R3D2H3S2

THE IMPORTANCE OF LIVING--Lin Yutang--Reynal & Hitchcock ($3).

In My Country and My People Lin Yutang offered a shrewd and engaging interpretation of modern China which U. S. readers liked almost as well as chop suey. Passing suggestions in that book hinted that what the U. S. needs, in order to quiet its nerves, is a good shot of Chinese philosophy. In The Importance of Living Author Yutang sets down what he thinks are the most useful ingredients for a Chi-nese-American way of life. Banning Buddhism because "it is too sad," he likes the Taoist-Confucianist view better, but cheerfully admits that he has taken many of his opinions from humbler authorities who include "Mrs. Huang, an amah in my family; a Soochow boatwoman with her profuse use of expletives; a Shanghai street car conductor ... a lion cub in the zoo; a squirrel in Central Park in New York. . . ." But his main guide is himself.

Gist of Author Lin's philosophy is that Occidentals need to be taught "a wise disenchantment and a hearty enjoyment of ife." As a measuring rod for gauging the well-balanced man and nation. Dr. Lin submits a formula based on a blend of realism ("R"), dreams ("D"), humor ("H"), sensibility ("S"), qualified by 4 (abnormally high), 3 (high), 2 (fair) and 1 (low). The ideal formula, says Dr. Lin, is R3D2H352 (a middle-of-the-road balance). Nearest to this ideal are the English, one point low on humor and sensibility. The Germans, Japanese and Russians make the worst showing, being much too high on dreams, much too low on humor and sensibility. The Americans are one point high or low on everything except realism.

Fundamental mistake of Western man. says Lin Yutang. is his attempt to find out where the spirit begins and the flesh leaves off. Having abandoned a missionary's career when he saw this fallacy, Author Lin now regards any attempt to separate the two as "confusing, unintelligible and untrue." "Happiness for me," he says, "is largely a matter of digestion. ... I would prefer pork to poetry, and would waive a piece of philosophy for a piece of filet. . . ."

Author Lin. "one of the hardest working men in China," salutes the scamp, the vagabond, insists that "the art of culture is ... the art of loafing," and names the three great American vices as "efficiency, punctuality and the desire for achievement and success." His idea of the millennium in Manhattan includes a vision of the time when motorists will "inquire after their grandmothers' health in the midst of traffic ... fire engines will proceed at a snail's pace, their staff stopping on the way to gaze at and dispute over the number of passing wild geese in the sky." But he is glad U.S. faucets do not leak like the Chinese brand. "If I contradict myself here as a Chinese." shrugs Dr. Lin. "I am happy as a Chinese that I contradict myself."

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