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On Happiness: New Ideas for the Twenty-First Century
What is happiness, and how does the pursuit of happiness shape our lives? Happiness appears to be a simple emotion, individual and pleasurable, yet the problems associated with happiness in politics, economics and philosophy suggest that it is perhaps more complex and paradoxical than we first thought.
This eclectic collection of essays interrogates the ‘common sense’ understanding of happiness in the West and examines the strategies devised to obtain it. Without disposing of the concept altogether, On Happiness rediscovers the latent aspects of this pervasive (and elusive) phenomenon. Ultimately, it concludes that our current notions of happiness may in fact be the very cause of our discontent. On Happiness offers readers a spectrum of critical reflections and ‘rethinks’ of this ubiquitous cultural obsession.
This eclectic collection of essays interrogates the ‘common sense’ understanding of happiness in the West and examines the strategies devised to obtain it. Without disposing of the concept altogether, On Happiness rediscovers the latent aspects of this pervasive (and elusive) phenomenon. Ultimately, it concludes that our current notions of happiness may in fact be the very cause of our discontent. On Happiness offers readers a spectrum of critical reflections and ‘rethinks’ of this ubiquitous cultural obsession.
234 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 9, 2021
The introduction may be titled "This Book Won't Make You Happy", but it certainly made me think.
It's difficult to review in a conventional way because of how many different writers and contributors there are. However this is an excellent collection of ideas around happiness. I highly recommend it for anyone who is willing to reassess their preconceptions about the world and our place in it. The pursuit of happiness has become paramount to everything we pursue in Western culture and that, more than anything, is something we definitely shouldn't leave unexamined.
The book has three parts: starting with philosophical engagements, which delve into the nature and purpose of happiness; moving on to social interrogations, which broadly look at individual events and societies and their relations with happiness; and lastly ending on personal encounters which provide anecdotal first hand accounts from people who have nuanced experiences of the nature of happiness through their experiences in a variety of different fields.
It's difficult to review in a conventional way because of how many different writers and contributors there are. However this is an excellent collection of ideas around happiness. I highly recommend it for anyone who is willing to reassess their preconceptions about the world and our place in it. The pursuit of happiness has become paramount to everything we pursue in Western culture and that, more than anything, is something we definitely shouldn't leave unexamined.
The book has three parts: starting with philosophical engagements, which delve into the nature and purpose of happiness; moving on to social interrogations, which broadly look at individual events and societies and their relations with happiness; and lastly ending on personal encounters which provide anecdotal first hand accounts from people who have nuanced experiences of the nature of happiness through their experiences in a variety of different fields.
July 30, 2021
Fabulous essays! Incredibly insightful book.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews