence. In truth, the man who ardently desires something beneficial with great determination will meet it. What separates the doers is their competence, they practice more than they preach; this is their gift. There are natures who confront battle with real vigour, their insistence pushing them to endure a course of action with laudable stability until they meet their desired aims. So on the one hand, there are natures who have been endowed with a far-reaching potential for tenacity, and on the other, there are natures who have cultivated these traits by industrious application and strict practice.

Whether by fortune or fight, there is no conceivable way to cheat hard-earned goodness. Remember, man is made by hardship, the road is onerous for good reason; no weak man merits the prosperity earned by diligence and strength. The consequence of pursuing meaning is that its indispensable privation incites self-discovery, naturally leading to a process of honing details that were laid asleep or have been mistreated by debility. You come to deeply grasp your inner workings, you come to know distress demands and what self-discipline entails. When this resourceful state is sustained, it engenders a profound and enduring transformation in your psyche that can’t be stolen from you. What you gained from battle leaves a lasting mark on your soul; it fosters prosperity and endeavours to defy boundaries.

Transforming Pain Into Purpose

Men solve problems, they are disposed to order and discipline. Thus, when you stray from your strong inclinations, you are subverting your nature and pushing away merit. Pain, failure, rejection: these you don’t find so agreeable, but their intrinsic value springs from their bitterness. If you can learn to repeatedly put up with and accept them, they will teach you something valuable. In fact, you will notice they are not as sharp as you imagined and they are certainly not bad by nature. But you have grown accustomed to labelling things – labels that seldom fit the frame of reality. It is not unnatural, then, to suffer and endure, for you are inescapably invited to deal with these things when they come, so with failure and tragedy.

Whether you resolve to turn down tragedy is not pertinent, you will still cope with its sharp consequences, as existence engenders its own misfortune when it so desires and you ought to learn to courageously bear it when it comes – be a valiant warrior, unphased by life’s calamities. Remember: there are incidents in life that you can’t in any way determine. Remain unmoved by things outside your control, not carelessly but perceptively. Caution yourself against allowing externals to rule over you and engulf your sense of reality. Emotional mastery is one of the most exacting practices. When passion builds intensity, it grows heavier to bear and requires an increasingly firm nature. Still, one of the most compelling means to fortify your temper is to be confronted with a tragedy.

‘Each man’s morals shape his destiny.’
Erasmus

We engage in the most rigorous self-analysis in the face of terrible misfortune. It aids you in scrutinizing your life more earnestly and with greater zeal. It is at this point that you reach a pivotal breaking point that incites rapid improvement, as you are altogether bullied into rectifying things: not tomorrow, not in an hour, but right this very moment with the utmost gravity and tenacity. Take, for instance, an awful heartbreak, one that leaves you crushed in pain. You can’t imagine yourself engaging in commitment ever again, as you see the world crumbling under your feet with nothing left to lose and one shocking heartbreak.

But similarly, it is through severe trauma that you interrupt your debility and inspire transformation as you discover, if you’re not so ignorant, what you did poorly and where your deficiencies lie. Man learns to tighten his screws when his weakness proves to be futile in the face of misfortune. Discernibly, I can’t speak for every man, but if you carry a reasonable capacity for introspection, you will almost always find yourself at least a little stronger after a tragedy big or small.

Closing Note

Undoubtedly, there have been innumerable incidents where man was faced with grave tragedy and by its effect managed to radically transform his situation both inwardly and outwardly. In my experience, this is the sweetest glory of all and the most commendable. Lastly, you never know what will be the result of neither tragedy nor good fortune. It is obstructive to dare say fortune is antagonistic. Consider instead why that estimation is likely erroneous and how, above all, it is distinctly agreeable, not detrimental to your purpose.

