The Majesty of Calmness
Individual Problems and Possibilities
William George Jordan 1898
These short essays discuss calmness and self-control in the face of everyday pressures. The essay Hurry, the Scourge of America singles out the costs of living too fast.
41 pages 48 min reading time
- A short classic of early American self-help writing, from the years when books on building inner strength first found a wide public.
- Argues that calmness is not weakness or a lack of feeling, but a sign of real strength that a person builds slowly through daily practice.
- Argues that we often cannot control what happens to us, but we can always choose how we respond, and that those choices shape who we become.
Written by a magazine editor
Jordan wrote it while working as an editor of popular American magazines, used to writing for busy readers.
Made as a small book
The publisher Fleming H. Revell first brought it out as a slim volume that was easy to carry or give.
Later joined with another book
Jordan later combined it with The Kingship of Self-Control into one larger book, Self-Control: Its Kingship and Majesty.
