Book Review: Everything is F*cked

By Camila Cruz

From the author of the international mega-bestseller The Subtle Art of Not
Giving A F*ck comes a counterintuitive guide to the problems of hope.

We live in an interesting time. Materially, everything is the best it’s ever
been—we are freer, healthier and wealthier than any people in human
history. Yet, somehow everything seems to be irreparably and horribly
f*cked—the planet is warming, governments are failing, economies are
collapsing, and everyone is perpetually offended on Twitter. At this moment
in history, when we have access to technology, education and
communication our ancestors couldn’t even dream of, so many of us come
back to an overriding feeling of hopelessness.

What’s going on? If anyone can put a name to our current malaise and help
fix it, it’s Mark Manson. In 2016, Manson published The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F*ck, a book that brilliantly gave shape to the ever-present, low-level hum of anxiety that permeates modern living. He showed us that technology had made it too easy to care about the wrong things, that our culture had convinced us that the world owed us something when it didn’t— and worst of all, that our modern and maddening urge to always find happiness only served to make us unhappier. Instead, the “subtle art” of that title turned out to be a bold challenge: to choose your struggle; to narrow
and focus and find the pain you want to sustain. The result was a book that became an international phenomenon, selling millions of copies worldwide while becoming the #1 bestseller in 13 different countries.

Now, in Everything Is F*cked, Manson turns his gaze from the inevitable
flaws within each individual self to the endless calamities taking place in the
world around us. Drawing from the pool of psychological research on these
topics, as well as the timeless wisdom of philosophers such as Plato,
Nietzsche, and Tom Waits, he dissects religion and politics and the
uncomfortable ways they have come to resemble one another. He looks at
our relationships with money, entertainment and the internet, and how too
much of a good thing can psychologically eat us alive. He openly defies our
definitions of faith, happiness, freedom—and even of hope itself.

With his usual mix of erudition and where-the-f*ck-did-that-come-from
humor, Manson takes us by the collar and challenges us to be more honest
with ourselves and connected with the world in ways we probably haven’t
considered before. It’s another counterintuitive romp through the pain in
our hearts and the stress of our soul. One of the great modern writers has
produced another book that will set the agenda for years to come.

Mark Manson books often offer priceless life lessons through philosophical
insight and paradoxical optimism, and this book is no exception. In
Everything is F*cked, he redefines hope and shares what he calls "the
uncomfortable truth". He explains how he believes the opposite of happiness
is not sadness, but rather, hopelessness. He truly offers a counterintuitive
approach on life, however, he is very assertive more often than not. His
writing style makes his books page-turners. Every few pages, you'll surely
have some peals of laughter along the way. His humour, and habit of
dropping some curse words every few paragraphs makes the author often
come across as approachable and friendly. While navigating the book
readers often feel as if the author was having a casual conversation with you.
That's what makes his books great.

In this book, he explores the prevalent feeling of hopelessness nowadays. He
entails a thorough social and philosophical analysis of modern human
societies and the meaning of life. Manson is a nihilist at its best, and he
suggests we should rest our hopes on the premise of this existential belief.
Throughout the book, he shares how we must acknowledge that our lives
have no inherent meaning and that we are simply another speck in the
universe. Manson encourages us to appreciate our insignificance to build
hope within us with no preconceived notions or expectations.

This book falls under the category of 'self-help' books; however, Manson emphasizes on the fact that his book offers an atypical approach to self-guided improvement. These books certainly don't provide you with the usual "feel good about yourself" message. Manson constantly encourages us
to engage in those harsh paths of introspection in order to dissect our flaws.
He thinks the 'self-help' industry often fills people with inflated hopes and
expectations, and when people fail to meet those far-fetched and idealistic
expectations, the opposite is achieved. You'll end up feeling worse about
yourself, and hence the book offers no real value but rather a simple 'high'
of false optimism. Manson touches on the most complex issues of human
existence bluntly, allowing you to explore life through a lens of rawness and
vulnerability.

In the book, Manson shares how he believes hope is built upon three pillars,
which support us in the development of hope throughout our lives. The first
is having a sense of control in our lives, and a lack thereof often creates a
feeling of helplessness and impotence, which often hinders our everyday
life. Moreover, he discusses how having an answer to the "why?" in our lives
gives us a sense of meaning, often something beyond ourselves. How
believing in the value of something, in turn, gives us hope; and finally the
feeling of belonging and having a sense of community. He explains how
being part of a community who values what you value allows you to live
your life hopefully and meaningfully.

I consider Manson's books to be some of the most valuable (and up to
date) self-help books I've read so far, and I have been able to grow and
learn from them. Some of the biggest takeaways from this book is the fact
that we must not try to get rid of the pain we endure along the course of
our lives. We must embrace it because it is an essential part of human
existence and it allows us to grow and hone ourselves in order to be more
resilient. As humans, we inherently focus on the negative, but as Mark
Manson says, "If you remove the biggest stones from someone's path, we
will still be focusing on the pebbles. And it's unhealthy to believe that you
can or should be always happy." Pain as a matter of fact gives significance
to our lives. If we endured no pain, we wouldn't be able to ever discern
between pain and enjoyment. What would life be with no problems?