On Anger

May 24, 2021 by Artful Prudence Leave a Comment

Plutarch says, ‘Anyone who doesn’t fuel a fire puts it out, and anyone who doesn’t feed anger in the early stages and doesn’t get into a huff is being prudent and is eliminating anger.’ Anger is born out of weakness and whenever you encourage its premature birth, you are giving in to enfeeblement. But, there is a fine way to knock down a despotic fit of rage: do not take heed or comply when it is instructing you to lose your sense of control. What you do instead is remain placid and unobtrusive, so you do not exacerbate an infection by emotional eruption. When you aggravate an affliction, you only make it worse.

The Shape of Irritability

It has been said that when anger grows persistent and indignation recurrent, the mind takes the dissenting shape of irritability. This rouses resentment, prickliness and a sharp temper. At this point, your emotions are delicate, vulnerable and carping. For man, this state is utterly degenerate and twisted. And, since ill temper is hubristic and headstrong for an outside vehicle to remove, it is a kind of immovable absolutism that can only be settled by internal mastery. A man who does not have reason as his curative instrument is a stooge to his own passions.

It is especially useful to enlighten yourself on how to contend with anger, and have a supply of it at your disposal.

Really, anger is deplorable to all who notice that the pleasures of impulse entail suffering, and there is no way out of that tie. In spite of that, Euripides too is specific when he remarks that God interposes only when things become uncontrollable, leaving trivialities to chance. For, a man with an ill-temper is fairly out of control and disorderly, with inappreciable governance over his passions. It is taxing for a passionate man to attenuate his blind rage when its zeal overpowers his lack of authority.

Anger is Neither Glorious nor Masculine

Emotion causes vast mental chaos and the most repugnant repentance; for the purpose of a kind of indulgence that is shallow and horrid. It is for this reason, then, that self-control and goodwill are kinder and more heedful to those who enjoy them rather than those who meet them. If you carefully attend and reflect on people who are pinned down by anger, you will also come to apprehend anger’s nature in different facets. You will see that, really, it is neither glorious nor masculine, and it is neither stately nor awe-inspiring. Even so, most confound its facets for their antithesis; turbulence for efficacy, danger for bravery, obstinacy for power. Additionally, some also misinterpret its coldness for capability and its harshness for ‘righteous indignation’. This is rather inaccurate; the deeds and manner it elicits reveal its trifling and deficiency.

‘They pay the heaviest penalties for the lightest of things’
Plato

Reason is more reliable and assured than emotion; one is stable, the other wobbly, one is dependable, the other fickle, one is accurate, the other distorted. A poet once said, ‘Where there is fear, respect follows too.’ But really, the obverse is more precise. Esteem rouses a terror that demands moderation. Conversely, constant striving does not inspire remorse for wrongdoing, it inspires the desire to escape punishment at a later time. While acclaim demands self-control, fear incites veneration.

Restraint and Rationality

Man should not pursue pleasure by a desire for gratification and satiate himself with vengeance. For, to rejoice in punishment is animalistic, and to later be remorseful about it is womanish. By preference, man should hold back till both pleasure and anguish abate and his rationality recovers. Once your reason is restored, you can sensibly retaliate without being ruled by passionate annoyance. When Socrates used to notice that anger was lording over him, growing disagreeable and unfriendly towards his friends, he would soften his voice, put on a grin and refrain from frowning; to preserve self-control by compensating for the passion.

‘When anger takes over your heart, guard your babbling tongue.’
Plutarch

Anger is as Great as Weakness

A greedy man is liable to grow annoyed with his boss, as a jealous man with his wife, or as a narcissist when he finds out someone spread a rumour about him. The most appalling, however, are those ‘political men who court ambition too much: they stir up open grief’, as Pindar says. Consequently, anger emerges from psychological torture and affliction – a mind that is twisted and overtaxed is intemperately disturbed by its series of protective and oversensensitive urges.

The weakest of minds are most inclined to suffering; their anger is as great as their weakness. Man should, as much as possible, try to stamp out anger in vivid moments since it foists hostility over friendliness, turns discussion into argument, imbues power with conceit, engenders insecurity and disdain for reason, encourages jealousy, and discourages rapport. In general, when anger is near, a husband can’t put up with his wife’s dispassion, and a wife can’t put up with her husband’s rage.

