Pleasure is relative

The Savoy Shower Principle

The philosopher Epicurus (341-270 BC) argued that the goal of life is pleasure. But he had a careful definition of pleasure, insisting that excessive indulgence (in food, drink, sex and so on) was not true pleasure as it inevitably led to pain. For Epicurus, then, true pleasure meant the avoidance of pain, and he taught that one should avoid the kind of situation that would lead to the unavoidable “downer” that ruined contentment.

A version of this idea was impressed on me by a poignant experience some years ago that led me to name it “the Savoy Shower Principle” (echoing the use of the term “Shower Principle” to refer to using distractions to obtain inspiration).

My parents-in-law Dennis and June got married in London in 1940 during the Blitz. For their honeymoon, they booked a weekend at the Savoy Hotel overlooking the Thames in London. On the second night of their stay, the hotel’s windows were blown out by a bomb. They responded with immaculate sang-froid, and every year thereafter they returned to the Savoy to celebrate their anniversary.

I first joined them there for their 50th wedding anniversary in 1990. Dennis said that the highlight of the stay was that the hotel bathroom had a shower with an incredibly powerful jet. He would beam with pleasure, saying how much he looked forward to enjoying the shower as soon as he arrived: “it feels as if it strips away a whole year of stress”.

Some years later, his shower at home broke down and a brand new one was installed. When the night of the Savoy anniversary came around, I encountered him in a deeply disconsolate and angry mood. It’s the shower here, he said. Compared to the new one at home, it’s feeble. The super-powerful jet used to be the main treat of his visit; now that pleasure, and the prospect of it, was lost for ever.

As Epicurus knew, pleasure is relative. That’s the Savoy Shower Principle.