Philosophy · Book club
The Courage to Create book club questions
Here are 11 book club questions for The Courage to Create by Rollo May, ordered to open easily and end somewhere worth arguing about. Copy them, print them, or bring them up one at a time.
The Courage to Create is Rollo May's sustained argument that creativity is not a talent but an act of courage — specifically, the courage to encounter reality directly, to bring something new into the world against the resistance of both the external environment and one's own anxiety.
Rollo May · 1975 · 3h 45m
Full summary and key takeaways →The 11 questions
- 1.
May argues that creativity requires courage, not talent. Where in your own creative work do you most feel that courage is what's actually being tested?
- 2.
Describe an encounter — with a problem, a piece of work, another person — where the engagement was genuinely transformative. What made it different from less charged interactions?
- 3.
May says anxiety accompanies the creative act and cannot be avoided. How do you currently respond to creative anxiety, and does May's reframing change anything for you?
- 4.
Where in your life are you waiting for the anxiety to pass before beginning something? What would it mean to begin anyway?
- 5.
May argues that genuine creativity requires standing against the crowd, including the crowd of one's own previous opinions. Where have you felt that resistance, and how did you respond to it?
- 6.
The daemonic in May's sense — the raw life-force that can be creative or destructive — shows up in everyone. How do you experience it, and what is your relationship to it?
- 7.
May says form enables rather than restricts genuine expression. Do you agree? Where have constraints helped rather than hindered your best work?
- 8.
Insight tends to arrive in gaps — after effort, not during it. How do you create those gaps in your own work and thinking?
- 9.
May insists that creativity is about bringing something genuine into the world, not producing something that looks creative. Where in your life do you perform creativity rather than practice it?
- 10.
What would you create if you genuinely were not seeking approval? How different would it be from what you currently produce?
- 11.
May treats courage as a psychological and philosophical category, not just a moral one. Does that framing change how you think about what it means to be brave?
How to run the discussion
- Pick six to eight, not all of them. An hour of real discussion covers fewer questions than anyone expects, and racing the list is what makes a book club feel like homework.
- Open with what people noticed, not what they concluded. Asking for a verdict first hardens opinions before anyone has heard each other.
- Let the disagreement run. The questions below that split a room are the ones worth the time; the ones everyone answers the same way can be skipped.
- Ask the quiet person a specific question. A direct, narrow question is far easier to answer than an open invitation to contribute.
Themes worth steering toward
If the conversation stalls, these are the threads that usually restart it.
Common questions
What are good book club questions for The Courage to Create?
Here are 11 book club questions for The Courage to Create by Rollo May, ordered to open easily and end somewhere worth arguing about. The strongest openers ask what each reader noticed rather than what they concluded, and the discussion usually turns on creativity, courage, anxiety.
How long should a book club discussion of The Courage to Create last?
Most groups run 60 to 90 minutes of actual discussion. That is roughly six to eight questions, not all of them, so pick the ones that suit your group rather than working down the list in order.
What are the main themes in The Courage to Create?
Creativity, Courage, Anxiety, Encounter, Being. Those are the threads most likely to divide a room, which makes them the useful places to steer a discussion that has gone quiet.
Picking the next one? See books like The Courage to Create or questions for other book club picks.
