One must imagine Sisyphus happy.
Albert Camus The Myth of Sisyphus, final line (1942)
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When and why it was written
- When
- Written in occupied France and published in 1942.
- Why
- Camus needed an ending to an essay that began by asking whether life is worth living.
What it means
The verb is an instruction. Camus does not claim Sisyphus is happy; he says we must imagine him so, which puts the work on the reader.
His argument is that Sisyphus becomes superior to his fate at the moment he sees it clearly and does not look away. The rock is unchanged. The scorn is the victory.
Read the source
The Myth of Sisyphus, 1942
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Your turn
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