Preface to the Revised and Expanded Edition
Preface to the first edition
Acknowledgements

Money - Does being rich make you happier?
Unrequited Love - Is Love the Salvation of Life?
Inferiority Complex - Is Recognition the Only Way to Live a Happy Life?
Meaning - What do I really want?
Values ​​- Will building up specs lead to a brilliant life?
Grades - Do Grades Really Show Ability?
Life Progress Chart - When Will Life's Losers Be Determined?
Speaking and Writing - Does Persuasion Come from Logic?
Addiction - What do people live for?
Image Making - What Makes Me Stand Out?
Forgiveness - Why is my heart filled with anger?
Change - What if you want to turn a crisis into an opportunity?
Relationships - Why Are True Friends Rare?
Conflict - Why do I always lose?
Mourning - Does life continue after death?

Seventeen, a time to understand and accept myself
Soothing children's loneliness and anxiety by confessing their intimate wounds.

“The effort I made was to find meaning in old wounds and open the way to growth.
“I think this is why the work of exploring my own problems with the wisdom of philosophy resonated so deeply with teenagers and, similarly, with adults who have been carrying wounds for a long time.” ― From the Author’s Note

An Gwang-bok, author of "Life Theory at Seventeen," has long introduced the diverse charms of philosophy, comforting the wounded, and helping us all understand others and the world, and move forward on the path of learning and growth.
He says that pain and frustration are something we can never avoid as long as we live, so we must think about 'what we can feel and learn' from these failures and hardships.
If you ignore the pain, push it away, or bury it, it will harden into trauma and complexes and come back to haunt you before you know it.
As everyone ages, the author has learned to hide his worries in a sophisticated way.
Then, while teaching and counseling students, he said that he faced the unresolved wounds of his teenage years as if they were a mirror, and realized that he needed to first take care of himself.
The loneliness of not being understood anywhere, the fear that my reason for existence would disappear if I failed to study, the sense of hopelessness and anxiety about the unknown future, and the difficulties I felt in my daily life, where none of the things were easy, such as family, relationships with friends, health, or meaningful leisure, came back to me.

In this book, the author candidly confesses to memories and intimate wounds from his childhood, including his severe handwriting and stuttering, his intimidation to the point where he couldn't even make eye contact with a boy he had a crush on, the time he got a zero on a test because a computer marker lent him by a rival friend turned out to be unsuitable, and his inner thoughts about how he insisted on wearing only brand-name clothes out of concern for how he would appear to others.
The desire for recognition, jealousy, envy, and inferiority complex he displays are so surprising that one wonders, "Is it okay for someone to be so honest?" However, the author does not stop there and seeks advice from philosophers to heal himself.
Observing this process disarms the reader's mind and provides an opportunity to look into one's own inner self.
Soon, 『Theory of Life at Seventeen』 will be an autobiographical essay, but at the same time, it will also be a book that offers sincere comfort to children who have similar wounds.

On how to properly steer the ship on the journey of life
To those who want to make today better than yesterday

The author declares that the era of following the same 'life progression chart' as our parents lived is over.
The era that young people will face today will be very different from the world that the adults who raised them have raised them to be.
However, I worry that if I continue to postpone the work of planning my own future for the sake of entrance exams, employment, and making money, I may end up suffering from a mental illness later in life when I am in my 40s or 50s.
So, he suggests that teenagers should ponder the questions, “How should I live to live a satisfying life?” and “What do I live for?”
Where should you begin? The author poses crucial, core questions to ponder at every stage of life for those seeking self-reflection, planning life goals, and striving to become even a little better.
And to solve it, we introduce various concepts from various scholars, from philosophers thousands of years ago to psychologists living today.

Philosophical concepts that may seem stiff or boring at first glance are naturally incorporated into the author's friendly and easy-to-understand explanations.
For example, he draws the definition of 'excellence' from Aristotle, the 'hidden curriculum' of school from Ivan Ilyich, and the concept of 'striving for excellence (pursuit of superiority)' from Adler.
From Martin Buber, it brings us the relationship of 'I-Thou / I-It', from Nietzsche, it brings us the 'camel-shaped man', and from Freud, it brings us the 'labor of sorrow'.
This book not only serves as an excellent introduction to philosophy that anyone can digest, but also offers the unique experience of seeing philosophers, great writers, and psychologists, including the author, who once seemed distant, as mentors and teachers.
Among the reader reviews pouring in for "A Seventeen-Year-Old's Life Theory," there are many who say, "I read it before giving it to my child, and as a parent, I was moved."
It is also a way to reach out to adults who have been living with the unresolved worries of a seventeen-year-old, and to help them overcome this pain together.
For those who wish to hold firmly to the rudder of their own lives and navigate life wisely, I hope this book will help them establish their own philosophy of life.