July 1, 2026
EVENT
By Alain de Botton
Philosopher
Introductory remarks
Professor Haris Vlavianos
Chief Consultant and Head of the Advisory Board
Institute for Hellenic Culture and the Liberal Arts (IHCLA)
The American College of Greece
When: Thursday, October 15, 2026 | 19:00
Where: ACG Events Hall, The American College of Greece, 6 Gravias str., Agia Paraskevi, GR 15342
Organized by: ACG Institute for Hellenic Culture and the Liberal Arts (IHCLA)
Love promises to be one of the great sources of happiness in our lives. Yet it is also responsible for some of our deepest confusion, anxiety and sorrow. This lecture explores why something we desire so intensely can prove so extraordinarily difficult to manage.
We will examine the strange ways in which our childhoods shape whom we are attracted to and how we behave once intimacy begins. We may consciously long for kindness, security and commitment while another part of us is drawn to uncertainty, distance or rejection. We can become suspicious of people who treat us well, find faults in promising partners, retreat when someone comes too close — and panic when they move away.
The lecture will explore some of love’s most painful challenges: why attraction can be so mysterious and uncooperative; why we struggle to communicate our needs directly; why relationships awaken old fears of abandonment and engulfment; why heartbreak can become an obsession; and why the modern abundance of romantic possibilities may make commitment harder rather than easier.
At the heart of the lecture lies a consoling proposition: difficulties in love are not necessarily evidence that we have chosen the wrong person or that our relationships have failed. Ambivalence, frustration and doubt belong to the ordinary experience of intimacy. Romantic maturity may depend less on finding certainty than on learning to tolerate uncertainty; less on discovering a perfect person than on recognising the inevitable imperfections of anyone we might love.
The challenge is not to eliminate the risks of love, but to become brave and psychologically wise enough to bear them.
Alain de Botton, Philosopher
was born in Zurich, Switzerland, in 1969 and now lives in London. He is a writer of essayistic books that have been described as a ‘philosophy of everyday life.’ He’s written on love, travel, architecture and literature. His books have been bestsellers in 30 countries.
Alain also started and helps to run a school in London called The School of Life, dedicated to a new vision of education.
Alain’s latest book, published in September 2019, is a collection of essays written for The School of Life, titled The School of Life: An Emotional Education.
Alain started writing at a young age. His first book, Essays in Love [titled On Love in the US], was published when he was twenty-three. View full CV.
The S. Sue Horner Lectureship in Gender Studies & Religion was developed to bring leading thought leaders from various professional fields of study to The American College of Greece. The lectureship is named in memory of Dr. S. Sue Horner, a valued member of our community and spouse of ACG president, Dr. David G. Horner. ACG’s beloved “Dr. Sue” was an accomplished scholar and passionate advocate for equity and access for women in higher education and society in general. This lectureship is in keeping with Dr. S. Sue Horner’s mission of providing a platform for thoughtful and provocative discussions that explore the best ideas on issues in gender studies and religion.
A reception will follow.
The lecture is free & open to the public.
Parking on campus, upon availability.
For more information, contact [email protected]