Leonard J. Lawrence Behrens 'Happiness And Its Discontents'

Happiness is a very hard word to define. To me it means a state of emotion, but it could mean something completely different to someone else. For instance, some might feel that it is a goal in life, that everyone tries to or must achieve, but not for me. I feel it is always a good thing to go through hard times because it shows how strong you are and what you can take. Sometimes I feel so much better letting out my true emotions then keeping them inside and not show anything. Americans think that is always a bad thing to feel sadness and that not true. How can a person tell if someone else is happy? Is it how much money they have, or how much they smile in a day? In “Happiness and Its Discontents,” author Leonard J. Rosen and Laurence Behrens observe that “humankind has debated definitions of happiness for thousands of years, and still a single, acceptable definition eludes us” (523). There’s not one definition of happiness, there are many different kinds. It just depends on the person. For instance, my definition of happy is doing what you want to do with your own life, but most Americans might think that money makes people, or themselves happy.

If you never feel sadness, happiness may never show. If one never goes though the bad they might not see the good. When you feel and recognize the sad, it makes you realize and appreciate the good. Also, if someone is remembering the past, they not only remember the good but also the bad. The sadness will make you who you are today. In “What Suffering Does” author David Brooks explains that “People shoot for happiness but feel formed through suffering” (566). Stating that if someone went though a sad time, they will most likely grow from it and try to avoid that sadness. Sadness should also be limited, if one has too much sadness and never happy they may never stop feeling