Search engine for discovering works of Art, research articles, and books related to Art and Culture
Javascript must be enabled to continue!
Happiness
View through CrossRef
Orwell had mixed views on happiness. He cast it as the fundamental goal of socialism, but he also denied that socialism had anything to do with happiness. This chapter studies the grounds for such ambivalence. The misgivings stemmed in part from the basic psychology of happiness—in Orwell’s mind, at least, it often appeared to be too subjective, too ephemeral, and too contingent to serve as a viable public end. He believed, moreover, that its pursuit was self-undermining: the best means of eroding happiness was to make it the be-all and end-all of everything. Orwell also worried that happiness was incompatible with virtue. The chapter explores his moral and political criticisms of hedonism, but it also considers his conviction that pleasure had a key role to play in the good life. How these theories may have shaped his own colourful life is the concluding concern of the chapter.
Title: Happiness
Description:
Orwell had mixed views on happiness.
He cast it as the fundamental goal of socialism, but he also denied that socialism had anything to do with happiness.
This chapter studies the grounds for such ambivalence.
The misgivings stemmed in part from the basic psychology of happiness—in Orwell’s mind, at least, it often appeared to be too subjective, too ephemeral, and too contingent to serve as a viable public end.
He believed, moreover, that its pursuit was self-undermining: the best means of eroding happiness was to make it the be-all and end-all of everything.
Orwell also worried that happiness was incompatible with virtue.
The chapter explores his moral and political criticisms of hedonism, but it also considers his conviction that pleasure had a key role to play in the good life.
How these theories may have shaped his own colourful life is the concluding concern of the chapter.
Related Results
Happiness Contested
Happiness Contested
Innes suggests that in the eighteenth century ‘happiness’ was a widely current term which could denote an individual ‘feeling’, a social experience, a spiritual state, or a politic...
Nurturing Happiness
Nurturing Happiness
Abstract
Nurturing Happiness: How Religion Shapes Emotional Practice describes how American religious leaders at pivotal moments in their history attempted to guide—...
The Savanna Theory of Happiness
The Savanna Theory of Happiness
This chapter describes the savanna theory of happiness, which posits that it may not be only the consequences of a given situation in the current environment that affect individual...
Wealth and Happiness
Wealth and Happiness
Does wealth accumulation impact subjective well-being? Within a country, household wealth has been shown to improve individual well-being by providing a safety net of protection ag...
Optimism, Literature, and Culture in American Capitalism and Chinese Socialism
Optimism, Literature, and Culture in American Capitalism and Chinese Socialism
Abstract
This book examines and interprets the uncanny similarity between capitalism and socialism over the twentieth century as both systems found ways to encourage...
‘The Wretch of To-day, may be happy To-morrow’
‘The Wretch of To-day, may be happy To-morrow’
This chapter explores what we can know about the conceptualization and representation of by poorer Britons. It draws on ‘pauper letters’ to parish authorities, written tactically, ...
Laugh Yourself Thin
Laugh Yourself Thin
For readers seeking scientifically proven methods for permanent weight loss that enable them to still have fun and enjoy their lives, this accessible, entertaining, and humorous bo...