# How does Table-Talk develop the theme of The Psychology of Habit and Novelty?

> Table-Talk by William Hazlitt

## Answer

Table-Talk by William Hazlitt develops The Psychology of Habit and Novelty across the chapters the companion marks for this theme.

Hazlitt contrasts the 'bigot' who clings to custom and the 'sceptic' who chases novelty, showing how both extremes are driven by a lack of genuine reflection, and how people often prefer the comfort of routine or the thrill of the new over reasoned judgment.

Hazlitt discusses how familiarity breeds contempt for his own writings, while the novelty of painting keeps him engaged and happy.

Hazlitt explores how habit coils around the heart, stifling feeling, and how the craving for novelty and strong stimuli arises from over-exertion of the mind.

Cobbett's constant pursuit of new opinions and his fickleness are examined as psychological traits that give his writing vigor but undermine consistency.

## Evidence

- [volume-i-on-the-pleasure-of-painting](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/table_talk_se/chapters/volume-i-on-the-pleasure-of-painting.md): Hazlitt discusses how familiarity breeds contempt for his own writings, while the novelty of painting keeps him engaged and happy.
- [volume-i-on-the-past-and-future](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/table_talk_se/chapters/volume-i-on-the-past-and-future.md): Hazlitt explores how habit coils around the heart, stifling feeling, and how the craving for novelty and strong stimuli arises from over-exertion of the mind.
- [volume-i-character-of-cobbett](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/table_talk_se/chapters/volume-i-character-of-cobbett.md): Cobbett's constant pursuit of new opinions and his fickleness are examined as psychological traits that give his writing vigor but undermine consistency.
- [volume-i-on-people-with-one-idea](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/table_talk_se/chapters/volume-i-on-people-with-one-idea.md): Hazlitt explores how a single idea can become a habitual obsession, dominating an individual's thoughts and actions to the point of derangement.
- [volume-i-on-living-to-one-s-self](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/table_talk_se/chapters/volume-i-on-living-to-one-s-self.md): The chapter contrasts the habitual contentment of solitary contemplation with the restless, novelty-driven pursuit of public recognition.
- [volume-i-on-will-making](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/table_talk_se/chapters/volume-i-on-will-making.md): Hazlitt examines how testators act out of habit, whim, and caprice rather than reason, even in the face of death.
- [volume-i-on-vulgarity-and-affectation](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/table_talk_se/chapters/volume-i-on-vulgarity-and-affectation.md): Explored through the discussion of how people adopt opinions and manners unthinkingly from their social group, whether from habit or the desire for novelty.
- [volume-ii-on-going-a-journey](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/table_talk_se/chapters/volume-ii-on-going-a-journey.md): The essay explores how travel and change of place refresh the mind and revive forgotten memories, highlighting the psychological effects of novelty.

## Links

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