All people experience tragedy at one point or another in life. Rather it be a death or a heartbreak, tragedy can be hard to recover from. However, the large majority of people respond in one of two ways. Some people become depressed and completely let tragedy defeat them. Not only is this physically unhealthy, but sadness can take over an individual's personality and mess with their mental state of mind as well. On the other hand, some people respond to tragedy positively. As a result of thinking positively, some individuals improve themselves and change their lives for the better. In chapter two of The Happiness Hypothesis, Jonathan Haidt discusses this approach through three different methods that include meditation, cognitive therapy, and …show more content…
Haidt is explaining how a depressed father feels when he watches his daughter fall and hit her head. Haidt explains the father’s thought process by explaining that the father “instantly flagellates himself with these thoughts: ‘I’m a terrible father’ (this is called ‘personalization,’ or seeing the event as a referendum of the self rather than as a minor medical issue); ‘Why do I always do such terrible things to my children?’” (p. 38). These thoughts coming from the father are purely negative. Although the father could have looked at this situation as a small accident, he chooses to take the blame for a fall that was undoubtedly not his fault. This brings Haidt back to his original claim, the way that individuals react to incidents determine their happiness. Although the father sees this incident as negligence, an uncomplicated solution would have been to help his daughter up, and get her the help that she needs. However, the father has a negative outlook on life. Therefore, he reacted poorly. If the father had a positive outlook on life, he most likely would have reacted differently and provided his daughter with the proper help. Through pathos, Haidt promotes that positive emotions lead to positive reactions, leading to overall happy