why is Sisyphus happy?

EDITING & MUSIC By HOUSECAT:
@housecat00

Chapters:
00:00 Is he stupid?
02:07 Learned Helplessness & The Absurd
05:34 Acceptance & Amor Fati
07:20 The Self As Context & Taoist Identity
09:42 Commitment & Flow Psychology
15:00 The Will To Happiness
18:00 Between Yes & No

SOURCES

Camus, A. (2000). The myth of Sisyphus (J. O'Brien, Trans.). Penguin Classics.

Zaretsky, R. (2013). A life worth living: Albert Camus and the Quest for Meaning. Cambridge : Harvard University Press,

Benson, J. S., & Kennelly, K. J. Learned helplessness: The result of uncontrollable reinforcements or uncontrollable aversive stimuli? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1976, 34, 138-145.

Au TK. Counterfactual reasoning. In: Semin GR, Fiedler K, editors. ”Language, interaction and social cognition. Sage; Thousand Oaks, CA: 1992. pp. 194–213. [Google Scholar]

Hayes SC, Wilson KG. Experiential avoidance and behavioral disorders: A functional dimensional approach to diagnosis and treatment. Journal of Consulting & Clinical Psychology. 1996;64(6):1152–68.

Hayes SC, Strosahl KD, Wilson KG. Acceptance and commitment therapy: An experiential approach to behavior change. Encyclopedia of Psychotherapy. 2000;32(1):1–8.

Nietzsche, Friedrich. The Gay Science. IV, §341.

Csikszentmihalyi M. (1990). Flow : the psychology of optimal experience (First). Harper & Row.

Frankl, V. E. (1992). Man's search for meaning: An introduction to logotherapy (4th ed.) (I. Lasch, Trans.). Beacon Press.

[Legalize_Ranch]

Everyone imagines Sisyphus happy but no one asks him if he's happy

[sqob]

“Is there a lore reason for sisyphus to be happy? Is he stupid?”

[gamerofgaminggames]

Thank goodness, I have been wondering this for a while. Most of it stems from “If Sisyphus is happy, why am I unhappy? How did he do it?”

[MexicanTacoTruckTime]

I’ve been diagnosed with severe Major Depressive Disorder for awhile now, and since the beginning I’ve been asking myself why. I’ve never found the answer, but every time I watch one of your videos, I feel that I get a little bit closer. Please know that your content does not fall on deaf ears. If nothing else, you’ve made a difference for me.

[jaykay]

It took me almost two decades to figure out even half of this on my own. I was tortured as a child. Tortured by my classmates' constant bullying and my parents' apathy and abuse. Tortured by the relationships and opportunities I missed out on because of fear and trauma. When I went off to college, I isolated myself to prevent that pain from going on any longer. After I graduated, I realized that I had wasted those four years. I've now been in the workforce for over three years. Only this year was I able to actually find happiness by accepting that I had a troubled childhood which made navigating early adulthood a near impossible task. Finally I realized that I shouldn't be leaving my apartment to make friends and have relationships. I should be leaving my apartment because it's what I want to do. That's when I finally felt joy in being around others, rather than the terror I had felt my entire life. Like Sisyphus, I accepted my boulder for what it was. And I felt pride in carrying such a massive boulder up so far.

[epicshinji]

The last line "What has happened has happened, and what will happen is never guaranteed. Now, what will you do next?" sums up this whole video and I love it

[Invisibillion-cpou]

is there a lore reason why the indomitable human spirit occasionally gives me the motivation to push on in spite of my dire circumstances? Am I stupid?

[moture]

Alternative title: Is there a lore reason why Sisyphus is happy? Is he stupid?

[urdad]

my friends bio was “i like to imagine sisyphus happy” for years. he’s passed now, but this reminded me of him :)

[sarthakpawar]

"One must imagine sissyphus oiled up twerking"

[Vindiorix]

I've always been stuck on the specific choice of the word "must imagine" as in "One MUST IMAGINE Sisyphus happy, because the alternative, or to OBSERVE HIS REALITY, would be unbearable."

[hayden_hanna]

One must imagine Sisyphus 55 dropping another instant classic on a wednesday morning.

[dexterwhit]

My dad died suddenly a week ago. It was not unexpected or understood by anybody. Including the doctors. And the "what ifs" Ive experienced were the worst thing I've ever felt.

So thank you for this video.

[pcodes]

"No matter what I do I'm going to die."

This is such a liberating thought.

[annavc]

"one must imagine sisyphus happy" is a thought that has been constantly on my mind lately. when i sent a ton of messages to get an "ok" "yeah" "idk" in return. when i kept throwing up everyday for three months. when i felt a cold crawling inside of my arms and shoulders upon hearing something that broke me. when i keep loving someone who hurt me badly.

[Brambrew]

We must imagine Sisyphus happy because _he must have learned by now how to live with himself for eternity._

[cambrown]

One must imagine Camus so miserable that Sisyphus looked happy by comparison.

[alexxx]

*_One must imagine Sisyphus in a flow state_*

[aster]

I always interpreted it as "one MUST imagine Sisyphus happy" because fathoming eternal suffering would break anyone. It's a demand, a requirement to remain sane

[frankie]

i love this video, it is so hard to find people explaining the process of being happy rather then them just spouting philosophy and not actually giving any path towards it.