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The Sunny Nihilist

A Declaration of the Pleasure of Pointlessness

ebook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available
A positively rebellious take on a traditionally negative philosophy offers an antidote for our anxious times.
Career success, a beautiful life, a beautiful Instagram account—what's the point? In a world where meaning has become twisted into a form of currency that everyone is very keen to cash in on, journalist Wendy Syfret invites you to change the way you think about the way you think.
In her seminal work, The Sunny Nihilist, Syfret presents the optimism in Nihilism, encouraging us to dismantle our self-care and self-centered way of living and accept a life more or less ordinary. Syfret re-examines the meaning of worth, value, time, happiness, success, and connection, and guides us towards the alternative path of pointless pleasure.
When you let go of the idea that everything must have purpose, you will find relief from stress, exhaustion, and anxiety. Most importantly, you can embrace the opportunity to enjoy the moment, the present, the chaos and luck of being alive at all. The Sunny Nihilist is an inspiring call to action and survival adaptation for modern life.
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    • Publisher's Weekly

      November 29, 2021
      Journalist Syfret (How to Think Like an Activist) urges readers to confront the “futile and meaningless” nature of existence in this savvy introduction to nihilism. Living in a society obsessed with making every moment meaningful left Syfret feeling guilty and anxious, she explains. What turned her life around was accepting that nothing she does will matter in the grand scheme of things, an outlook she dubs “sunny nihilism” and which positions “pointlessness as a chance to breathe and think.” Syfret looks at the way nihilism has been weaponized, having been twisted to fit the Nazis’ agenda and employed by conspiracy theorists and associated with darkness. She offers a brighter take on it, making a case that it allows for “a chance to enjoy the moment, the present, the chaos, and luck of being alive.” She offers plenty of anecdotes and tips, as when she skewers the “myth of meaningful work” by reminding readers that it “has no larger significance.” While Syfret tends to get repetitive, she nonetheless offers sharp takes on love, religion, work, and consumerism. This hopeful and breezy take will have philosophy-minded readers believing that an ordinary existence can indeed “become celestial”—if the perspective is right. Agent: Alexandra Cliff.

    • Good Reading Magazine
      There’s nothing like a pandemic to make you look at your situation. Life seems suspended and meaningless. Wendy Syfret found that most things she stressed about (wealth and success) were artificially constructed by society. All of it was transitory and what she’d been fretting over didn’t really matter. Nihilism is the trademark concept of Friedrich Nietzsche. Anarchy, rebellion and destruction are nihilism’s supposed hallmarks, but only because Nietzsche’s sister hijacked and contorted his ideas after his death to propagandise her fascist sympathies. Syfret seeks to correct the record and reinterpret Nietzsche’s work to apply it in a more positive manner. Nihilism underscores the realisation that life is ultimately meaningless. So, we could decide that the institutions of power and belief need to be removed or, as Syfret encourages, we could remove ourselves from the whole artificial hamster wheel. Acknowledging that we aren’t special frees us from seeking perfection. Upon realising our insignificance, what then should we use to fill the void? Put in this context, social media and conspicuous consumption make little sense. Nor does work, relying on religion or love. Syfret suggests being mindfully present, concentrating on life’s small pleasures now, rather than aiming for some distant unachievable perfection. This is an interesting take on the artificiality of societal constructs. The book has its flaws, but the overall thesis is well argued. More importantly, it obliges you to think about self-worth and meaning.  Reviewed by Bob Moore   ABOUT THE AUTHOR Wendy Syfret is a Melbourne based writer, editor, and author of The Sunny Nihilist: How a Meaningless Life Can Make You Truly Happy and How to Think Like an Activist. Previously she's served as the Managing editor of VICE Asia. Before taking on that role she was the Head of Editorial for VICE Australia, Australian editor of pioneering fashion publication i-D, and associate editor at VICE.com. Other publications she has contributed to include ABC, Crikey, the Guardian, the Cut, the Saturday Paper, the Atlantic, British Vogue, The Boston Globe, Noisey, Munchies, Frankie, Refinery29, Oyster, Broadsheet, and Man Repeller. Her broad editorial background has seen her cover news, current events, culture, gender and sexuality, the arts, fashion, and beauty. Across her career she has overseen partnerships and programming efforts with cultural leaders including the National Gallery of Victoria, National Gallery of New South Wales, National Gallery of Australia, the Museum of Old and New Art, the Wheeler Centre, The Emerging Writers Festival, NITV and SBS. In her own time, she is passionate about initiatives that support and engage young Australian writers. Visit Wendy Syfret's website

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