The Seed of Emotion

Zeno says that a seed is an amalgam; a blend of essences that make up man’s basic characteristics. Comparably, anger appears to be a union of a passionate seed that embraces fragments of suffering, egotism and gratification. The seed contains the relish of antagonism, and derives its very means of battle from it. The evasion of its own pain is not the intention of its attempts, for it welcomes self-torment while tearing down a target. Really, one of its key properties is also one of the most unpleasant; the ardent desire to inflict harm on another person.

‘Solid objects seem bigger when it is misty, and the same happens to things when one is angry.’
Plutarch

Don’t Aggravate Disorder

Even still, most people are disposed to get furious and take a swing every now and then. What is especially contemptible, though, is when you chastise someone for being irate while you madly penalize others for faults done by anger. You are not a doctor, what you are doing is worsening an already inflamed disorder. Remember Plato’s dictum, ‘Am I not like that too?’ before you apply plenty of righteous indignation on others. When you realize that even your nature requires a good deal of tolerance, you will feel compelled to invert your thinking and break off your moaning and groaning, instead attending to careful awareness. No sensible man should bestow anything to possibility, or brush aside things with neglect. You, as a man, should have certainty to utilise things appropriately and congruously by the goodness of your reason, which is responsible for the most profound and significant situations.

A man, therefore, whose grievances compel condemning and disparaging behaviour, is enslaved by a weakly, pedantic, fault-finding condition and takes no notice that he is engendering a persistent and shaky fragility in his own rage. For that reason, you shall cautiously exercise your body to be independent and pleased without difficulty, since people who desire much are often let down, while those who desire little are rarely upset.

On Boldness

May 15, 2021 by Artful Prudence Leave a Comment

Preface

Evidently, no one can deny the truth that most men that occupy society lack boldness, among other things. This does not come as a surprise to anyone who has perceived the breakdown of gender roles; as men grow increasingly effeminate, their capacity for boldness assuages.

This piece will flesh out the nuance of boldness: why it works, how to use it and when to avoid it. Forthrightly, I will draw reference to various excerpts to further corroborate my discourse for this theme.

Boldness should not be the only good trait, it should be one of numerous, since its efficacy is partially resting on the efficacy of other good traits. No single trait is useful in the absence of other useful traits: they stabilise and brace each other.

Boldness and Timidity

Uncertainty in execution is dangerous, indecision and reluctance are contaminating. This is where boldness comes into play; while cowardice is ill-protected, boldness is stable – and a fault done by daringness can be rectified with more boldness. The fearful man is dishonourable, but the bold man worthy of admiration.

The emotional reactions of boldness and reluctance differ; while the former abolishes impediments, the latter generates them. In other words, boldness dismantles limitation, but timidity engenders more restrictions that incite passivity and drawback. Timidity denigrates your capacities and boldness enlarges them.

“Great enterprises are only achieved by adventurous spirits. They who calculate with too great nicety every difficulty and obstacle which is likely to lie in their way, lose that time in hesitation, which the more daring seize and render available to the loftiest purposes.”
Jean De La Fontaine

Audacity Amplifies Greatness

A dash of boldness has an enchanting influence: it conceals our defects and makes us appear larger than life itself. Every man is better off with a hint of audacity, it elevates his identity and enriches his nature. More heroic deeds, less fearful evasion.

A valiant spirit is indispensable for grand endeavours and illustrious conquests. If man is taken aback by the barrier ahead of him, he will squander a favourable chance in temporisation. The daring snatch a chance without delay as postponement is a loser’s game. The incompetent reschedule their duties, the capable swiftly oppose them.

Boldness is versatile; e.g. you will be confounded how compelling it is in matters of negotiation, where being rigid in your demands will earn you respect and resources.

