ABSTRACT
Most people find mathematics dreadfully dull and difficult to understand. Those who immerse themselves in it for a lifetime must be a rather curious sort of being. Still more curious is the fact that the many disappointments and discouragements of this most rigorous discipline seldom seem to dissuade its addicts. Indeed, this will seem most curious in light of the following lament, jarringly honest in its description of the not inconsiderable emotional perils of being a mathematician. First of all, the mathematician must be capable of total involvement in a specific problem. Second, the mathematician must risk frustration. Next, even the most successful mathematician suffers from lack of appreciation. Finally, the mathematician must face the fact that he will almost certainly be dissatisfied with himself. This is partly because he is running head-on into problems which are too vast ever to be solved completely.
