What Is Culture For?

How to find compassion, hope and perspective in the arts.

Many people search for the meaning of life through music, film, literature and the visual arts. But how can we synthesize the emotions we feel through art?

This book looks at how works of culture were made - that is, to improve the way we live. Connecting a range of (Western) cultural masterpieces with our own pains and dilemmas, we learn to better see culture as a resource, a way to address the agonies of being human.

It provides us with enduring keys to unlocking culture as a way of transforming our lives.

Using common themes - such as companionship, hope balance, compassion, knowledge, encouragement, appreciation, and perspective - and combining them with works from Bach to Renoir, The Beatles to Mel Gibson's Braveheart, Hamlet, Anselm Kiefer, and writers like Proust and Virginia Woolf, this book provides the key to unlocking culture. Indeed, the keys to transforming our lives.

• HOW MUSIC, FILM, LITERATURE AND VISUAL ART operate in our society and lives.
• EXPLORES CULTURAL MASTERPIECES and how they relate to our everyday lives.
• ILLUSTRATED with full color images throughout.
• THOUGHT-PROVOKING CONCEPTS that enhance any future visit to a gallery, theater or cinema.
• BEAUTIFULLY PRODUCED premium gift format.

The School of Life is a global organization helping people lead more fulfilled lives. Through our range of books, gifts and stationery we aim to prompt more thoughtful natures and help everyone to find fulfillment. The School of Life is a resource for exploring self-knowledge, relationships, work, socializing, finding calm, and enjoying culture through content, community, and conversation. You can find us online, in stores and in welcoming spaces around the world offering classes, events, and one-to-one therapy sessions.

The School of Life is a rapidly growing global brand, with over 6 million YouTube subscribers, 351,000 Facebook followers, 218,000 Instagram followers and 163,000 Twitter followers.

The School of Life Press brings together the thinking and ideas of the School of Life creative team under the direction of series editor, Alain de Botton. Their books share a coherent, curated message that speaks with one voice: calm, reassuring, and sane.