Compliance is Dangerous

Picking out weakness is instinctual: if you confirm a readiness to find a happy medium and surrender your power, you let loose the monster even in those who are not diabolical. Remember: While audacity knocks terror, terror results in power. So, when you are terrified, you are inciting his power; when you are intrepid, you are inciting his fear.

Especially when daringness appears suddenly, its swiftness makes it that more menacing. A bold move alarms – it sets up an exemplar that in later engagements others will be scared stiff by your unpredictability.

“Always set to work without misgivings on the score of imprudence. Fear of failure in the mind of a performer is, for an onlooker, already evidence of failure…. Actions are dangerous when there is doubt as to their wisdom; it would be safer to do nothing.”
Baltasar Gracian

Fear is Vulnerability

When a person is easily frightened, he is bound to be stumped. He will perceive a way out even when there isn’t, and in doing so, generate further problems for himself. The timid will do their best to flee, but only to find themselves contending with more pitfalls. The fearful invite difficulties by trying to run away from them. There is a price to be paid for cowardice.

Boldness leaves no cracks, its alacrity leave no time for anxiety or a change of mind. As a matter of fact, a bold move tops off any good seduction, entrusting women no instant for judgement.

The faint-hearted only dwell on boldness, but don’t submit to it: they are risk averse and petrified of the viable outcome. People’s judgement and antagonism perturbs and paralyses them into passivity. So, they never provoke what alarms them: they are governed by its influence.

If the timid only dared to transcend, things would be more sane.

Nourishing Self-Deception

Often, you hide your diffidence with apparent altruism, conveying a kind of innocuous nature. But really, the contrary is true: you are an insecure egotist who is anxious about his public perception. You attempt to deceive others to make up for your inadequacy, thereby nourishing your self-deception.

“There is not one of us who does not prefer a little rough handling to too much consideration. Men lose through blundering more hearts than virtue saves. The more timidity a lover shows with us the more it concerns our pride to goad him on; the more respect he has for our resistance, the more respect we demand of him.”
Ninon de l’Enclos

Ninon understood this better than most men today – women too like it better when a man is more impetuous than considerate. The more timid a man with women, the more he fondles their ego; the more they provoke him. The more he tolerates their opposition, the more respect they urge of him.

Women Detest the Faint-Hearted

Women, as observed, have little to no respect for men who are amenable and diffident, their lack of authority gives women a surfeit of control; they rig the game to their own detriment presuming that women will feel sorry for them; they won’t. Truthfully, they are repulsed by it and don’t want anything to do with you.

Man is a loser when he compels a woman to feel more righteous than she really is; he perverts her nature when he overvalues her good.

Boldness Puts Her at Ease

More boldness on your end would pacify the waters and relieve resistance. No man in love should act like an imbecile, but a sensible man could act like a lunatic; women have a liking for roughness, but not for idiocy. The former as it is a demonstration of virility, the latter as it is a demonstration of frailty.

Really, your concern with the outcome of boldness is not proportional to the real world, and the effects of timidity can be far more sinister than intrepidity. This should serve you a lesson to always tend towards bravery when you are uncertain by fear; do not allow reluctance to govern your actions, nor stop you from fulfilling your purpose.

The Ages of Man: Maturity and Withdrawal

May 12, 2021 by Artful Prudence Leave a Comment

“Socrates says that youth must get educated; grown men employ themselves in good actions; old men withdraw from affairs, both civil and military, living as they please without being bound to any definite duties.”
Michel De Montaigne

Life is Seasonal

There is a time and place for everything and what comes up must inevitably come down. There are fine distinctions between the places you find yourself and the deeds you carry out in the transient phases of life and while one may be useful at one particular point, it may be futile in another.

So, the man who is evolving and moving from one stage to another naturally reshapes his deeds to suit his needs. Knowledge is all-important to the youngster in the same way compelling practice is vital to the adult. As we move ahead, the system we follow changes, as do our actions and perspectives.

