The Romantic Exercise

Name: The Romantic Exercise
ISBN: 9787532747474

Alain de Botton / 刘凯芳Shanghai Translation Publishing House · ChinaJun 2015

4.0

Word count: 164K words
Chapters: 43
ISBN: 9787532747474

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Summary

A novel by Alain de Botton, The Romantic Exercise is his second work of fiction, following Essays in Love. Its plot offers little that is new: it traces the love affair of a young Englishwoman named Alice, from her first acquaintance with her boyfriend Eric, through their falling in love, to their eventual breakup. What sets the book apart from ordinary romances is that, alongside the storytelling, de Botton analyzes the heroine's thoughts and actions — and the problems that arise in her life with Eric — from philosophical and psychological perspectives.

Editor's review

“Love Lessons” is an early novel by Alain de Botton—not a conventional love story but a work of philosophical and psychological observation dressed as fiction. With his signature delicate touch and cool analysis, de Botton places an ordinary relationship under a microscope, giving every emotional stage—from the thrill of the first date to infatuation, then suspicion, dependence, and disillusionment—a profound rational reading. He deftly draws on philosophy, literature, and psychology—Freud, Proust, and others—to explain the irrational behaviors and feelings of love, giving readers a flash of intellectual pleasure alongside recognition. The book’s value lies in offering a “third-person perspective” that helps readers caught up in love or confused by it step outside the emotional whirlpool and understand their own and others’ emotional patterns with greater clarity and insight. It offers no romantic consolation but a rational map—though the map sometimes reveals truths about love that are less than poetic. For de Botton’s readers, it typifies his “essayistic novel” style, balancing literary quality with intellectual substance; reading it is itself a pleasurable journey of reflection.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers confused by romantic relationships who want to analyze emotional patterns rationally
Devoted readers of Alain de Botton who enjoy his cross-genre writing and philosophical reflection
Readers interested in psychological and philosophical analyses of everyday life
Readers currently in or who have been through a relationship and want a detached observational perspective

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting a conventional love story with a dramatic, plot-driven narrative
Readers seeking pure emotional comfort or romantic inspiration from the book

Reading tips

Treat it as a casebook on “the theory of love,” reflecting on your own experiences as you read
Don’t rush; it suits quiet, slow reading to savor the analysis and aphorisms
If a philosopher or concept cited in the book interests you, follow the thread into further reading

About the publisher

Shanghai Translation Publishing House China · Founded in 1978

Shanghai Translation Publishing House is a Chinese publisher oriented mainly toward translation and publishing. Its publications cover foreign literature, world classics and classic works, as well as social culture, folk literature and classical poetry. The database contains 2,618 titles, including Never Let Me Go, Les Misérables (2 volumes), Don Quixote (illustrated collector's edition), The Complete Comedies of Molière (4 volumes), The Complete Novels of Kafka (3 volumes), The Collected Works of Dostoevsky (9-volume set), Reason and Persons, and Oedipus Rex (Translation Classics). Its author resources include foreign writers such as Kazuo Ishiguro, Victor Hugo, Cervantes and Molière, as well as translators such as Zheng Kelu, Sun Jiameng, Li Jianwu and Zhang Kun. The publisher has brands such as "Translation Classics Selections" and "Translation Documentary," and emphasizes translated works in foreign literature and the humanities and social sciences, while also publishing bilingual dictionaries and foreign-language educational books. Public information is limited; the above is based on the book information in the database.

版权信息
我的作品在中国
导言
译序
现实
艺术和生活
对故事的羡慕
愤世嫉俗
晚会
从零开始
爱上爱情
模糊不清
沉思
性，血拼和小说
洗涤周期
价值体系
了解对方
预见性
爱情的永久性
力和007
宗教关系
埃里克的负担
为了什么才爱你？
旅行
读物
为快乐而快乐
潜水、卢梭和想得太多
青春期
厌恶女性
离开自己去度假
褊狭的观点
你让我成为怎样的人
灵魂
真相的层面
问题
转移过失
私语
误读
谁来作出努力？
爱情的七巧板
表白
邀请
牺牲

FAQ

Is this book a novel or an essay collection?

It is a novel, but with a strong essayistic and discursive character. De Botton uses fictional characters and plot to carry his philosophical and psychological analysis of love, blending narrative and argument.

Will someone who has never been in love get anything from this book?

Yes. The book is more a guide to “how people become entangled in emotion and construct meaning”; it offers an anticipatory framework for understanding the emotional scripts and psychological mechanisms common in society.

How does this book relate to de Botton’s “Essays in Love”?

“Love Lessons” and “Essays in Love” are two early works by de Botton on similar themes, both exploring modern love. They share the same rational perspective on love but differ in characters and narrative details; they can be seen as companion pieces.

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About the author

Alain de Botton Author · British (born in Switzerland) · 1969

Alain de Botton, born in Zurich, Switzerland, in 1969, is a British writer and public speaker based in London. He studied history at the University of Cambridge and later earned a master's degree in philosophy at King's College London. De Botton is known for examining everyday life through a philosophical lens, weaving abstract ideas into concrete experiences such as love, travel and status anxiety. His clear yet thoughtful prose bridges the gap between academic thought and general readers. Works including Essays in Love, The Consolations of Philosophy, The Art of Travel and Status Anxiety reflect a style that blends literature, philosophy and the personal essay. In 2008 he co-founded The School of Life in London, and in 2011 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. The collection holds 33 of his works, spanning foreign literature, Western philosophy, essays and personal growth.

刘凯芳 Author

Liu Kaifang is an author with relatively limited publicly available information in the Chinese book database; four titles are currently recorded under her name, commonly classified as foreign literature. Judging from these works, she has been involved in the translation, introduction, or editing of foreign literary works. Her representative titles include Pincher Martin (Golding Collected Works), Pincher Martin, and Love Lessons. Pincher Martin is associated with the collected works of William Golding and falls within the publishing scope of classic foreign literature, while Love Lessons is likewise categorized as foreign literature. Because public information is limited, her nationality, dates of birth and death, educational background, and specific career details cannot be confirmed, and no English name has been recorded. The available information only indicates her participation in the translation or editing of the above foreign literature titles, and readers may consult specific editions to learn more about her contribution.