I hear you— “Jouissance!  Now you’re making up words!” Well, you’re kind of right, but, doggone it—I don’t have much choice.  Do I? There’s really no word that captures the qualities at issue.  Is there?

Joie de vivre isn’t quite right—that’s just having fun and loving life.  Charismatic isn’t quite right—that’s just persuasive charm. Roguish isn’t quite right—that’s starting to edge into criminality. Swashbuckling is close, but carries a quaint aura of, “Avast, matey!”, which is a tad off-putting.  Bravado and panache are okay as far as they go, but connote, a bit too much, the waving of a feathered cap at passersby.  Hero is on target—but that covers too much ground, like pensioners rescuing puppies, as well as leaves out too much, like cocky cheerfulness.

No, no.  We need a new term for a suddenly obvious concept. Something about bright, brash, dedicated, energetic joyfulness, with flair.  Something like . . .  jouissance!  (And the folks having it being . . . jouissants!)

Non-Examples

It’s not the heroism of The Iliad or The Odyssey.  They were all just doing a job, thank you, ma’am, then trying to get back home.  It’s not the heroism of Moses—he was just trying escape from captivity, then lead his people back home.  It wasn’t Caesar—he was just trying to subdue those pesky Gauls.  It wasn’t Genghis Khan—he was just a killing machine.  King Arthur seems to have been a good man, but he wasn’t exactly having fun, running the Round Table, finally being corteged back to Avalon, to await the call of Britannia.  Joan of Arc wasn’t having any fun at all.  Napoleon had Josephine, and those delicious cream cake pastries, but no one seems to describe the Emperor as any kind of devil-may-care, amused raconteur.

Prime Examples

It turns out that a romp through history, literature, and entertainment subtly reveals a certain type of hero of immense stature, popularity, and even reverence— brilliantly clever, as bold and forceful as necessary, fearless, and a bit of a rascal, full of joie de vivre and good fellowship, connoisseur of the high life, quietly amused at the follies of existence, radiantly charismatic, a natural leader, but profoundly dedicated to the common good . . . and preternaturally successful.  A figure captured, perhaps, by the word . . . jouissance.

1. Prince Hal.  Shakespeare’s original Party Animal, young Prince Hal loved frequenting taverns with his jolly, dissolute, devious mate, Falstaff.  Prince Hal once played a prank on his pal, secretly observing him in a robbery, and then having the pleasure of listening to Falstaff’s tall tale about how brave he was during the robbery. 

Prince Hal was a fun guy, mostly.  But, when it came right down to it, when rebels tried to violently depose his father, King Henry IV, Prince Hal was there—courageous, daring, skilled, and dominant. 

2. Sir Francis Drake.  A replica of Drake’s ship, the Golden Hinde, in which he circumnavigated the world, returning with tons of gold and silver, floats today in London in its festive, Renaissance glory.  Drake was a favorite of Queen Elizabeth I, and a phenomenally successful seafarer, the best and most daring navigator in the world.  His travel reports reveal that he considered dicing with danger and death an amusing adventure—sport.  He was so charming, sophisticated, generous, and gallant, that Spanish sailors he took prisoner wanted to join his winning crew. 

Legend has it that, in 1588, in England, when Drake was in the midst of a lawn bowling game, and informed that the Spanish Armada had been sighted, and, therefore, it was time to get fighting, Drake casually opined, “There is plenty of time to win this game, and to thrash the Spaniards, too”.   Sharp mind, cool hand.

3. The Three Musketeers.  D’Artagnan was a country boy who came to Paris on an old farm nag to seek his fame and fortune—to become one of the French king’s storied Musketeers. He immediately, accidentally, fell into swordfights with three of those deadly Musketeers. 

