A Life Of Happiness

“Happiness is in the enjoyment of man’s chief good. Two conditions of the chief good: 1st, Nothing is better than it; 2nd, it cannot be lost against the will” (Augustine 264-267). As human

Perhaps it is safe to say that most everyone in the deranged world that we live in today aims for happiness. Some would even say we are simply slaves to our primal passions, shackled in our endless pursuit of fulfillments and shaping our existence around them. Gravitating towards the things in life that bring us pleasure, and recoiling away from those that could cause us pain. A lot of individuals think of happiness as an overall end goal, while others consider happiness the starting point of being great. Nevertheless, happiness is drawn from different things based off the individual.

As Philosophy presents, happiness is the “highest good of a rational nature” and the “state of perfection achieved by the concentration of all goods within it” (page 27, 41). This definition, along with the notion that the supreme cannot be taken away from people, noticeably exhibits that happiness cannot be awarded by earthly gifts from Fortune and is the intrinsic good that lacks nothing outside itself and could achieve everything on its own. True and perfect happiness can only be achieved by the possession of the supreme good in which all goods are possessed. Meanwhile, God is happiness itself because God is the supreme goods as happiness and there cannot be two highest goods which differ from each

People travel through life with what seems like a single goal: to be happy. This may seem like a selfish way to live, however this lone objective is the motivation behind nearly all actions. Even seemingly selfless deeds make people feel better about themselves. That warm feeling experienced while doing charitable acts can be described as happiness. But what is authentic happiness? There is an endless possibility of answers to this question, and man seems to be always searching for the solution. Although one may reach his or her goals, there is always still something one strives for in order to be happy. In the book Stumbling on Happiness, Harvard psychologist Daniel Gilbert takes the reader through

As Kupperman states, although “happiness” and pleasure are used interchangeably, there is a distinct difference between the two. While pleasure has a direct source of its joy to an object and is typically short lasted at a time, happiness is a general feeling one has over a time period whether it is a season or lifetime. Someone could be happy with only few pleasures or even have experience great pleasure and still lack a positive feeling for life. People would like to experience more “pleasure” if it had the same enjoyed circumstances as before. Kupperman says to determine the most valuable life; it can either be viewed as one with the most pleasure or with the most utility (pleasure minus pain).

People tend to feel the most happiness in their daily lives rather than happiness over all. For instance, if someone opens the door for you, does something outrageous, tells a funny story or simply reacts kindly to you, you can experience happiness. Laughing at someones joke can cause you to feel happy even for just a moment. Another definition of happiness in our daily lives is self appreciation such as, getting that new raise, getting an A on a test or even getting into the college you want. These examples all cause happiness in different but still rather large ways. We seem to think that happiness is so difficult to come by, we focus so hard on what happiness is that we don't even realize the simple things in life that are truly making a difference. We can become significantly happy without even noticing. Although happiness seems like it’s hard to find it’s not all that difficult. What’s hard to come by is the feeling of genuine happiness ; genuine happiness is what people truly look for.

Happiness is something very abstract and it differs from individual to individual. I always feel that a poor man will always be thankful to the almighty even if he is provided with two square meals a day but at least he can sleep happily with no stress; on the other hand a rich man will always be unhappy throughout his life either in the pursuit of creating wealth or in the tension of safeguarding his wealth. Accumulating wealth is extremely time consuming and time once lost cannot be regained; moreover, not all have the potential and skills of earning which is always coupled with hard work and

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.

John states, “Those are only happy (I thought) who have their minds fixed on some other object other than their own happiness;” He goes to give his own examples to back up these words like other's happiness, improvement of mankind, religious or artistic pursuits. I agree with John because my happiness comes from giving to others and or the improvement of mankind. People's happiness around the world steams from believing in God and having a religion, whether it's one God or multiple Gods. God to those people and I is the object of happiness and even some peace of mind, hope, and a savior.

When first asked, I believed that happiness was simply fulfilling a desire, but through topics discussed in class, I now realize that there is so much more to happiness. The road to happiness includes using virtues to receive gifts from God and from others. From the Beatitudes, we can learn to use what Jesus has taught us, to gain happiness in our everyday lives. We are taught that when we believe in God, mourn, be gentle, seek righteousness, show mercy,

Happiness is what all human beings/rational beings desire. It is always the end (goal) of our activities, it is an unconditional good.

Happiness is the central purpose of human life and a goal in itself. All action is goal oriented and the goal of every action, is to reach happiness. According to Aristotle, happiness is “living well

The everlasting question of "What is Happiness?" has been inquired since the creation of men. Unfortunately, the only agreed answer that humanity came up with is that all the creatures seek happiness, but no one has the concrete directions for achieving it. Our libraries are overwhelmed with books about happiness, but no dictionary definition explains which path men must take to be happy. No mathematician gave us the axiom which we could use to solve the problem of living in bliss. No scientist brought up the formula of fusing certain ingredients to produce the "drink of happiness". Still almost all the people consider that their ultimate purport in

Aristotle once quoted that “Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence.” Granted, times have changed since 322 BC, but this general, basic idea can still be observed and studied in our modern times. Considering Aristotle is also one of the greatest thinkers in the history of western science and philosophy, this statement could easily be widely accepted, and could certainly provide substance for thought as to what the purpose of existence really is. In agreement to Aristotle, happiness is what makes a life worth living, and it is measured by refraining from materialism and feeling inspired by our coexisting society.

And simple truth his utmost skill! – Sir Henry Wotton (1568–1639), English poet in ‘The Character of a Happy Life’