C. S. Lewis Pursuit Of Happiness

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that ALL men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” As you know these words come from the preamble of the Declaration of Independence, perhaps one of the greatest documents ever written. However, I do have a little problem with the last four words sentence, “the pursuit of Happiness” because I believe it actually sends an easily misinterpreted message.

Money plays an important role in everyone’s life, but having money doesn’t mean you can buy happiness or love. A person being wealthy, having all that money can cause fame and popularity, but true happiness can never be obtained. If you have money you can buy any happiness you want. But no one thinks about the opposite side of it. If you don’t have that money, because money is something you get if you’re destined to have it. Money can be a source of limited happiness, but not for lifetime. Money does have value, but you don’t need that to be happy. It’s not necessary to have money to be happy. Sometimes people with money, can be careless, they don’t care about others. They only think about themselves, only about their happiness. This causes

The texts, “High incomes don’t bring you Happiness” and “You can buy Happiness, if it’s an Experience”, completes the idea that monetary value does not bring true joy. In the passage, “High incomes don’t bring you Happiness”, the author states that bringing in an over excessive amount of money will not make one happy. The author said that an overall income of around $75,000 will complete one’s emotional well being, while anything over that will complete a life evaluation. Life evaluation is the idea that if one was to look at themselves while they’re in their deathbed, how would they rate their lifestyle. This is also supported through different statements within the passage, “You can buy Happiness, if it’s an Experience”. Within this study, it was proven that people enjoyed money, but often spent it on materialistic items which leaves them with a temporary feeling of satisfaction, while when they are given a fully paid trip to the Bahamas, the feeling of peace and joy lasts far longer than when they were to purchase an item of materialistic value. This

Many spend hours dreaming of having more money. They believe their quality of life would be better. Everyone has at one point in his or her life thought about how the possession of money would make life worthwhile by generating happiness. However, Benjamin Franklin, a prominent polymath, stated that money in all shapes and forms cannot purchase happiness, an abstract feeling. Franklin believed that the more money an individual possessed the more he or she will want. Although this doctrine has been instilled in the minds of the American people and other cultures for generations, aspects of this philosophy hold to be pragmatic, but viewed from a different perspective, some find this ideology quite absurd.

Although there are a number of different nuances and qualifications for this particular term, happiness actually can be defined. In fact, it usually helps to best define happiness in terms of what it is and what it is not. Happiness is certainly a state of fluctuation there is no consistent, prolonged state of felicity. If so, it then becomes normal, the normal becomes boring, and the result a sort of benign content becomes a bland, meaningless state devoid of any significant stimulus. Instead, what is needed for happiness is the vicissitudes of life. Were there no unhappiness, there could not be happiness. Happiness, therefore, is a function of rebounding from and considering the unhappiness that is a potential for virtually almost everyone, although the unhappiness for a particular individual is most relevant to him or her. With that in mind one of the most essential qualities regarding happiness is the fact that it is extremely relative, much like motion, and is best defined as the feeling of satisfaction (ideally punctuated by elation) one gets after achievement or averting the negative vicissitudes on might have encountered.

As Lewis

     While reading The Abolition of Man by C.S. Lewis, I encountered a few questions concerning his view on Ethical Innovation and the dilemma conditioners face. It was a difficult book with many ideas that didn’t come completely clear to me at times.

In my point of view, happiness often define a happy person as someone who experiences frequent positive emotions, such as joy, interest, and pride. Regardless of where you are on the happiness spectrum, each person has their own way of defining happiness. Philosophers, actors, politicians, and everybody in between have all weighed in on their own view of happiness. For instance, Dr. Shefali Tsabary, psychologist and author, said: "Only when we fill our own need and feel satiated from within can we truly be fulfilled and

But, as a follow up, I asked myself, “Can money help buy happiness? The answer: yes, use wisely, it can”(168). By this answer, I realize money is very important, and useful in our life but if we do not know how to use it in right situation, or too economize, money will make your relative far away from you and it will make you are not enjoy it. As the author demonstrates in the chapter, “Money, spent wisely, can support happiness goals of strengthening relationships, promoting health, having fun, and all the rest”(173) that makes me understand more about using money and how to makes money become valuable in happiness. Spending money in buys something to make your parents happy that makes they will happy and understand more about you.

Happiness is not a strange term to us. We usually use that word to express our feelings in every day. Additionally, more than a word, “happiness” is what we really need and always seek in life. However, finding and understanding deeply its meaning is not easy. The online dictionary, “vocabulary.com” defines, “Happiness is a sense of well-being, joy, or contentment. When people are successful, or safe, or lucky, they feel happiness.” Thus, we always wonder if we are happy or how could we be happier in our life. Happiness, therefore, becomes a goal for everybody.

The pursuit of happiness is critical in our lives. Oftentimes, we become confused as to what defines happiness. Happiness is an emotion, but it may also be the steps we take to feel said emotion. Happiness is using virtues and achieving your goal, while appreciating the little things in life.

The pursuit of happiness is a timeless and ageless endeavor. Since the beginning of time people have searched far and wide for the source of happiness. Even the greatest minds attempt to discover the basis of all human contentment. The father of philosophy, Socrates, was one of those few that might have unearthed the key to human happiness. His understanding shaped the way that the western world sees pleasure, joy, and happiness. His views on how to obtain them are still alive today.

It is often said that, “Money can’t buy happiness.” In Cass R. Sunstein’s Yes, Money Can Make You Happy, Sunstein provides a summary and review of Elizabeth Dunn and Michael Norton’s Happy Money: The Science of Happier Spending; he declares that money, when spent wisely and with the right attitude, can provide the most elusive of all human experiences: happiness. In a changing social climate with advances in technology offering unmatched convenience, and a culture in which diverse people with equally diverse sets of values come together, the study of what truly makes us happy is especially relevant now more than ever. While money can certainly be spent in a manner which will create happiness, what Sunstein neglects to address in his writing is that more money does not always equate to more happiness, regardless of how and when it is spent.

Whoever said money can’t buy happiness? Today, the argument can be made that happiness and consumerism are directly linked. It is fair to say that happiness is a relative term for different people. However, the obtaining of new and shiny things has become such a part of everyday life, that it provides happiness when people are purchasing something new, and causes sadness when no buying is taking place. For many, it seems to be a protective coating against the harsh realities of everyday stresses from a job, or family life.

MP Dunleavey, is the author of Money Can Buy Happiness. She is an award-winning personal finance author, editor, consultant, specializing in women and money. She is also a former columnist for The New York Times, and MSN Money. Dunleavey points out some good ideas about financial key terms to validate how spending money when makes you happy, makes a lot of sense. It’s a usual advice about retirement and paying down debt but that’s always a given. The best parts of this book are the parts that focus on happiness and evaluating if you are using money for its intended purpose.