The-Conquest-of-Happiness-by-Bertrand-Russell

foolish; now that you are neither, it is your
business to examine their apparent strength and
wisdom, to consider whether they deserve that
reverence that from force of habit you still bestow
upon them. Ask yourself seriously whether the
world is the better for the moral teaching
traditionally given to the young. Consider how
much of unadulterated superstition goes into the
make-up of the conventionally virtuous man, and
reflect that, while all kinds of imaginary moral
dangers were guarded against by incredibly foolish
prohibitions, the real moral dangers to which an
adult is exposed were practically unmentioned.
What are the really harmful acts to which the
average man is tempted? Sharp practice in
business of the sort not punished by law, harshness
towards employees, cruelty towards wife and
children, malevolence towards competitors,
ferocity in political conflicts - these are the really
harmful sins that are common among respectable
and respected citizens. By means of these sins a
man spreads misery in his immediate circle and
does his bit towards destroying civilisation. Yet