The pursuit of happiness is a universal concept amongst humans. But is this concept universally believed and understood in the same way? Is happiness really the end goal, or does pursuing a meaningful life lead to a more fulfilling life? In an article from The Atlantic, “There’s More to Life than Being Happy,” Emily Esfahani Smith discusses the misconception of the pursuit of happiness and the difference between those who seek a life of meaning through the use of ethos, pathos, logos, and other rhetorical devices utilized within these methods. First, Smith expertly utilizes ethos throughout the essay to support her research by numerously stating the scholarly sources she uses. A vast majority of her information is substantiated by a well-known
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A group of researchers, including Jennifer Aaker and Emily Garbinksy from Stanford University, came to the similar conclusion that people who are happy get their joy from receiving benefits, while those who lead meaningful lives get their joy from giving to others (Smith, E., 2013). At the same time, Roy Baumeister, a social psychologist from Florida State University, also says that living a meaningful life does not necessarily mean living a happy one—at least not all the time. In addition to these credible sources, Smith calls attention to Martin E.P. Seligman, who is described as “one of the leading psychological scientists alive today” (Smith, E., 2013). According to Seligman, those who lead meaningful lives have a desire to serve and or belong to something bigger than oneself, even if it costs them their happiness. To sum it up, by making references to studies and findings from all of these expert researchers and psychologists, Smith has created a very strong and convincing argument that there is more to life than being …show more content…
One way she achieves this by bringing to light the irony behind the concept of the pursuit of happiness. Viktor Frankl put it more eloquently when he said, “It’s the very pursuit of happiness that thwarts happiness” (Smith, E., 2013). People who seek a happy life end up spending most of their time pursuing it instead of actually being happy in the present moment. Smith even goes as far as to point out that: from a social perspective, the pursuit of happiness is associated with selfish behavior—[being] a “taker” rather than a “giver.” The psychologists [explain] happiness is about drive reduction. […] People become happy, in other words, when they get what they want. (Smith, E., 2013)
For those who eventually “reach” happiness, they end up discovering that happiness is fleeting. Those who have meaning in their life, despite not always being happy necessarily, tend to go through life not feeling as “empty” or
A group of researchers, including Jennifer Aaker and Emily Garbinksy from Stanford University, came to the similar conclusion that people who are happy get their joy from receiving benefits, while those who lead meaningful lives get their joy from giving to others (Smith, E., 2013). At the same time, Roy Baumeister, a social psychologist from Florida State University, also says that living a meaningful life does not necessarily mean living a happy one—at least not all the time. In addition to these credible sources, Smith calls attention to Martin E.P. Seligman, who is described as “one of the leading psychological scientists alive today” (Smith, E., 2013). According to Seligman, those who lead meaningful lives have a desire to serve and or belong to something bigger than oneself, even if it costs them their happiness. To sum it up, by making references to studies and findings from all of these expert researchers and psychologists, Smith has created a very strong and convincing argument that there is more to life than being …show more content…
One way she achieves this by bringing to light the irony behind the concept of the pursuit of happiness. Viktor Frankl put it more eloquently when he said, “It’s the very pursuit of happiness that thwarts happiness” (Smith, E., 2013). People who seek a happy life end up spending most of their time pursuing it instead of actually being happy in the present moment. Smith even goes as far as to point out that: from a social perspective, the pursuit of happiness is associated with selfish behavior—[being] a “taker” rather than a “giver.” The psychologists [explain] happiness is about drive reduction. […] People become happy, in other words, when they get what they want. (Smith, E., 2013)
For those who eventually “reach” happiness, they end up discovering that happiness is fleeting. Those who have meaning in their life, despite not always being happy necessarily, tend to go through life not feeling as “empty” or