The bustle of adulthood balances the withdrawal of old age. For agedness gives man the chance for true reflection away from busyness – tranquility serves man a chance to humanise his soul, save he is ready to openly admit it.

The Haste of Modern Life

Withdrawal is normally cast in a bad light, for we live in a hasty society where rapidity and irritability take center stage. Everyone is in a careless hurry to reach the ‘good life’ yet in doing so they turn aimless and mad, losing touch with the basic virtue that ties Man to God.

And when I say God, I don’t mean the material God but the inexpressibly obscure God that marks everything there was, is, and ever will be.

The more man deadens his inner recognition, the more subject to ignorance and disorder. So, a man unable to periodically walk away from madness is damned to its servitude – at variance with his intrinsic self.

To be readily given to withdrawal is to gladly open yourself. Detachment is release from the ties with the exterior world – the more you undo yourself, the less hooked.

“Miraculous wonders depend on our ignorance of Nature not on the essence of Nature. Our judgement’s power to see things is lulled to sleep once we grow accustomed to anything.”
Michel De Montaigne

Attachment’s effect glues you to things you do not own. The backlash is blindness – the inability to rationalise and discern things. Ergo, when you unknowingly split nature, your senses stifle.

From Youth to Manhood

I trust that a young man should expose himself to a necessary project. That is, to instruct his judgement and puzzle out knowledge. Though, I stress the former before the latter. Before wrestling productively with learning, he must sharpen his prime faculty and set right his moral code.

The youngster shall not cleave himself but instead line up with nature – and if possible, shun the oblivion of her rightness so that his acumen is not twisted by senseless ways.

A shift transpires between youth and maturity. While the former is mostly adapted to learning, the latter to industrious practice. So, a youngster diligently prepares himself for a bigger duty and ensures that his passage is reliable and orderly.

To the learned youngster, adulthood is a chance to carry out everything he understood and studied. He will set out to hit grand strides and manifest all he desires for the leading benefit of goodness.

But many youngsters going into maturity have a tightly impoverished attitude towards life’s call to adventure. Lacking bearing, their perception is perplexed by indolence and dumbness – what they are really seeking is freedom from hardship not defiance against lowliness.

Idiocy is Doom

The common man with potential is not impelled by his shortcomings, he is comforted by the reassurance of freedom from danger, despite the harm torpor inflicts on his nature and impetus. Sadly, many are doomed by the truth. As grave a failing as it is, countless are so defeated by their oblivion, so penniless of perception, that no good turn will be bad enough to enlighten their vile poverty.

Unless man savors competent duty, he will not discern the meaning of excellence. He will not perceive the importance of separation.

First you snatch your duties, then you conclude them.

Withdrawal is more valuable when you have been of service to a purpose more enduring than your existence. When you at last untie from the duties of manhood, there is a divine joy for a merited repose – when the time is ripe, retreat too is wanted after having tackled an honourable role; a role that furnished you with real significance and fortune.

“Anyone who holds his own life cheap is always master of the life of another man.”
Michel De Montaigne

The withdrawal of oldness is not convenient to the man who already committed himself to a life of futile wrongdoing and bondage. Sense and slavery don’t mix, real merit is found only when the chains of vice are pulled apart and a more cultured judgement transpired.

A Closing Comment

Thank you for reading. If you find my work useful, you will likely find my book to be a worthy investment for the development of your wisdom and strength of character. If you value my work and would like to support it, you can get purchase my audiobook by clicking here.

The Creative Process: On Reading and Writing

May 7, 2021 by Artful Prudence Leave a Comment

“First we eat, then we beget; first we read, then we write.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson

On Reading

Reading and writing are intertwined, like night and day, black and white, front and back. Their relationship is cyclical, each reinforcing the other. Reading should be an active process—one that involves engagement with the text, a confrontation that connects the ideas within it to your own life. Reading passively is an escape, a mistake that should be avoided. The aim should always be to gain something useful and personal from the act.

