Relationships

Love has a history and we ride – sometimes rather helplessly – on its currents. Since around 1750, we have been living in a highly distinctive era in the history of love that we can call Romanticism. And it has been a disaster for love. Relationships challenges the assumptions of the Romantic view of love. It shows how to develop new attitudes that can lead to a psychologically mature vision of love:? That it is ok that love and sex may not always belong together ? That discussing money early on, in a serious way, is not a betrayal of love ? That realising that we are rather flawed, and our partner is too, is of huge benefit to a couple ? That we will never find everything we need in another person, nor they in us ? That spending two hours discussing whether bathroom towels should be hung up or can be left on the floor has its own dignityFull of applied real-life examples, and enlivened throughout with humour and cultural anecdote, this innovative guide paves the way to a new, brighter future for love.

The School of Life is devoted to developing emotional intelligence. It addresses issues such as how to find fulfilling work, how to master the art of relationships, how to understand one’s past, how to achieve calm and how better to understand and – where necessary – change the world. These ideas are delivered though a range of channels: from videos, books and products, to classes, events and one-to-one therapy sessions.

Headquartered in London, it operates around the globe with twelve international branches (Antwerp, Amsterdam, Berlin, Istanbul, Melbourne, Paris, Sao Paulo, Sydney, Seoul, Tel Aviv and Taipei). The School of Life is a rapidly growing global brand, with 3 million YouTube subscribers, 270,000 Facebook followers, 52,000 Instagram followers and 130,000 Twitter followers.

The School of Life Press brings together the writing of teachers, psychologists and philosophers under the creative direction of series editor, Alain de Botton. The aim of all the titles is to share a coherent message with one voice.

Alain de Botton was born in Zurich, Switzerland in 1969 and now lives in London. He is a writer of essayistic books that have been described as a ‘philosophy of everyday life.’ He’s written on love, travel, architecture and literature. His books have been bestsellers in 30 countries. The School of Life is coming to the US in 2018. The San Francisco Conference will take place from the 23rd to 25th of March, and the New York Conference will be in the fall – exact dates to be confirmed.