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Mistakenly Seeking Solitude Analysis

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In today’s society, a major recurring question involves the amount of emphasis that should be placed on ourselves compared to that we place and spend with others in our social life. In a society so fixated around human interaction, could humans possibly reach a un- describable capacity of internal happiness through living in a state of solitude? Humans can be described by many as social beings, therefore, the constant social interaction would seem necessary for one’s happiness but at many times, we seek a more pleasurable experience through solitude especially regarding interaction with strangers. A diagnosis of solitude’s effect on happiness is described in “Mistakenly Seeking Solitude” by Nicholas Epley and Juliana Schroeder, “The Measurement of Self-Sufficiency” by Robert Bernreuter and “Happy Like God” by Simon Critchley. In an article named “Mistakenly Seeking Solitude” by Nicholas Epley and Juliana Schroeder, two professors at the University of Chicago conduct an experiment regarding happiness levels regarding the effects of communicating with strangers on trains …show more content…

Bernreuter a former professor at Pennsylvania State College, conducts an experiment regarding one 's happiness and it 's correlation to how self-fulfilled one is regarding social interaction with others rather than staying in a more self-oriented state of solitude. Bernreuter designs a test to identify a factor behind social interaction due to a lack of dependency. Bernreuter also believes that depending on how self-sufficient one was, the more willing they are to engage in solitude. Bernreuter’s test of self-sufficiency was given to 127 elementary students, 388 college men, and 456 college women at various colleges and universities around the same geographic area of California. This discrepancy in ages and sex could distinguish a difference in answers regarding self-sufficiency which in turn could correlate to happiness and

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Are you truly living without happiness? One could live a plentiful life alone, and who are we to say that the happiness that comes along with belonging to a community is essential to life? Consequently, if a problem were to arise, one would have to be prepared to face it alone. According to the film Stranger Than Fiction directed by Marc Forster you can live a life of contentment by yourself, but to overcome the obstacles that life presents, you need a community to support you. Harold Crick is perfectly satisfied with his life of numbers and being alone.

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Relationships play an important role in the quest for the “good life.” According to Robert Waldinger in What Makes a Good Life, “The feeling of loneliness can be toxic” and that those who feel lonely are “more likely to have declining health and memory at an early age.” People who experience these feelings won’t have the healthy and able body that they need in order to reach their “good life.” As Professor Watkins also said in lecture, no one reflects on their experiences in life and says, “Wow! I had a great and lonely life!” Although these people may be happy in specific moments of their life, they won’t be able to emotionally reach their “good life.”

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In this paragraph, Thoreau is describing the solitude he experienced in the woods and paints a picture of the environment in his reader’s heads. He uses the words “dark”, “black”, and “night” to help describe the word solitude in the way that most people view it. Thoreau finds peace and calm in the solitude of the woods whereas others avoid it. He uses those words to connect his audience’s negative view on solitude with his positive one in attempt to change it. He points out that many people may still be afraid of the dark (solitude) or paranoid when within it even though “the witches are all hung, and Christianity and candles have been introduced.”.

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“Whosoever is delighted in solitude, is either a wild beast or a god” (Aristotle). Romantic period writer and author, Mary Shelley, depicts two characters in her soft science fiction novel, Frankenstein, that is exquisitely similar to those who “would find delight in solitude” as quoted by Aristotle in his Politics. In Shelley’s Frankenstein, the parallel of Aristotle’s two presented personas consists as Victor Frankenstein as a god and his horrific creation, the Monster, as a wild beast. Unambiguously, Victor is indeed the god of the Monster because he created him, consequently bringing the Monster into existence. The Monster too is merely a wild beast from the perception that he appears to be a frightening and violent creature.

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It is vital as people need to have a sense of belonging and acceptance from their social group such as family and friends to prevent form loneliness. Worse still, a new research suggests that loneliness and social isolation are as much a threat to our health. (Gupta, 2015). The next level of needs is self-esteem needs such as achievement, independence, status, prestige and managerial responsibility

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