But he quickly displayed his mettle—a ferocious dueler, bold and brave.  Yet, the soul of loyal bonhomie— “One for all, and all for one!”  Cheerful, optimistic, energetic, courageous and task-focused, lover and combat champion, loyal pal, D’Artagnan bids fair to be the eternal emblem of — jouissance

4. Clara Bow, the It Girl.  Hard to believe now, but in the early stages, Hollywood was substantially created by women, like Mabel Normand, Edna Purviance, Mary Pickford, Mae West, and Anita Loos.  One of the shining stars of 1920’s personal and career liberation was Clara Bow, the girl with that splendid IT quality—smart, sweet, pretty, sexy, daring, fun, unaffected, honest, hard-working . . . and hugely successful.

5. The Rover Boys.  The Rover family is solid, decent, and upbeat.  The father is a bit of a loose cannon, characterized by shrewd daring-do.  Consequently, the Rover boys, as portrayed in the novels by Edward Stratemeyer, are forever engaging in some dicey adventure, usually on behalf of a touchingly deserving victim.  No matter.  The leitmotif is—jolly fearlessness, unhesitating initiative, looking danger right in the eye and laughing, while concocting some clever escape.  The very personification of cheerful, enterprising bravado.   

6. Douglas Fairbanks.  The first, and to some extent, still reigning king of Hollywood.  A founder of United Artists, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and the USC Film School, Fairbanks, in movies like The Mark of Zorro, Robin Hood, and The Three Musketeers, established forever the riveting persona of the swashbuckling hero—energetic, confident, and resourceful; amused at villains’ clumsy attempts to take control; then, with supreme effort, finally defeating the bad guys; while charming into his arms the beautiful girl.  (Then laughing, with Mary Pickford of the curls, all the way to the bank.) 

7. Gunga Din.  Dismissed by some as The Rover Boys in Khaki, this movie, starring Cary Grant and Douglas Fairbanks Jr., based on a poem by Kipling, is a stirring adventure yarn.  A village was mysteriously attacked by a shadowy group, and everyone was killed, and their bodies secretly hauled away.  Grant, Fairbanks, and company are soldiers sent to investigate.  A surprise attack apparently traps them.  But they fight their way out, finally escaping by jumping off a high cliff into a river.  When it was over, they bantered and laughed homeward.

8. Robin Hood.  Erroll Flynn was an Australian’s Australian—friendly, cheerful, bouncy, fiercely fit and athletic, well-spoken, a gracious ladies’ man as well as a fun, easy-going mate.  Sophisticated, yet hardy, and technically competent.  His physical capabilities, intelligence, ebullience, charm, and, of course, brave generosity on behalf of the poor, are well-displayed in his landmark movie, Robin Hood.  (Too, there was lovely Maid Marian.)

9. The Ginger Man.  No one today, possibly, can imagine the firestorm of liberation ignited by J.P. Donleavy’s picaresque romp of a novel, The Ginger Man, an Irish Falstaff.  The 1950’s were a warren of strict psychosocial rules, and Donleavy’s protagonist broke them all, looking back not once.  It wasn’t the horrifying sociopathy of The Ginger Man that was so entrancing.   But rather the idea that one could live a fascinating, colorful life on one’s own terms—in rollicking, cheerful, sensuous serenity.  (Another pint, my lad!)

10. Dr. No/From Russia with Love.  Johanna Harwood, trained in cinema in Paris, and working for a studio in London, wrote the original scripts for the first two James Bond movies.  Perhaps because of that, the first films have a charming, soufflé-light touch of amused, racy romance. 

Reassuringly, Bond always operates within a frame of higher-order dedication—a tough guy, but a good guy, for whom life is a savvy walk in a beautiful, dangerous park.  The initial profound appeal of Bond may have been, not guns and villains, but rather his manifest freedom—lucky at cards, lucky in love, afraid of nothing, amused by danger, powerful, rich.

The man every woman thinks of marrying, the man every man craves to be.

The Psychology of Jouissance

There is something of a myth abroad in the land that the way to arrive at a sublime state in life, the way to acquire a splendid personality, is to analyze personal problems to a fare-thee-well—a case-by-case dissection of beliefs, decisions, and actions that don’t seem to be working.  But research on business cognition has indicated that this may be the infamous tangled wood from which travelers fail to return.  A more direct, efficient, and rewarding approach is benchmarking, in other words, specifying the top goal state. That is what jouissance does. 

Jouissance says—leave behind disappointment and sadness, terror and panic, confusion and disorientation.  Of course, don’t pretend all that didn’t happen, or repress it all; dangers could reemerge, and experience would need to be called upon to cope.  Rather, by contrast—focus on the wonderful person you want to be, and the beautiful life you want to live.  

As Jane Austen described it, “Emma . . . handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition, seemed to unite some of the best . . . of existence; and had lived nearly twenty-one years in the world with very little to distress or vex her.” 

There you go.

The Jouissance Profile

A review of jouissance paradigms, as above, from Prince Hal, to Clara Bow, to James Bond, to Emma, is helpful to get a broad sense of the concept.  But it might be even more helpful to stroll through the manifest key qualities one by one.

1. Fitness:  Sheer physical health is a surprisingly strong platform for a confident, cheerful existence.  For example, Ian Fleming, the author of the Bond novels, and Sean Connery, the paradigmatic Bond, were both excellent athletes, bordering on the professional level—fast, graceful, and strong.  Douglas Fairbanks was a phenomenal acrobat, who worked out twice a day.  Gene Kelly, a dashing movie D’Artagnan, was a famous Hollywood dancer, and in superb condition. 

And all these paragons, naturally, were correspondingly slim and sleek.  (Yes!  You can eat well, and keep that weight down—Marcona almonds, wine, salad, fish!  No problem.  Not to worry.  Enjoy, then go for a walk.)

2. Courage:  J.P. Donleavy was a tough amateur boxer, never backing down from a street fight, willing to take on anyone, especially to defend someone weaker.  A leitmotif of the Bond movies, of course, is an upbeat willingness to confront dangerous situations, on behalf of the deserving. 

Some say courage isn’t the absence of fear, but the willingness to overcome fear.  But in some personalities, fear bubbles at a pretty low level.  That comes from repeatedly facing challenging situations, and learning to enjoy mastering the challenges.  And, if bested—c’est la vie!  Walk away.  Don’t let disappointments haunt you.

3. Jouissance Mind/Savvy:  Every objective has one or more corresponding routes.  The jouissance mind is excellent at divining the most probable path to success, as well as intuiting plausible alternatives.  Complex, creative thinking like that provides a comprehensive, flexible game plan for dealing with almost any eventuality.  Then, being prepared to deal with almost anything that could happen—what could go right, and what could go wrong—generates enormous confidence, indeed, a touch of charming insouciance.

When Drake was in the New World, stealing gold from the Spanish, he wanted to ensure that the Spanish wouldn’t go hunting down the rapscallion Englishman.  But how to do it?  One way would be to flagrantly mistreat his prisoners, the Spanish captain and his crew, “as a lesson”.  But Drake didn’t do that.  He treated the Spanish captain to a gourmet dinner on the Golden Hinde.  Then he released his prisoners, gave them each fine gifts, of which he had acquired many, and sailed away, around the world, to London, to fame and fortune.  Savvy.

4. Jouissance Mood/Buoyancy.  Life presents an array of qualities.  Some positive, some negative.  Part of the art of living is dealing effectively with the negatives, while luxuriating in the positives.  Maintaining an upbeat mood comes from identifying the good things in life, and focusing on those—keeping in mind the marvelous opportunities of living, and celebrating the surrounding beauty.  Thinking positively, and aesthetically, can become a habit.  Then the down days and the disappointments occupy a smaller relative space in the mind—they don’t loom so large, and they feel more manageable. 

Feeling good, and being confident, can become a mindstyle within a successful, exciting lifestyle.  Do your best, and don’t despair—there’s always another opportunity down the road!  Look for it.  Embrace it.

5. Sartorial, Architectural Splendor:  Not for nothing is James Bond iconically dressed in a tuxedo.  And the first Bond Girl, Sylvia, could hardly have been more glamorously, splendidly turned out.  Looking good is part of the elevated jouissance mood.  Even the rough country boy, D’Artagnan, acquired a spiffy Musketeer uniform.

And fine clothes always look better in classy environments—subtle lighting and turquoise swimming pools, palm trees and bougainvilleas, champagne and violins, neoclassical architecture and, maybe . . . Aston Martins.  Look good, live well.    

6. Loyalty:  Prince Hal was a rakish bon vivant, as was Sir Francis Drake, and D’Artagnan, not to speak of Bond.  But the ballast in the character of all four, the final signature of their dashing existence, was their unquestioning dedication to a cause higher than themselves.  Yes, to queen, king, and country.  But above and beyond that—to an ideology of compassion and justice per se.  

The rowdy hours in the taverns, the raucous teasing, the hunger for wealth and the pleasure in exercising power, the beautiful women, the casinos and the fast cars—all are forgiven, even celebrated, because in the hour of darkness, when all seems lost, these are the heroes who, on behalf of the citizenry, cheerfully launch themselves into the raft of barbarians at the gate.  And triumph.   

7. Philosophy:  I know what you’re saying— “These racy rascals are about as far from Aristotle and Plato as Marilyn Monroe is from Jane Austen”.  But it’s not so.   The jouissance philosophy is something as follows.

Life is short.  And on the other side is a shadowy mystery.  The way to live life, is to live it to the full!  To spend every day in a rocking chair on the front porch, in complete safety, sipping tea, and nodding to the passing neighbors, is a kind of living death.

As Oscar Wilde remarked, “Never regret thy fall/ O Icarus of the fearless flight/For the greatest tragedy of them all/Is never to feel the burning light”.

Life is an adventure!  Take the challenge and meet it.  Dream your dream, and live it.  Sure, danger is involved, but that’s part of the fun; that’s what gives a thrilling edge to every day.  That craving to gamble, and to survive, to conquer fear and evil, to bring the world out of darkness and into light—this is the mission; this is the message; this is the life.

(And don’t forget—Marilyn Monroe read Tolstoy and Dostoevsky, explored Buddhism, and supported civil rights!)  

In Brief

In and amongst all these trees of inspiring paradigms, glittering traits, patient acquisition, and atta-boy/atta-girl encouragements, the forest may be lost.  Therefore, here’s a brisk, concluding summary of the jouissance character:

1. Intelligence.  Be smart!  Street-smart, at least.  But don’t overlook Jane Austen and Plato.  A mind which masters the penthouse and the street level is a strong, flexible, and impressive mind.  Observe carefully.  Think clearly.  Remember well.

2. Guts.  Stand your ground.  In life, there will always be those (in the wrong), who attempt to crush those (in the right), who stand in the way of self-serving miscreants.  As pointed out in the story of the Dutch boy and the dike—one good person can change the world.  Face the tiger.  Speak the truth.  Light the lamp of hope.

If you want to see cheerful, glamorous courage in the flesh, so to speak, check out the Jouissant-Babe, the intelligent and elegant Diana Rigg, in her series The Avengers.  (She even ended up married to James Bond.  Sort of.)

3. Bonhomie.  “One for all, and all for one.”  The Musketeer slogan captures deep wisdom—the individual is stronger when linked to a group, and the individual will display great loyalty to that group, as long as the group supports the individual.  Share the pizza, order another round . . . and sing the songs of good fellowship.

4. Joie de vivre.  Don’t let your high standards, with their occasional failures, spoil your day.  Love your life, yourself, the people you are with, what you have, and what you do.  Clara Bow could do it.  D’Artagnan could do it.  You can do it.  Don’t let the process of living drag down your joy in living.  There’s always tomorrow.  And it may be much better than today.  (You can make it so!)

Exeunt/Freedom and Happiness

Happiness is for all who strive to be happy.
Spirit . . . is power!
The mind controls the will to act.
Get in the habit: walk briskly—smile—then laugh.
Today is the day to begin.

-Douglas Fairbanks

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Dr Steve Davidson is a clinical psychologist in Laguna Beach, California, and a contributing editor to The Montreal Review. He has developed a new theory of personality and psychotherapy called human operations. It conceives of people as goal-oriented systems aimed at surviving and thriving, as described in his book An Introduction to Human Operations Psychotherapy.

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