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The American dream enshrined in the Declaration of Independence contains a simple phrase. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The strength of the idea has always been dramatic. The 1789 French Revolution, the medieval Crusades, and the Russian Revolution resulted in what we might call terror in its pursuit of liberty and happiness. It strikes me that the achievement of a state of being good, i.e., personal virtue, kindness, honesty, and integrity, was possibly the primary direction lost in the pursuit of happiness.
Maybe it’s because being happy is much harder to define in a precise way. It is an elusive goal in that it constantly changes. I’m happy with my car until the new models come out. I’m happy with my wardrobe until the fashion changes. I’m happy with my group until I get offended by what someone says or doesn’t say and I feel uncomfortable because of conviction or lack of it. I’m happy in my marriage until I feel undervalued or overused or unappreciated, and then I leave. I’m not happy because I feel I’m not getting my fair share or my neighbor is getting more than his. I don’t want to be happy because I don’t get any attention and I’m only happy when I get attention. So to be happy what I must do is anything that will make me happy. Whether unkind, selfish, dishonest, illegal, or depraved it is okay because in order to be happy and to achieve my goal I must do whatever it takes.
The individualization of the pursuit of happiness is a phenomenon that has become increasingly prevalent in our society. With the rise of consumerism and the emphasis on personal choice, we have come to view happiness as something that is entirely within our control. We are told that we can be happy if we just make the right choices, buy the right products, and surround ourselves with the right people. This emphasis on individual choice and control has led to a culture in which we feel responsible for our own happiness, and in which we are quick to blame ourselves when we are unhappy.
So here we are, all of us with noble intentions, only trying to be the best little people we can while moving slowly, generation after generation, moving away from the real goal of goodness. The farther we move away from the mountain the more it looks like a hill. Even the definition of good has changed to something that fits our pursuit of happiness. We now readily accept the fact that lying is okay if the truth will make someone unhappy. It’s acceptable to overspend in a world of poverty because of the pleasure of immediate consumption. In recent history, we have seen cheating, fraud, terrorism, and ruthless cruelty done by humankind in the name of goodness that has morphed into nothing more than the hidden search for happiness. The reward of happiness without goodness is empty despair.
Make no mistake, I am not outside of the indictments I present nor are any of us. My hope is that we can move to a more introspective perspective and choose lifestyles that move us away from blind happiness to the real happiness of being good. It is my belief to be good, not happy, and as we pursue goodness, we learn the secret. The French would say “Je ne suis pas heureux: mais je suis contenu”, I am not happy, but I am content.
Well said! Merci!
Lots of room for contemplation.
Good article.