[mkovach]

> Notice that Camus doesn't say HOW to imagine Sisyphus happy. How do you?

The gods controlled the ascent, but they forgot to regulate the walk back down. In those brief, unburdened minutes descending the slope, Sisyphus is completely outside their authority.

You can imagine him however you like, laughing at the absurdity of it, studying the mountain, or simply enjoying the breeze. It almost doesn't matter. The walk down belongs to him.

The gods imposed the sentence. Sisyphus decides what it means.

This is Camus' idea of the universe and how to rebel against it by owning and enjoying the small freedoms.

Personally, I believe how you see Sisyphus happy reflects how YOU would enjoy your small freedoms, and this shows how Camus often wanted people to do philosophy on their own.

[otekengineering]

Yeah, it's a question with a personal answer, not an absolute answer. My answer works for me, for now, and I enjoy learning what answers work for other people.

I wonder if Camus had his own answer to that question. Could Camus imagine Sisyphus happy?

I don't think rebellion or ownership are enough. Rebellion is meaningless when you're alone with nothing to rebel against, and ownership is not inherently positive.

Gods not regulating the decent is an interesting take. Can one learn to smile while falling?

[Smilliam]

> Can one learn to smile while falling?

I've never seen an unhappy astronaut on the ISS :P

fwiw, I largely agree with mkovach's interpretation because of the direct analogy to modern work culture. But I do admire your view as well, I get a lot of satisfaction from deep cleaning and maintaining things, and there's a commensurate amount of pride watching the item transform back into something clean again.