Samuel Coleridge classifies readers into four types: the hourglass, the sponge, the jelly bag, and the Golconda. The hourglass absorbs and passes on, the sponge does the same but less effectively, the jelly bag retains nothing of value, and the Golconda is the ideal—discerning and retaining only the precious. When you read, focus on what is useful to you. You can only understand what resonates with your current state of mind.

Ralph Waldo Emerson believed that one should only memorize what reflects their own thoughts and experiences. In other words, understanding is about relating new knowledge to what you already know. This connection enhances your ability to express yourself more clearly and profoundly.

Most writers read to nourish their writing, using books to clarify and refine their thoughts. Emerson said, “Everything a man knows and does enters into and modifies his expression of himself.” The clearer your understanding, the more precise your expression becomes. As new concepts shape your intellectual framework, they reorient your ability to communicate.

Goethe captured the essence of genius when he said, “What is genius, but the faculty of seizing and turning to account everything that strikes us?” Brilliance lies not just in original thought, but in the ability to adapt and integrate external ideas. The true genius doesn’t just create from within—they know how to transform the work of others into something uniquely their own.

If your mind is active and creative, avoid prolonged reading without reflection. Reading, like writing, requires breaks for thought. After reading a few sentences or a paragraph that sparks your creativity, stop. Take time to process what you’ve just read and let it inspire your writing.

“The glance reveals what the gaze obscures,” Emerson observed. Sometimes, a chapter’s opening lines can provide all the insight you need. If inspiration strikes, don’t wait—write down your thoughts. Reading and writing should feed each other, creating a loop that drives you forward.

On Journaling

Keeping a physical journal is invaluable for writers. By transcribing your thoughts, you clear your mind and refine your thinking. A journal is a ‘commonplace’ book where you can capture thoughts, brilliant insights, memorable quotes, and personal reflections. It’s not meant to be neat or orderly but a space for raw, unrefined ideas.

Don’t try to structure your thoughts as you write—let them flow naturally. A journal can jump from one theme to another without restriction. You might find it helpful to index the back for easy reference. This freedom is what keeps your ideas pure, without unnecessary embellishments. The key is imperfection—your journal should be as rough as it needs to be.

The Language of Nature

Language is the fossilized remains of poetry. The writer or poet’s task is to reconnect words to nature, to rectify the decaying use of language. True writers reinvigorate words, bringing them back to life in a way that resonates deeply with the reader. Nature itself mirrors the human spirit, and the laws of nature are also the laws of the mind. To master your intellect, you must understand nature, as they are intertwined.

Language is the bloodstream of thought, and no work of writing is trivial. Each word carries the writer’s essence, and when written well, it can evoke powerful emotions. Yet, writers often fall into extremes: they either speak too much or too little, fail to act, or overthink their actions. The key is to find a balance between expression and action, theory and practice.

The Craft of Writing

Effective writing requires attention to the details of your sentences, not just the content. It’s about finding the right word, not overloading your writing with unnecessary adjectives. Focus on what needs to be said and say it directly. The art of writing is about selecting the essential, not embellishing the trivial.

As Emerson said, “Nothing can be added to it, neither can anything be taken from it.” Good writing is simple yet complete. Every word should serve a purpose, and sentences should not be forced into a rigid structure. Let your words flow naturally, without the need for unnecessary connections. Writing that leaves room for the reader to think is often the most powerful.

Courage in Writing

Writing, like life, is an act of courage. It requires the ability to expose yourself, to confront your thoughts with honesty. The writer who struggles with consistency and over-refines their work weakens their expression. True courage in writing is about being authentic, even if it means contradicting yourself. The more you write, the more you grow—not just as a writer but as a person.

Mastery comes not from perfection but from the act of doing. It is the process of creation that shapes the mind, not the final product. To live for yourself in a world that often asks you to live for others is an act of creative defiance. Embrace this defiance in your writing—be bold, be direct, and never shy away from revealing your truth.