Wednesday, August 17, 2016
Happiness in a Nutshell
I finished reading Brave New World last night and it has come to my realization how significantly important happiness is. The flaw in Huxley's utopia is although the citizens of the World State claimed they are happy however, they do not know the reason for it. That is not happiness. Happiness is something us humans find ourselves. One can find their happiness by going through the hardships first. Throughout life we learn so much about ourselves and the experiences of suffering and loss shape us as the person we are. Little by little we discover our likes and dislikes and what makes us happy and what does not. By eliminating the experiences of loss and negative emotions, the citizens of Huxley's society are not exactly happy because it isn't their happiness, it is how society wants them to be. Happiness is not something you find overnight, it is a process. Do you agree? How else do you think a person can obtain happiness?
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I agree with your post, and it is odd reading Brave New World and seeing the people's false perceptions of happiness. The happiness they achieve is artificial happiness, whereas a full happiness can be achieved by doing something for someone else just out of the goodness of one's heart. I believe that if the right steps were taken, happiness can be found overnight, but it might not be permanent. Emotions are like ocean waves, they come and go. You can see them in the distance coming, but you don't experience them until they're there and soon enough, they leave as fast as they came.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this not only because it is important to learn likes and dislikes, but because it is important to be able to cope with sadness. In a society where there is rarely unhappiness, nobody will know how to deal with it when unfortunate events occur. In Brave New World, their only solution is soma, but it is only temporary. The only way to escape problems permanently is to confront them head on and know how to solve them.
ReplyDeleteI would also like to add that Huxley's utopia doesn't even seem humanlike. Nobody ever has any close relationships or strong bonds with each other, which are characteristic of the society we know and live in. For example,parenting doesn't exist in Huxley's utopia and marriage is frowned upon.
To summarize my thoughts, the World State gives real happiness and humanity just to avoid unhappiness and create stability. It is close relationships and with other people and a sense of humanity that create happiness, but the World State society gives that up, therefore, it does not experience true happiness.
I agree that happiness is a process because a person has to find what makes them happy. People can obtain happiness by doing what they love and by spending time with friends and family. Both of these give people a true happy vibe, unlike in Brave New World. In the novel, the people are led to believe that true happiness is by having no problems, negative emotions, or love and family. True happiness comes from selfish pleasure, as demonstrated in the book. In my opinion, what those people are missing is the true emotional freedom a real human has, which has been taken away from them by their government without their realization. In conclusion, everyone reserves the right to happiness and no one should show you how to be happy. Happiness is found in a person's own mind and choices.
ReplyDeleteBrave New World is full of shallow happiness. It can be obtained easily through materials and objects but it can leave as fast as it came. A good chunk of the main characters in the book never felt fulfilled. They were never content and either felt like there was something missing or were just depressed in general. The mindless sex and the mass use of happy drugs are only as good as the effects last. Once they are gone people go back to feeling the emotions that they tried so hard to oppress. True happiness is a state that is incredibly hard to achieve. It involves learning how to deal with one's problems instead of ignoring them. True happiness cannot be achieved though material objects that get rid of bad feelings.
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